This Steven Spielberg Suggestion Would Have Ruined ‘Aliens’ FSalinks

In the realm of cinema and entertainment in general, there are few names more synonymous with success than Steven Spielberg. The master storyteller has delighted, terrified, and moved audiences throughout his illustrious career. From his seminal blockbuster, Jaws to his moving adaptation of The Color Purple, Spielberg’s dynamic mode of storytelling is just as influential today as it was when he started making movies. But, while the master filmmaker has created some of cinema’s best stories, not every idea is gold, as was the case with James Cameron’s Aliens. The powerhouse filmmakers have long admired each other’s talent. When Cameron took the reins to the sequel from Ridley Scott in the follow-up, Spielberg had a passionate story suggestion, one that would have not only changed the course of the sequel, but the beloved Alien franchise altogether.

Aliens

Decades after surviving the Nostromo incident, Ellen Ripley is sent out to re-establish contact with a terraforming colony but finds herself battling the Alien Queen and her offspring.

Release Date

July 18, 1986

Director

James Cameron

Runtime

137 minutes

Main Genre

Sci-Fi

Writers

James Cameron , David Giler , Walter Hill

Studio

20th Century Fox

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Steven Spielberg’s Suggestion for ‘Aliens’ Was Certainly… Different

By the time Aliens entered production, Spielberg was already the established king of Hollywood directors. But, as explained in Netflix’s The Movies That Made Us, Cameron’s career was still in its infancy. Thanks to Cameron’s intriguing outline for Aliens and his success on The Terminator, he became 20th Century Fox’s favorite to direct the sequel. According to a Director’s Guild of America sit down with Spielberg, Cameron, and J.J. Abrams, Cameron had long been an admirer of Spielberg’s work. Per Cameron, the two met while he was working on the screenplay for Aliens.

Spielberg had approached Cameron about working on his anthology series, Amazing Stories. As the two talked about the possibility, Spielberg had an idea that, while interesting, was not exactly in line with Cameron’s dark script. During the conversation, Cameron reminded Spielberg: “We were talking about Amazing Stories… and you said, ‘Oh, I know what to do, I know what to do… because the first Alien was bad, have this one — the alien — be misunderstood, and the humans are trying to kill it, and running around the ship.”

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“Thank goodness you didn’t do that,” Spielberg responded. Cameron went on to explain that Spielberg’s enthusiasm was incredible to watch, so much so that Cameron decided not to do Amazing Stories. As Cameron said: “You know, I love that, you know, just sort of creative process. Watching it in action. And that’s why I knew I wasn’t doing Amazing Stories, because there’s no way I wanted to be that close to that bright of a light at that point. I was still trying to get my candle lit, you know.” While the partnership never happened, the two directors continued to admire each other. And, though Cameron was impressed by Spielberg’s creative process, the inclusion of such a storyline would have not only affected Aliens, but the series as a whole.

Steven Spielberg’s Suggestion Would Have Hurt the ‘Alien’ Franchise

A sequel can make or break a franchise. Aliens fought an uphill battle having to follow-up the groundbreaking original picture, but to date, is considered one of the finest sequels of all time. The film’s pivot toward action interwoven with a greater sense of fear largely set the tone for the franchise’s legacy. The film’s main antagonist, the Xenomorph Queen, is one of the most astounding science fiction characters ever created, not to mention one of the most ruthless. She serves as a great twist and is completely merciless in her mission to destroy Ripley (Sigourney Weaver) and Newt (Carrie Henn). She also served as a dynamic twist on what came before.

While the series has experienced some extraordinary highs and unfortunate lows, the series has continued to try new things, which has led to its larger success. The very reason xenomorphs continue to scare audiences more than four decades after the original film’s release, is their elevated evil. Redeemable villains certainly have their place in film, but a misunderstood xenomorph would have put the Alien franchise’s main theme — pure horror — on shaky ground. When one considers the story placement of Alien: Romulus, it’s hard to imagine that the picture would be as effective as it has been or that it would even exist at all in a universe with more complex xenomorphs. Though he may have come up with the idea, hindsight will certainly make audiences agree with Spielberg’s more recent opinion that it was a good thing Cameron avoided the suggestion.

There’s no question that Steven Spielberg is among the finest directors of all time. But his suggestion to a young James Cameron, when it came to creating Aliens, was one that missed the mark. Spielberg’s passionate idea to make the sequel’s Xenomorph misunderstood would have utterly destroyed the action and horror of not just Aliens, but the elevated horror of the franchise overall.

Aliens is currently available to stream on Max in the U.S.

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