Aliens filmmaker James Cameron sounds like he’s had his fill of the Alien franchise, thank you very much. Seeing as Cameron is rather bullish on the public’s interest in the Avatar universe, your mileage with this stance may vary.
Speaking with Vulture, the Oscar-decorated Titanic helmer discussed a handful to topics while promoting his exec produced Nat Geo doc Atlantis Rising. Included in the mix is a bit of chat about Ridley Scott’s upcoming sci-fi motion picture Alien: Covenant. Cameron praised Scott while also giving a sugar-free assessment of the places the series has gone.
“The franchise has kind of wandered all over the map,” he explained. “Ridley [Scott] did the first film, and he inspired an entire generation of filmmakers and science-fiction fans with that one movie and there have been so many films that stylistically have derived from it, including my own Aliens, which was the legitimate sequel and, I think, the proper heir to his film. I sort of did it as a fanboy. I wanted to honor his film, but also say what I needed to say. After that, I don’t take any responsibility.”
Considering that Cameron’s 1986 film Aliens is considered a masterpiece in the genre, that “fanboy” assessment has a fascinating aura to it. Fanboy or no, the Canadian director questions why the franchise needs to continue.
I don’t think it’s worked out terribly well. I think we’ve moved on beyond it. It’s like, okay, we’ve got it, we’ve got the whole Freudian biomechanoid meme. I’ve seen it in 100 horror films since. I think both of those films stand at a certain point in time, as a reference point. But is there any validity to doing another one now? I don’t know. Maybe. Let’s see, jury’s out. Let’s see what Ridley comes up with. Let me just add to that — and don’t cut this part off, please — I will stand in line for any Ridley Scott movie, even a not-so-great one, because he is such an artist, he’s such a filmmaker. I always learn from him. And what he does with going back to his own franchise would be fascinating.
This all seems like it’d be an excellent topic for Cameron’s upcoming AMC sci-fi cinema project, doesn’t it? Alien: Covenant will arrive in theaters on May 19.
(Via Vulture)
