JP Nunez
Disney has just shuffled around a whole bunch of their upcoming release dates, and most of those changes are pretty disappointing. For example, many of their Marvel movies are being delayed, and the forthcoming Avatar sequels are being pushed back as well. But amidst all the bad, there are a few bright spots as well, and for horror fans, the best part of this announcement is that the next entry in the Alien franchise is set to come out next summer.
20th Century Studios has officially dated their untitled Alien film for August 16, 2024, and I couldn’t be happier. Sure, like most Xenomorph aficionados, I have a bit of a love/hate relationship with these movies. I think Alien and Aliens are absolute masterpieces, but after those first two films, the franchise takes a pretty steep nosedive in quality.
But you know what? I’m still super excited about this upcoming Alien movie. No matter how bad the post-Aliens sequels, prequels, and crossovers are, the Xenomorph still holds a special place in my heart, so I’m always willing to give these films a shot.
And this time, I think we just might get a good one. The next movie in the franchise will be written and directed by Fede Alvarez, and I have all the faith in the world in him. He’s the guy who made the 2013 Evil Dead remake and the 2016 home invasion gem Don’t Breathe, so we have every reason to believe he’s going to knock it out of the park with his new Alien film.
At this point, plot details are being kept under wraps, but it was previously reported that the movie would be a stand-alone story with no connections to the rest of the franchise. Admittedly, that’s a bit of a bummer, as it means we won’t be getting Sigourney Weaver back as Ripley, but as long as the film is good, I’m perfectly fine letting her pass the torch to a new generation of characters.
And don’t forget there’s even more Alien on the way. Noah Hawley, the series creator of Legion and Fargo, will be bringing Xenomorph drama to FX sometime soon. His yet untitled Alien prequel show is set to begin production later this year. Ridley Scott is involved as a producer on Hawley’s series as well.
