Alien Sequel Only Exists After Fox Was Sued for Faking the Numbers

Sigourney Weaver became a legendary Hollywood heroine when she first originated the role of the courageous Ellen Ripley in Ridley Scott’s groundbreaking 1979 sci-fi horror spectacle Alien. The immersive and pulse-pounding film focuses on a starship’s crew as they are terrorized by a violent and deadly extraterrestrial that was set loose onboard the vessel, with the creature wreaking havoc and eliminating anyone that gets in its path. Alien is now considered to be one of the silver screen’s greatest achievements and successfully launched a lucrative and enduring franchise that still resonates today.

However, any further film installments were nearly D.O.A. after 20th Century Fox got into a highly-publicized and controversial battle with Brandywine Productions over profits from Alien, and the studio was effectively sued into approving the production of a much-anticipated sequel as a result. With all that in mind, let’s take a look at the long and complicated history surrounding the Alien franchise and discover just how the follow-up masterpiece came to fruition.

An Influential Cinematic Masterpiece

Upon Alien‘s spectacular debut, critics and audiences alike were blown away by the sci-fi flick’s jaw-dropping creature effects and stunning visuals, going on to win the Academy Award for Best Visual Effects. The ’70s juggernaut won numerous additional accolades, like three Saturn Awards (including Best Science Fiction Film), the Hugo Award for Best Dramatic Presentation, and a BAFTA Award for Best Film Music, and went on to rake in over $184 million at the box office against a modest $11 million budget.

Though Alien garnered an initial mixed-bag response, it has since gone on to be regarded as one of the finest and most influential sci-fi and horror films of all time and launched a lucrative and enduring franchise consisting of numerous sequels, prequels, and crossovers. The blockbuster hit also established Weaver as a certified leading lady, paving the way for her illustrious film career. Over forty years after its exhilarating worldwide premiere in 1979, Alien continues to captivate the masses with its adrenaline-pumping action, taut pacing, and electrifying visuals, with the titular creature since being regarded as “one of the most iconic movie monsters in film history.”

The impact Alien had on both the cinema and pop culture truly cannot be overstated, as its ominous atmosphere, cutting-edge imagery, uniquely terrifying monster, and masterful blend of sci-fi and horror remain a touchstone in the engrossing genre that is often referenced. The Alien franchise has gone on to gross over $1.3 billion worldwide and never fails at delivering plenty of thrills and chills, with Syfy retrospectively calling the original picture a “groundbreaking science fiction classic” and “a movie so influential that it’s hard to think of a time before Alien.”

Brandywine Productions vs. 20th Century Fox

Despite winning an Academy Award, dominating at the box office, and propelling the professional careers of both Sigourney Weaver and Ridley Scott, 20th Century Fox was not sold on the idea of producing a potential sequel to the brilliant Alien. By the time talks of a follow-up were underway after its dazzling debut in 1979, the studio resorted to some shady methods in an effort to thwart financing a sequel.

As previously mentioned, Alien grossed $184.7 million during its theatrical run (and re-release) and set 51 house records its opening weekend by earning $3,527,881 over the four-day period, with fans lining up outside Grauman’s Egyptian Theatre to see the film even though it never received a formal premiere. In spite of the obviously impressive commercial performance of Alien, 20th Century Fox went on to claim that in the 11 months since the sci-fi flick’s release, the studio had actually lost $2 million.

Through the magic of Hollywood accounting, Fox attempted to disguise Alien’s revenue in order to diminish the payments it needed to make to its co-producing company Brandywine Productions, and subsequently thwart a potential sequel. After a major public outcry by industry accountants and a widespread demand for a recount of the film’s profits, Fox swiftly changed their tune in August 1980 and claimed that Alien actually made a profit of $4 million (a figure that was once again disputed). Brandywine filed a lawsuit against Fox for unpaid profits, and when Joe Wizan (who was receptive to a sequel) took over as head of the studio’s motion picture division, the lawsuit was ultimately settled in 1983 and Aliens was approved to help recoup Brandywine’s profits.

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James Cameron’s Tumultuous Production

After an ugly and bitter battle between Brandywine Productions and 20th Century Fox, plans for a sequel were officially underway by 1985. However, another obstacle emerged when Fox announced that they did not want Sigourney Weaver to return due to fears of a potentially hefty price tag. Aliens writer and director James Cameron and producer Gale Anne Hurd were determined to have Weaver return, and after some major back-and-forth and the actress initially declining to reprise her role, she landed a $1 million salary and a percentage of the box office earnings.

Upon securing Weaver as the lead star, production quickly got underway with a 75-day shoot schedule and $18.5 million budget, with the actress being joined on screen by Michael Biehn, Paul Reiser, and Bill Paxton. As with many James Cameron projects, the notoriously uncompromising director clashed with the British film crew and didn’t understand the country’s film-industry traditions, as they would take hour-long tea breaks that would halt production. Cameron also fired assistant director Derek Cracknell after his requests were ignored, and at one point the Pinewood crew even walked out in solidarity with Cracknell.

The filmmaker’s relative inexperience at the time (he was 31 during the shoot) paired with his dismissal of Cracknell almost led to a full-on mutiny by the crew, prompting Cameron to set a meeting that lasted hours and allowed the cast and crew to air out their grievances. Though they were all able to get back to business and complete their work on Aliens, Cameron and the crew members never developed a camaraderie and resulted in the Oscar-winning director addressing them all when filming wrapped and saying:

“This has been a long and difficult shoot, fraught by many problems. But the one thing that kept me going, through it all, was the certain knowledge that one day I would drive out the gate of Pinewood and never come back, and that you sorry b**tards would still be here.”

Aliens Emerges as a Trailblazing Triumph

Aliens overcame numerous production delays, a high-profile lawsuit, and even an on-set mutiny in order to finally make it into movie theaters all across the world on July 18, 1986, seven years after the debut of the original picture. The headache and hassle that constantly plagued the long-awaited sequel seemed to be all worth it after the sci-fi horror flick’s release, as Aliens opened at number one at the box office and earned $10.1 million, exceeding Fox’s expectations and becoming a certified summer blockbuster hit. At the end of its theatrical run, the film brought in $85 million in North America and over $183 million worldwide.

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The buzzed-about sequel was also a knockout with critics, who praised Weaver’s phenomenal performance as well as Aliens‘ frightening scenes, endless thrills and chills, and stunning visual effects. She rightfully earned an Oscar nomination for her stellar work. Many were taken aback by the intensity of the horror and action themes but were nonetheless dazzled by Cameron’s fearless approach to storytelling and pushing cinematic boundaries. Aliens is considered one of the greatest sequels of all time and one of the most unforgettable films of the 1980s, and without Brandywine’s epic fight with Fox, Ellen Ripley’s thrilling story and legacy would have been criminally cut short.