The Heralds of March: Alien, Blade Runner & Thrones!

Can you believe that it’s March?! Spring is right around the corner and Daylight Saving Time is just a week away. There’s been a lot of interesting news lately, but for now let’s focus on three new items:

Neill Blomkamp’s New Alien Film

It’s incredibly exciting that we’re getting a new Alien film, and from a director with a real passion for science fiction who seems ideally suited to chart a new story that feels connected to the first two Alien films and give Sigourney Weaver her desired “proper ending” to Ripley’s journey. How Blomkamp gets around the events of Alien³ and Alien: Resurrection will be fascinating to discover. Will Michael Biehn actually return as Hicks?! It may be a while before we know anything definitive, but I’m thrilled to see this director and this franchise coming together. Something pretty amazing will very probably be the result.

The Blade Runner Sequel

Can you believe it? Harrison Ford is signed and definite to return in a Blade Runner sequel! It now appears that Ridley Scott will likely just produce and not direct, but it sounds like all parties are very high on the script. The latest word has it that Denis Villeneuve (Prisoners) is close to finalizing involvement, which is extremely encouraging, because if Prisoners did two things incredibly well, it was deliver strong performances and make masterful use of cinematography to establish mood and drive the story. It sounds like Scott and Ford are both very high on the script, which is encouraging. For my money the biggest challenge on the table is creating a character that’s as compelling and iconic as Roy Batty. That’s a tough act to follow, but I’m absolutely fascinated by this one.

Game of Thrones Season 5

With one iconic, fell-swoop image, Game of Thrones is letting us know we’re going to be pushing beyond the margins this year. For the first time ever, book readers and “the unsullied” are in the same boat – as while we may have notions, we are moving off the map into uncharted territory story-wise where anything can happen. This image, coming on the heels of the trailer’s “Who said anything about him?” reference, makes it clear beyond a doubt that Tyrion is heading towards a meeting with Daenerys – something we’ve yet to see in the books, despite their relative geographic proximity. 

The idea of these very diverse characters actually meeting and interacting both heightens the sense of anticipation for historic events and escalates a sense of the beginning of a massive conclusion unfolding. 

April 12th can't get here soon enough!