Fede Alvarez shoots down rumors that one key Alien franchise actor will return to the franchise. Alvarez directed Alien: Romulus, 2024’s franchise film that did well at the box office. The Alien film, also received an Oscar nomination for Best Visual Effects. While Alien: Romulus does pay homage to the previous movies, the franchise installment largely has a new cast that includes Cailee Spaeny, David Jonsson, Archie Renaux, Isabela Merced, Spike Fearn, and Aileen Wu.

On social media, Alvarez responds to an online rumor surrounding the return of a key character in the Alien franchise. The rumor alleges that the studio is considering bringing back former protagonist Ellen Ripley to the franchise. According to Alvarez, however, this is “Fun gossip. But not true at all.”

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What This Means For The Alien: Romulus Sequel

Ripley Will Not Return

Alien: Romulus takes place between the events of Alien and Aliens. As such, this means that Ellen Ripley is alive during the events of Romulus. Neither Sigourney Weaver nor a stand-in Ripley appeared in the 2024 installment, but the announcement of the Alien: Romulus sequel understandably prompted fans to wonder whether the character would make an appearance in the next film. After all, she is extremely popular, and modern de-aging technology could even allow Weaver herself to return. Alvarez’s most recent quote seems adamant that this will not happen.

This does not mean, however, that the Alien: Romulus sequel will not include any characters that reference the previous films. Alien: Romulus itself included a synthetic named Rook, who is the same model as Ian Holm’s character Ash in the original films. Though Holm died in 2020, the team used AI and CGI in order to bring his likeness back. The sequel will not employ such technology to de-age Weaver for the film, but they could try to bring back other characters from either Alien or Aliens.

Our Take On Ripley Not Returning For The Alien: Romulus Sequel

This Might Be For The Best

Overall, it is probably a good thing that the Alien: Romulus sequel is opting against having a de-aged Weaver as Ripley. Bringing back Ripley, even for a cameo, would run the risk of the movie seeming too much like fan service. Additionally, Weaver has already been notably de-aged to play Kiri in James Cameron’s Avatar: The Way of Water and the upcoming Avatar: Fire and Ash, so employing the same strategy for the Alien: Romulus sequel could be the subject of mockery.

Source: Fede Alvarez/X