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Alien: Covenant

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"The path to paradise begins in hell."
―Alien: Covenant tagline

Alien: Covenant is an upcoming 2017 science fiction horror film directed by Ridley Scott and starring Michael Fassbender, Katherine Waterston, Billy Crudup, Danny McBride and Demián Bichir. It is a sequel to the 2012 film Prometheus, taking place roughly ten years later,[1] and follows the colony ship Covenant, bound for a remote planet on the far side of the galaxy. Upon landing, the crew discover what they think is an uncharted paradise, inhabited solely by the android David, survivor of the ill-fated Prometheus expedition. However, the planet is soon revealed to be far more dangerous than they could ever have imagined.

The film is set to explore the origins of the Xenomorph species as seen in the Alien franchise, and will also feature a new version of the creature dubbed the Neomorph.[2] The film will be followed by two further movies, ultimately leading up to the events of the original Alien.[3] Production of the film began in February 2016,[4] with a scheduled release date of May 19, 2017.[5] The film was originally titled Alien: Paradise Lost.[6]

Plot

"Ridley Scott returns to the universe he created in 'Alien' with 'Alien: Covenant', the second chapter in a prequel trilogy that began with 'Prometheus' — and connects directly to Scott's 1979 seminal work of science fiction. Bound for a remote planet on the far side of the galaxy, the crew of the colony ship Covenant discovers what they think is an uncharted paradise, but is actually a dark, dangerous world — whose sole inhabitant is the "synthetic" David (Michael Fassbender), survivor of the doomed Prometheus expedition."
―Plot summary from Bloody Disgusting[7]

Cast

Writing

During the March 17, 2012 WonderCon, Scott stated that Prometheus would leave many questions unanswered, and that these could be answered in a sequel, saying, "If we're lucky, there'll be a second part. It does leave you with some nice open questions."[18][19] Asked if a sequel would be a direct prequel to Alien, Prometheus writer Damon Lindelof said, "If we're fortunate enough to do a sequel... it will tangentialize even further away from the original Alien."[20]

In June 2012, Lindelof stated that while plot elements were deliberately left unresolved so that they could be answered in a sequel, he and Scott thoroughly discussed what should be resolved so that Prometheus could stand alone, as a sequel was not guaranteed. Further detailing his sequel concept, Scott stated that it would follow Shaw to her next destination, "because if it is paradise, paradise cannot be what you think it is. Paradise has a connotation of being extremely sinister and ominous".[21] Lindelof cast doubt on his participation, stating, "If [Scott] wants me to be involved in something, that would be hard to say no to. At the same time, I do feel like [Prometheus] might benefit from a fresh voice or a fresh take or a fresh thought."[21] Scott has stated that an additional film would be required to bridge the gap between the Prometheus sequel and the original Alien. In an interview with Empire Magazine, posted October 28, 2013, Scott confirmed that "Prometheus 2 is written", but did not indicate when it might start shooting.[22]

During publicity for his 2015 film The Martian, Scott stated that the Prometheus sequel was going to be his next project, with production due to start in February 2016. He also confirmed that the film would follow on from Shaw's comments at the end of the first film regarding her desire to search for the Engineer home world.[4] In an interview with HeyUGuys, Scott later stated that the film's title would be Alien: Paradise Lost, in reference to the John Milton poem Paradise Lost, which deals with the Fall of Man and the temptations of Adam and Eve.[6] He went on to state that the title had been chosen "because we're heading back to why and how and when the beast was invented. We'll go back into the back door of the very first Alien that I did thirty years ago".[6] This appeared to contradict earlier statements that the sequel would have even less of a connection with Alien than the first Prometheus movie. This change of direction was confirmed when Scott later acknowledged that the original Alien creature would feature in the new movie, as the title implied.[23]

In November 2015, Scott announced that the film's title had been changed to Alien: Covenant[24] and also stated that screenwriter John Logan had been brought onto the production to overhaul the script.[25]

Concept and Design

On October 24, 2016, the production team revealed details regarding the new alien creature that would feature in the movie — dubbed the "Neomorph" by the production crew — through an exclusive released by AVPGalaxy.net.[2] The creatures share several traits with the Xenomorphs from earlier films (most notably, they gestate inside living human hosts) but were otherwise designed to be quite different, with white, translucent skin.[2] Later the same month, a batch of photographs were leaked showcasing new designs for several of the original Xenomorph's life cycle stages as they would appear in the film, but these were quickly taken down by 20th Century Fox.[26]

Casting

During pre-production, Scott clarified that Michael Fassbender would return for the sequel, playing both David from Prometheus as well as a "doppelganger" named Walter.[8] In December 2015, it was announced that American actress Katherine Waterston had been cast as Daniels, the film's lead character.[27] Despite Scott initially claiming that Noomi Rapace would not be returning as Prometheus protagonist Elizabeth Shaw,[28] it was later confirmed that she would in fact be appearing in the sequel.[10]

Throughout February 2016, a series of announcements saw the film's cast continue to grow, with actors Demián Bichir, Danny McBride, Carmen Ejogo, Jussie Smollett, Amy Seimetz, Callie Hernandez and Billy Crudup joining the production. In late October 2016, an exclusive report from AVPGalaxy revealed that Guy Pearce would also be returning from Prometheus in the role of Sir Peter Weyland, portraying a younger version of the character in flashback.[11] Several weeks later, AVPGalaxy also revealed that actor James Franco had also been cast in the film, playing Branson, the captain of the Covenant and the husband of Waterston's lead character.[12]

Harry Gregson-Williams was initially announced as the film's composer,[29] having previously worked (uncredited) on Prometheus, but the musician later announced via his Facebook page that he was no longer working on the film.

Filming

In November 2015, it was confirmed that Covenant would film in Sydney, Australia,[30] making it only the second film in the Alien series not to be filmed in the UK, after Alien Resurrection (although minor reshoots were later carried out at Warner Bros. Studios, Leavesden near Watford, England[31]).

Covenant Blast MP Slider

The explosion photographed on set.

Principal photography began on April 4, 2016.[32] Throughout the month, photographs shot by passers by revealed a set for the film, apparently a section of spacecraft, was under construction on location in Milford Sound in New Zealand. A large explosion was also photographed as part of the filming there. Photographs of a separate set constructed in a quarry near Sydney, Australia appeared to show the aftermath of an extraterrestrial massacre, with numerous charred corpses twisted in the throes of agony.[33] Principal photography wrapped on July 19, 2016.[34]

On November 18 it was announced that the film was undergoing reshoots, to be filmed at Warner Bros. Studios, Leavesden.[31]

Release

The film was originally scheduled for an October 6, 2017 release date,[7] but this was brought forward to August 4, 2017.[35] The release date was later brought forward again to May 19, 2017.[5]

Merchandising

Two novels, both written by Alan Dean Foster, will be published to coincide with the release of the film. The first will be a novelisation of the film script,[36] while the second will be an official prequel novel that will take place before the film's events.[37] The books will represent Foster's first involvement with the franchise for 25 years, having previously written the novelisations of Alien, Aliens and Alien3. The prequel novel will also be the first original story Foster has penned for the franchise. A behind the scenes book featuring production artwork from the film titled Alien: Covenant: The Art of the Film will be published by Titan Books.

A tie-in VR game will be released.[38]

Sequel

On March 3, 2017, it was reported that the sequel to Alien: Covenant had already been written and would be ready to film in 2018, dependant on the success of the first film.[13] Later the same month, in an interview with Fandango, Scott appeared to accidentally reveal that the title of the next film would be Alien: Awakening and also seemed to suggest that it would be a prequel set between Prometheus and Covenant.[39] Scott went on to state that there would be at least three further films, assuming the two movies were successful.[39]

Gallery

Videos

See Also

References

  1. ↑ Squires, John (December 31, 2015). "Alien: Covenant Set Ten Years After Prometheus". Dread Central. Retrieved on December 31, 2015.
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 "AVPGalaxy - AvPGalaxy Exclusive: The Neomorphs – Alien: Covenant's New Aliens!". Retrieved on 2016-24-10.
  3. ↑ "Three Prometheus Sequels Will be Made, Director Confirms". Retrieved on 2015-11-30.
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 "Empire - Ridley Scott Updates On Prometheus 2". Retrieved on 2015-09-15.
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 "Twitter - 20th Century Fox". Retrieved on 2016-11-24.
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 "HeyUGuys - Exclusive Interview: Ridley Scott on The Martian & He Reveals Title of Prometheus 2". Retrieved on 2015-09-24.
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 "Bloody Disgusting - 'Alien: Covenant': Official Logo, Synopsis and a Release Date!". Retrieved on 2015-11-16.
  8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 "AVPGalaxy - Introducing Walter, Alien: Covenant's New Synthetic". Retrieved on 2016-10-31.
  9. ↑ 9.0 9.1 9.2 9.3 9.4 "Screen Rant - Alien: Covenant Character Guide – Meet the New Victims". Retrieved on 2017-03-01.
  10. ↑ 10.0 10.1 "Noomi Rapace Joins ‘Alien: Covenant’". Retrieved on 2016-06-21.
  11. ↑ 11.0 11.1 "AVPGalaxy - AvPGalaxy Exclusive: Guy Pearce Returns for Alien: Covenant!". Retrieved on 2016-10-31.
  12. ↑ 12.0 12.1 "AVPGalaxy - AvPGalaxy Exclusive: James Franco To Appear in Alien: Covenant!". Retrieved on 2016-12-10.
  13. ↑ 13.0 13.1 "The Sydney Herald - Ridley Scott promises a return to Alien-style horror in Alien: Covenant". Retrieved on 2017-03-05.
  14. ↑ 14.0 14.1 14.2 14.3 "Deadline - 'Alien: Covenant' Crews Up: 'Empire's Jussie Smollett, Amy Seimetz, Carmen Ejogo & More Join Cast". Retrieved on 2016-02-25.
  15. ↑ "Deadline - 'Alien: Covenant' Adds Aussie Actor Alex England". Retrieved on 2016-03-01.
  16. ↑ "Variety - Ben Rigby Joins 'Alien: Covenant'". Retrieved on 2016-03-17.
  17. ↑ "Twitter - Uli Latukefu". Retrieved on 2017-01-14.
  18. ↑ "Collider - WonderCon 2012: PROMETHEUS Panel Recap Featuring Sir Ridley Scott and Damon Lindelof". Retrieved on 2012-06-16.
  19. ↑ "The Hollywood Reporter - WonderCon 2012: Ridley Scott Talks 'Prometheus' As Extended Trailer Debuts". Retrieved on 2012-03-18.
  20. ↑ "Collider - Director Ridley Scott, Writer Damon Lindelof and Michael Fassbender Talk PROMETHEUS at WonderCon 2012". Retrieved on 2012-06-16.
  21. ↑ 21.0 21.1 "Collider - PROMETHEUS Sequel Recap: What We Know About the Possible Follow-Up So Far". Retrieved on 2012-06-12.
  22. ↑ "Empire - Ridley Scott Talks Exodus, Prometheus 2 And Blade Runner 2". Retrieved on 2013-10-29.
  23. ↑ "The Wrap - Ridley Scott Talks Humor in 'The Martian', Dishes on 'Alien' Prequels". Retrieved on 2015-11-13.
  24. ↑ "Bloody Disgusting - Ridley Scott Changes Title to 'Prometheus' Sequel... Again". Retrieved on 2015-11-13.
  25. ↑ "Variety - Watch Ridley Scott Receive His Star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame". Retrieved on 2015-11-17.
  26. ↑ "AVPGalaxy - Leaked Alien: Covenant Set Pictures Show Film’s New Creatures (And More)". Retrieved on 2016-10-31.
  27. ↑ "Deadline - Katherine Waterston to Star in 'Alien: Covenant'". Retrieved on 2015-12-18.
  28. ↑ "The Daily Mail - Helen McCrory dives in at the deep end as a love cheat". Retrieved on 2016-02-04.
  29. ↑ "YouTube - All Access: Harry Gregson-Williams". Retrieved on 2016-02-17.
  30. ↑ "The Sydney Morning Herald - Ridley Scott hopes to shoot three new Alien movies in Sydney". Retrieved on 2015-12-18.
  31. ↑ 31.0 31.1 "Instagram - thetinaearnshaw". Retrieved on 2016-11-19.
  32. ↑ "SSN Insider - On the Set for 4/8/16: Ridley Scott & Michael Fassbender Start 'Alien: Covenant', Benedict Cumberbatch Wraps 'Doctor Strange'". Retrieved on 2016-09-20.
  33. ↑ "Daily Mail - Aliens on the streets of Sydney! Eerie photos from the set of Prometheus sequel Alien: Covenant show humanoid lifeforms frozen in agony at the moment of their death". Retrieved on 2016-05-21.
  34. ↑ "Slash Film - 'Alien: Covenant' Wraps and Shares One More Set Photo". Retrieved on 2016-09-20.
  35. ↑ "Collider - 'The Predator' and 'Alien: Covenant' Get Official Release Dates". Retrieved on 2016-02-28.
  36. ↑ "AVPGalaxy - Alan Dean Foster to Pen Alien: Covenant Novelization!". Retrieved on 2016-09-29.
  37. ↑ "AVPGalaxy - Alien: Covenant Prequel and/or Sequel Novel". Retrieved on 2017-03-13.
  38. ↑ "GameSpot - Alien: Isolation Never Got a VR Version, But Alien: Covenant Will". Retrieved on 2017-05-01.
  39. ↑ 39.0 39.1 "Fandango - HOW NOOMI RAPACE WILL RETURN FOR 'ALIEN: COVENANT,' PLUS: AT LEAST FOUR MORE 'ALIEN' MOVIES IN THE WORKS". Retrieved on 2017-03-20.

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