The original star of theAlienfranchise thinks its heroine is overdue a rest, and Sigourney Weaver is right to effectively retire the character of Ripley. While notall of theAlienmoviesstar Sigourney Weaver’s Ellen Ripley, the resilient heroine remains the most iconic character from the series. Introduced in 1979’sAlien, Weaver’s protagonist was the sole survivor of that claustrophobic sci-fi horror movie. AstheAlientimeline continued, her significance to the franchise only grew. 1986’sAlienstransformed Ripley from a canny survivor into an unlikely action heroine, whileAlien 3killed her off.
However, even death itself couldn’t keep Weaver’s character down for long. Ripley returned as a part-Xenomorph clone of her original self in 1997’sAlien: Resurrection. Although this sequel was deeply flawed, Weaver’s typically charismatic turn as the edgy reinvention of the franchise’s original heroine was a high point. Ripley was then retired, since theAlien Vs Predatormovies and Ridley Scott’s laterAlienprequels were both set before her birth. Since 2024’s reboot of the series was set betweenAlienandAliens, some viewers were surprised whenAlien: Romulus’ endingdidn’t include an appearance from Ripley.
Alien: Romulus Detail Spoiled A Dark Character Death Long Before It Happened
While Alien: Romulus' nastiest death arrives near the movie’s ending, the Alien reboot hinted at this twist as early as possible in its story.
Ripley Deserves To Rest Like Sigourney Weaver Wants
The Original Alien Franchise Star Is Right To Retire The Iconic Character
However, viewers who assume Ripley will soon return for the next installment of the series shouldn’t be so sure. In a 2024Deadlineinterview, Weaver admitted that she doesn’t often cast her mind back to the potential future of the franchise’s heroine. After questioning just how much cinema goers were clamoring for anotherAlienmovie starring Ripley, the actor said she was busy and that “Ripley has earned her rest.”Weaver is right about retiring Ripleyas the character carried the series for long enough. Now, the franchise’s future will be stronger without an unnecessary reliance on Weaver’s original heroine.
It is unlikely that Ripely could have appeared in the next installment of the series, sinceFX’sAlienTV showAlien: Earthonce again takes viewers back to the past for another prequel. However, Ripley could appear in a follow-up toAlien: Romulus, since the movie took place beforeAliens. Ripley was in cryo-sleep during the events of director Fede Alvarez’s brutal addition to the franchise, butAlien: Romulus’ sequel could jump ahead a few decades. In doing so, the series could skip past the events ofAliensandAlien 3, since the latter picks up immediately after the former.
Sigourney Weaver’s Alien Return Would Be Complicated
Ellen Ripley Was Left In A Tricky Situation By Earlier Movies
That said, just because the timelines match up doesn’t mean this story would make sense. As viewers familiar with the series know,bringing back Ripley in a newAlienmovie wouldn’t be all that easy. InAlien 3’s ending, Ripley realizes that the evil Weyland-Yutani Corporation plans on using the Xenomorph growing inside her as a bioweapon. Ripley sacrifices herself instead of suffering a fate likeAlien: Romulus’s worst death scene, dying to avoid the Xenomorph’s propagation. To bring her back to life,Alien: Resurrectionfeatured a convoluted storyline wherein Ripely was cloned by the same corrupt company.
It is unclear whether a new Alien movie featuring Ripley would follow on from Alien: Resurrection’s ending, or retcon both Alien 3 and Alien: Resurrection.
Weyland-Yutani brought Ripley back in the hopes of retrieving the Xenomorph Queen’s DNA, resulting in a super-powered version of the character who was part-Xenomorph and part-human. This premise had potential, but it was mostly wasted in an uneven outing. Now, it is unclear whether a newAlienmovie featuring Ripley will follow on fromAlien: Resurrection’s ending, or retcon bothAlien 3andAlien: Resurrectionto pick up whereAliensleft off. Both approaches have their problems, sinceAlien: Resurrection’s story wasn’t well-liked, but cutting the two movies from the timeline would confuse the events of the franchise considerably.
Alien Has Other Stories To Tell Without Ripley
Alien: Romulus Proves The Series Has Plenty Of Plots To Follow
Not only is it hard to bring back Weaver’s character, buttheAlienfranchise could succeed without Ripley’s presence.Alien: Romulusset up a surprising number of canonical connections between Scott’s prequels and the original series, deftly weaving the two timelines together with a few judicious retcons. For allAlien: Romulus’ franchise problems, the standalone story proved that theAlienseries can be engaging and compelling without Ripley. Alvarez’s movie also linkedPrometheusandAlien: Covenantto the earlierAlienmovies, meaning the series could revisit David’s plot. Michael Fassbender’s android villain arguably needs a return more than Ripley.
David’s story only grew more interesting the more viewers learned about him.
Ripley might be the franchise’s best character, but the series has also done her story to death. Generally, bringing a character back from the dead is a good sign that the franchise should give them a rest for good. In contrast, David’s story only grew more interesting the more viewers learned about him. Admittedly,Alien: Romulus seemingly undid the odd revelation that David invented the Xenomorph inAlien: Covenant. Still, the amoral android’s adventures have more potential and the character’s strange, original storyline should be expanded further.Alien: Romulus’s morally ambiguous androids made revisiting David’s character arc even more engrossing.
Why Sigourney Weaver Never Playing Ripley Again Is Difficult To Believe
Weaver’s Eventual Alien Return Still Feels Almost Unavoidable
While Weaver is right to say that the character doesn’t need to be brought back again,it seems inevitable that Ripely will eventually appear in another Alien movie. Most major horror franchises have brought back their original final girls in one way or another, fromScreamtoHalloweentoTexas Chainsaw Massacre.Director Neill Blomkamp’s canceledAlien 5centered around Ripley’s comeback, and the popularity of legacy sequels leaves viewers with no reason to believe that theAlienseries won’t eventually indulge in this lucrative trend. If this does happen, Weaver should play the character in Ripley’s eventual return.
In 2021, Blomkamp toldThe Guardianthat Weaver was “Really into” his version ofAlien 5.
Although there is no need for Ripley to put in another onscreen appearance, Weaver reprising her role would be much better than any attempt to replace the actor. Weaver’s performances in the original movies made Ripley a sci-fi icon, so there is no way the series could successfully recast her for a reboot. Although theAlienmovies have plenty of other options to explore, Ripley’s story is still the most cohesive and memorable narrative the franchise has offered so far. As such, it shouldn’t come as a major shock if Weaver’s Ripley returns for anotherAlienmovie someday.
