Paul Reiser Talks About His Cut Death Scene From ALIENS
Paul Reiser has returned to the Alien franchise with a new comic book series that he wrote with his son Leon. The comic is titled Aliens: What If…? and it will tell a story that follows Weyland-Yutani Corporation Jr. Executive Carter Burke had he survived the horrific events of the film that took place on LV-426.
It was previously explained, “The saga will further explore the nature of the man who infamously betrayed Ripley and the lengths he’s willing to go to get his hands on the deadliest species in the galaxy… “
While I always assumed that Burke died, some fans believe that he might have survived arguing that the Xenomorphs and their queen take prisoners, so they can produce more Xenomorphs. A lot of the humans were taken and ended up as prisoners under the planet's nuclear reactor. Some say that Burke would likely be taken rather than killed. This was actually true!
It turns out James Cameron shot a scene showing what did happen to Burke, but ended up cutting it. The scene took place in the climax of Aliens when Ripley infiltrates the Xenomorph nest to rescue Newt. In the cut scene, she finds Burke cocooned in the hive, moments away from a Xenomorph bursting out of his chest. At this point, Ripley gives Burke the means to kill himself and continue on her mission. Reiser talked about the scene, saying:
"We don't shoot a scene knowing it's going to cut, so he 'died.' But then when Cameron didn't include the scene, I went, well, maybe I didn't die. And because the fact of that world is Xenomorphs don't kill you, they just cocoon so they can replicate inside you – which by the way, you'll probably die from – but that's not the goal. So Ripley was chasing Newt to go and... She's still alive. They don't kill you, they just cocoon you. So if the kid could be alive, it's very plausible that Burke could be alive."
Sure, but, in the end, it doesn’t really matter because the facility blew the hell up and there’s no way he would’ve survived that! Reiser went on to say:
“The what if of this whole universe is really quite plausible. It's not that far a stretch. Well, he could have, and the timing works out. They figured out the timing. In the movie it's 17 minutes from here to there [the reactor to the drop ship Ripley escapes on]. And that would've been enough time."
The five-issue comic series was also developed by Adam F. Goldberg (The Goldbergs), Brian Volk-Weiss (The Toys That Made Us) and Hans Rodionoff (Damage Control). Guiu Vilanova will be providing the art for the comic series (Cosmic Ghost Rider, Eternals).
The description for the comic reads: “For years, fans of James Cameron’s legendary Aliens questioned whether Carter Burke, a company man more hateable than the Xenos themselves, had actually survived the traumatic events on the terraforming colony Hadley’s Hope. Thirty-five years later, Burke is eeking out a cursed existence on a backwater asteroid. With his once-promising career in the toilet, Burke's only remaining purpose in life is to care for his daughter, Brie. She hates him, probably for being a horrible person. And when she finds out what he’s up to now? It’s not going to be a friendly reunion. Has Burke learned his lesson, or is he about to get all of his companions killed again?”
Reiser said in a statement: "For years, people have asked me about Burke, what it was like to play such a 'bad guy,' to which my response was always 'You say 'bad,' I say 'misunderstood.' Now the world will find out!"