‘District 9’ director to helm new ‘Alien’ film

Neill Blomkamp, the South African director behind such scifi films as ‘District 9’, ‘Elysium’ and ‘Chappie’, will helm the fifth installment of the ‘Alien’ saga, the digital version of Variety magazine has reported.

20th Century Fox has closed a deal with the filmmaker who has never concealed his reverence for the franchise and especially for the second part that was directed by James Cameron and which he considers his favorite movie.

The new project is separate from the ‘Prometheus’ sequel that will see Ridley Scott teaming up with Fox again.

‘Prometheus’ is set in the same world as the one explored in the first ‘Alien’ movie released in 1979.

According to the blog Deadline on Wednesday, Scott will produce ‘Alien 5’ and Blomkamp will develop the script of the movie that will be set after the events of the ‘Prometheus’ sequel.

Blomkamp had been expressing his desire to be aboard the new ‘Alien’ movie on social networking sites where he posted sketches and illustrations of the iconic alien saying that he had entered negotiations with Fox but without any success.

“There’s a high possibility, a high degree of chance that it happens that I go back and try to get ‘Alien’ made. Fox, they would make it. Like, tomorrow,” the director said.

“I love movies, but Hollywood itself is a difficult animal to negotiate,” he added.

Finally both sides have reached an agreement which the filmmaker himself revealed on Instagram.

“So I think it’s officially my next film,” he wrote next to a new image of the lethal xenomorph.

It is still unknown if Sigourney Weaver, who has starred in all four earlier ‘Alien’ movies, will return to the franchise.

‘Chappie’, the latest film by Blomkamp, opens on Mar.6 and stars Dev Patel, Hugh Jackman and Weaver.