Damon Lindelof talks Prometheus, Original Alien Prequel

By now you should know that the Alien Prequel has slightly less "Alien" in it and is being referred to as Prometheus. It still takes place within the universe, but isn't being referred as an "Alien" film. The man partly responsible for this is screenwriter Damon Lindelof (LOST), who recently talked about the film on The Kevin Pollak Chat Show:

"It started as an Alien prequel. That is what everybody wanted it to be. Obviously, Ridley Scott has not made a science fiction movie in 25 years, since Blade Runner, so the idea that he’s returning to this genre is huge. But there is a real issue which is — what is the state of the Alien franchise at this point in our lives? There has been Alien vs. Predator and all these things, and its been completely and totally diluted. I’ve always felt that really good prequels should be original movies. And the sequels to those prequels should not be the movie which already exists because, with all due respect to anyone who makes a prequel, but why would you ruin the greatest twist in the history of cinema, “Luke, I am your father”, by showing me three movies which basically spoil that surprise. You can do movies which take place before Star Wars, but I don’t need to see the story of the Skywalker clan. Show me something else which I can’t guess the possible outcome of. There is no suspense in inevitability. So a true prequel should essentially proceed the events of the original film, but be about something entirely different, feature different characters , have an entirely different theme, although it takes place in that same world. That was my fundamental feeling about what this movie wanted to be.

... But I also do feel that this movie is the movie I would want to see as a fanboy, take place in that Alien universe, which precedes the events of the original Alien, but is not necessarily burdened by all the tropes of that franchise with Facehuggers and Chestbursters, and all that stuff that I love… but its sorta like, we’ve seen it before, can we do something different this time? And thats the movie that Ridley wanted to make. And when you’re working with an auteur, you basically just shut your mouth and listen and try to transcribe and channel the vision of that person, and get out of the way." [Thanks /Film]

This interview still points to the fact that not calling it an Alien Prequel is just semantics. It takes place in the Alien universe, but doesn't have facehuggers or chestbursters. While that's part of the Alien films we know and love (including some we don't), we think most people would consider a story involving the space jockey race to be a prequel, even if it doesn't directly tie to the original Alien. Regardless of how much Alien this film has or doesn't, we're excited to see Ridley Scott back behind the camera for a new sci-fi tale.

Prometheus will be released on June 8th, 2012 and stars Noomi Rapace, Michael Fassbender, Charlize Theron, Idris Elba, and Guy Pearce.