The Ridiculous Reason The Original Version Of Alien 3 Was Shot Down By Fox [Exclusive]
"Alien 3" remains a fascinating entry within one of sci-fi's most enduring franchises. While both Ridley Scott's original "Alien" and James Cameron's "Aliens" remain unimpeachable classics, the third entry is a bit more divisive. It was director David Fincher's feature debut and the end result is a bit messy, in no small part thanks to studio interference. The version we got sees Sigourney Weaver's Ripley in a space prison, once again facing off against a Xenomorph. But director Renny Harlin, of "Deep Blue Sea" and "Cliffhanger" fame, had a radically different idea for the film when he was attached, and sadly, that version never came to fruition.
"I always thought that I had a good idea," Harlin said recently in an interview with /Film's Jacob Hall in honor of his upcoming film "The Strangers: Chapter 1," which is the first part of a whole new trilogy. So, what was Harlin's idea? To bring the Xenomorphs to Earth. Unfortunately, Fox executives didn't envision that approach working at the time. Why not? Here's what Harlin had to say about it:
"I was working on 'Alien 3' in '89, which was before 'Jurassic Park' and all those movies. So the concept of having these creatures on Earth for the studio, it felt scary and unattainable. For me, it was the natural evolution. We've had the 'Alien' with the truck drivers in space, we've had 'Aliens' with the Marines in space, and where do we go next? Let's bring the aliens on Earth and have them going through the cornfield. I had the poster already in my mind with the farmhouse and the cornfield in moonlight, and they are going through the cornfield. To this day, I think it would've been a ginormous hit movie because it would've been the first time anything like that was done. But for whatever reason, the studio felt like, 'Ah, the audience won't buy that.'"
Why Renny Harlin politely quit Alien 3
Put simply, Fox executives of the day allegedly didn't feel that audiences would get invested in the idea of aliens on Earth. Yet, just four years after "Alien 3" hit theaters, "Independence Day" would go on to become one of the biggest movies of all time up to that point. What's more, FX is currently making an "Alien" TV show that will bring the action to Earth, which sort of brings the idea full circle. Harlin explained that he politely walked away from the project when he realized it couldn't live up to his own high expectations:
"So let's put the aliens on a prison ship. A prison ship? How am I going to relate to a prison ship? But that's ancient history. I'm not blaming anybody, but for those who don't know, I worked for a year on 'Alien 3,' and I quit politely, respectfully, because I couldn't stand the idea of, after Ridley Scott and Jim Cameron, coming up with a movie that is just not going to live up to what the audience is expecting and give them that experience. The key to me, just to say again about the 'Alien' movies, was that they have to be relatable. They might be in outer space, but the characters are you and I, in outer space, and that's what makes them tick."
The production of "Alien 3" was famously a nightmare, and Fincher seems pretty unhappy about the whole thing to this day. The franchise lives on, however. Aside from the aforementioned TV show, Fede Alvarez, of "Don't Breathe" fame, has directed a new film titled "Alien: Romulus" that takes place between the events of the first two films, which is set to hit theaters in August. Harlin, for his part, had a very fruitful career after leaving his ill-fated version of this film behind. Still, it's hard not to wonder what could have been if Fox had just been able to get on board with his vision at the time.
"The Strangers: Chapter 1" hits theaters on May 17, 2024.