Ridley Scott is back in the sci-fi sphere after the premiere of his recent book-to-movie adaptation, The Dog Stars. Despite the movie being a relative flop, he still has strong opinions on both past franchises and new projects. Namely, that he’ll be returning to finish his Alien franchise trilogy that began with Prometheus, saying the franchise “needs some help” after the release of Romulus (which was actually well received by critics and audiences alike). But fans of the Prometheus trilogy will probably be waiting a while, as Scott has dropped some big news regarding his next project.
Sitting down with Discussing Film, Scott shared a few details on his newest project: an adaptation of Treasure Island, starring Hugh Jackman as Long John Silver. Casting for the other roles has already begun, according to the director, as well as extensive storyboarding. Pulling back the curtain on his current progress, Scott said, “I’m already storyboarding. I’m already halfway through Treasure Island, knowing exactly what I’m going to do because I draw storyboards like quite a sophisticated comic. I’m filming on paper.”
Ridley Scott tells us he’s already getting ready to shoot his next film, ‘TREASURE ISLAND’ starring Hugh Jackman.
“I’m already halfway through Treasure Island knowing exactly what I’m going to do because I draw storyboards like a quite sophisticated comic.” pic.twitter.com/TyDv9bDKSp
But what does that mean for fans who were hoping that he’d return quickly to the Alien franchise after his previous comments about coming back to the IP? According to Scott, he’s actively working on both projects, but it does seem like Treasure Island is further along than whatever comes next in the Prometheus trilogy.
Talking about his return to the sci-fi IP that put Scott on the map, one fan said, “Honestly, I don’t care what his motivations are for doing a sequel to Covenant. I just want to see the completion of his story.” Referring to Scott’s feelings on Romulus only being “okay,” another fan said, “I think both are true in a way. I think Alien: Romulus was great. However, if he wants to come back and make more movies, I’m not gonna tell him no; he made some fantastic parts of this franchise.”
But other fans weren’t so quick to agree, arguing that it’s time for the director to step back from the franchise and focus on other things. “How could he fix it when he’s the one that made the most mess with it?” asked one user. And another brought Romulus director Fede Álvarez into it, saying, “Romulus got better reception than Covenant from BOTH critics and audiences, and was a box office success, while Covenant underperformed and almost put a stop to the franchise. Sounds like Ridley is a bit bitter Álvarez did better than him.” And considering the wild about-face that Ridley just pulled with his recent comments after previously telling Álvarez that Romulus was “f*cking great,” it’s not an out-of-left-field theory as to why he’s so intent on returning.
