Ridley Scott Will Direct Alien Prequel

TheHDRoom.com

Ridley Scott’s involvement in an Alien prequel has proven to be more substantiated than wishful rumors.

Variety is reporting Fox is moving forward to resuscitate the four film franchise by hiring Jon Spaihts to write a prequel script and attaching the original Alien director Ridley Scott to direct.

Scott’s name has come up in rumors to helm an Alien prequel for some time now. Over that time, Robert Rodriguez has gotten a Predator reboot off the ground with Fox which is expected to hit theaters next summer. With Alien also getting a fresh start, we can formally say adieu to the Aliens vs Predators franchise.

Spaihts’ recently completed the script for Keanu Reeves’ space epic Passengers which helped him secure the Alien prequel gig. Though Spaihts’ body of work appears slim at first glance, he has a number of writing projects in the hopper including The Darkest Hour for Timur Bekmambetov, Children of Mars for Disney, and a rewrite of St. George and the Dragon for Sony.

Still unknown at this time is whether Spaihts will write a direct prequel that leads into the events of Alien or a completely separate standalone story constructed to launch a new franchise with new heroes. I am personally pulling for a clever mix of the two.

Tim Burton Talks ‘9′ and New Image Released

 ‘9’ is the first full length feature film from Director Shane Acker and the visionary filmmakers Tim Burton (Batman / Edward Scissorhands) and Timur Bekmambetov (Wanted / Nightwatch). It is based upon a short film of the same name that was made by Acker back in 2005 (click here to visit a page where you can watch the short, the original trailer and an extended clip from the upcoming movie).

The story of 9 takes place in a post-apocalyptic and alternate reality future where all of humanity is gone. The remaining inhabitants are rag dolls but their very existence is threatened by fearsome killing machines determined to hunt the rag dolls down to extinction. 9 (voiced by Elijah Wood) is created to help protect the remaining raggies, but rather than guide them to safety, 9 convinces them that their only chance of survival is to fight back.

Producer Tim Burton has spoken with MTV Movies Blog ahead of his scheduled attendance at next week’s San Diego Comic-Con panel to promote the film.

“I just love the texture and stop-motion feel to it,” Burton said. “I know animation is broadening its horizons but this just felt different… I liked the world that [Acker] created and the texture. It felt like a different type of animated film. The visuals were helping to create the story. I just felt very in tune with the look and feel of it.”

“Our goal as producers—if you see someone you like, you don’t want to suppress them—the goal was to create an environment where he can do his thing,” Burton continued. “My attitude is always to give suggestions and if he uses them fine, if not, okay. We wanted this to be grounded and slightly realistic in the similar vein to stop-motion, let the film breathe. We wanted it to have mystery and let it breathe.”

When asked what attendees at the Comic-Con could expect to see from the film Burton was careful not to give anything away.

“Probably a sequence or two,” he said.

Burton will be present at the Friday July 24 panel alongside 9 stars Elijah Wood and Jennifer Connelly, director Shane Acker and fellow producer Timur Bekmambetov.

9 will be released in the US – September 9, 2009

Source(s): SciFiScoop.com, EW.com, MTV.com