Cinefantastique Online

SciFICool.com – in a decidely uncool post - takes actress Sigourney Weaver to task for suggesting that any (at this point hypothetical) ALIEN 5 should focus more on the character of Ripley than on the Alien. From the MTV.com interview quoted in the SciFiCool post:

When I chatted with Sigourney Weaver the other day [...] the actress definitely seemed to still have plans for her iconic alter-ego. “There’s definitely uncharted territory for Ripley,” she promised.

However Weaver wondered if the alien itself can and should factor into another film after the exposure its gotten in two “AVP” films. She asked aloud “whether there’s unchartered territory for a creature who’s become somewhat debased by this computer generated thing. I haven’t seen ["Alien Vs. Predator"] but I just think if you overexpose the creature, that’s a mistake.”

Weaver confirmed that she and Scott have discussed re-teaming for a fifth film, “Both of us feel a kind of commitment to that woman. He’s as much responsible for who she is as I am.” Then as she opined on the way the alien creature had been ruined in the recent films, Weaver’s comments got especially interesting.

“We’d have to go back to the drawing board on [the alien],” she said. “Ridley said that right away when we first talked about [a fifth film].”

And finally, the quote that’s gotten me mighty curious, “What we’re interested in is taking the character of Ripley and seeing what other science fiction story we can tell about someone who has lived several lives.”

To which, SciFiCool responds:

See, it’s an “Alien” movie — minus the aliens!

Brilliant, Sigourney. Just effin’ brilliant. God, I hope no one asks her anything regarding story on the fifth movie, if one should even get made. This woman doesn’t have a clue at all. What’s next, Sigourney, a “Ghostbustes” sequel without ghosts?

Well, I will go ahead and state the obvious: Weaver is right. The Aliens have been overexposed, and the recent AVP films have debased the franchise in a way that is well-nigh irreparable. Some kind of new twist or spark of imagnation is necessary to make a subsequent film worth considering. Making a “Riply” movie may not be a guaranteed solution, but it would have more potential than churning out another pointless sequel just to show the monsters running around and killing people one more time.

There is also talk of another GHOSTBUSTERS sequel, but not even Weaver knows whether her character of Dana Barret will return. From MTV.com:

Ms. Sigourney Weaver is well aware of the chatter. “I’ve heard about it,” she said, adding “I’m supposed to get in touch with Bill [Murray] next week.”

Weaver called Murray’s potential involvement “great” and said she’s wondering if he thinks Dana ended up with Venkman. “Does he think we got married or something?” she laughed. Weaver wasn’t sure if there was a place for her in the story but she did think someone deserves a spot. “I would hope that my little Oscar would be one of the Ghostbusters even if I’m not in it!”