'Alien 5' Updates: What director Neill Blompkamp did to re-invigorate interest in the franchise

By Staff Writer

Apr 24, 2015 12:38 PM EDT

It is no secret that another 'Alien' movie is "in the works." Back in January, director Neill Blomkamp revealed some of his ideas and concept art of what he thought the next sequel to the Alien franchise should be like. After the unofficial release, numerous fans of the seemingly-dead science fiction-horror movie franchise became excited - not because there was going to be another 'Alien' movie, but because of the fact that this sequel would basically disregard the events of Alien 3 and Resurrection, being a direct sequel to 1986's 'Aliens' by James Cameron.

According to a report made by Movie Pilot, director Blompkamp's concept art featured the characters of Ellen Ripley and Cpl. Dwayne Hicks, indicating that actors Sigourney Weaver and Michael Biehn may return to reprise their roles in the fifth installment. Additionally, actor Sharlto Copley, who worked extensively with Blompkamp in his previous films such as District 9 and Elysium, expressed his interest in playing a Xenomorph in the planned sequel.

The Alien franchise, while starting out great, fell flat to the ground after numerous critics blasted it for having such "shameful" sequels (basically every movie that came out after 'Aliens'). With that in mind, why are fans so eagerly expectant of the announcement of a sequel?

The answer is simple - Neill Blompkamp. This South African producer and director has so far produced some of the best science fiction movies of the 2010s, such as Elysium and District 9. Sure, he does not have a career resume as extensive as James Cameron's, but most (if not all) of the films he has helmed so far have been critically praised (except for the recent one, 'Chappie'). After staying for so long in development hell, perhaps an imagination such as Blompkamp's is exactly what the movie needs in order to get back on track.

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