ALIEN: ROMULUS Director Says James Cameron "Devoted So Much Time To Us"
Director Fede Álvarez previously revealed that he worked with both Ridley Scott and James Cameron when developing his upcoming sci-fi horror film Alien: Romulus.
The director previously explained that the movie is a hybrid of Alien and Aliens and the story is set in between those two films, so it makes sense that he wanted to capture the tone and sensibilities of those original films that came before.
During a recent interview with CinemaBlend, Alvarez talked about what Cameron brought to the project and how he spent a lot of his time to help develop it.
The two directors became pen pals thanks to actor Stephen Lang, who starred in both Álvarez's Don’t Breathe and Cameron’s Avatar.
The filmmaker shared: “I had met Cameron a few years before, because Stephen Lang – who was in Don’t Breathe – showed that movie to Cameron. Cameron loved the movie, and he invited me to the set of Avatar 2. And we became pen pals.
“So then when this came about, I wrote to him like, ‘Hey, I have a question about Aliens,’ and he was like, ‘Oh, let's talk all about it.’ And we did a two hour zoom call just talking first – the first hour probably talking about Aliens, his experience of making Aliens, and what he learned about dealing with how to make it better.
“He was great, amazing, like he devoted so much time to us. Then he also watched the cut when it was ready, and gave his feedback on it. He's been super supportive. I’m so privileged to have someone like Cameron giving us his time, and helping us to make this movie better.”
I’m sure that Cameron’s involvement helped the filmmaker create a better film for fans to enjoy. We’ve been waiting for another great Alien movie, and it looks like Alvarez might have pulled it off.
When previously talking about how he achieved his goals with this movie and incorporated Scott and Cameron’s foundational knowledge of the franchise, he said: “Obviously Alien and Aliens are very different movies, but we figured out ways with this story to make sure I didn’t have to choose.
“There are incredible, smart things [accomplished] in those movies. You really want to push it and create this world, so as a director, you’re not sitting in your chair and just pointing at shit. I do VFX shots myself. I’m puppeteering there with them. In every movie, I think, ‘Okay, this is the one where I finally got to sit down and just point at shit.’ It doesn’t happen.
“The movies get bigger and I’m still there on the floor getting my hands dirty. And that’s really what Ridley and Cameron told me — the only way to make this movie is you have to be involved at every level. These are very handmade movies from their directors, that’s why they’re so unique.
“This is not a studio movie where you come in, do your thing and there’s a machine going on that knows how to do them.”
Alien: Romulus follows a “group of young people on a distant world who find themselves in a confrontation with the most terrifying life form in the universe.”
The story is set aboard the "abandoned Weyland-Yutani research station the Renaissance, and some two decades after the destruction of the Nostromo in Alien, Romulus sees a young crew of scavengers in search of a way out and a brighter future, only to find the perfect killing machine instead.”
The movie stars Cailee Spaeny, Isabela Merced, who is also joined by Archie Renaux (Shadow and Bone), Spike Fearn (Aftersun), and newcomer Aileen Wu.
I’m ready for a great and scary sci-fi horror movie and it looks like director Fede Alvarez is going to deliver that with Alien: Romulus.
Alvarez is directing from his script written by Rodo Sayagues. Ridley Scott is also a producer on the movie along with Michael Pruss (Boston Strangler) for Scott Free, with Brent O’Connor (Bullet Train), Elizabeth Cantillon (Persuasion) and Tom Moran (The Donut King) serving as executive producers.
Alien: Romulus will be released in theaters on August 16, 2024.