It’s been just over a year since Prometheus grossed $403M on a reported budget of $130M. Despite turning a profit, Fox hasn’t been quick to greenlight a sequel, probably because Ridley Scott hasn’t agreed to direct one and Damon Lindelof has already said he wouldn’t write it. Now Variety and The Wrap are reporting that a new writer has been found.
Fox and Ridley Scott have chosen Jack Paglen to write Prometheus 2. He’s known for the black list script for Transcendence, a sci-fi opening next April starring Johnny Depp, Morgan Freeman, Kate Mara, Rebecca Hall, Paul Bettany, and Cillian Murphy.
Ridley Scott will produce Prometheus 2 through his Scott Free banner, but he may not return to direct. Noomi Rapace and Michael Fassbender are expected to return, and we don’t see how they could make the sequel without them.
Plot details are still be worked out but Scott has said in interviews that while the first Prometheus had several elements linking it to the Alien franchise, this latest installment will feel more like its own film. [Variety]
So who’s going to direct, if not Ridley Scott? We liked Bleeding Cool‘s suggestion of Johnny Hardstaff, they guy who made several Prometheus virals like “Happy Birthday, David“. One thing we can be sure of is that Quentin Tarantino won’t be interested.
Hey, you know what would really raise the stakes for Prometheus 2 Da Extreme? More Michael Fassbender robots! Just a ship full of Fassbender robots merrily floating in space, solving mysteries. Maybe call the ship The Mystery Machine. And Noomi Rapace could rock an orange sweater/skirt/socks combo and chunky nerd glasses. I don’t know. Just spitballin’ here.