Alien 3star Sigourney Weaver candidly reflects on making the 1992 film and the studio interference throughout production. Directed by David Fincher, the third installment in the hitAlienfranchise features Weaver’s Ripley crash-landing on a dangerous prison colony having unknowingly brought a Xenomorph along with her.Alien 3earned mixed reviews and had an infamously challenging production for Fincher, and he has since disowned the film.
In a recent interview withDeadline, Weaver looks back on her experience withAlien 3, lamenting that Fincher didn’t have a strong degree of creative control over the film. According to the actor, she sees the experience as part of a larger shift in Hollywood toward more extreme commercialism, but she still thinks that, overall, the third installment is a “good film.” Check out Weaver’s comment below:
Well, I could feel thatDavid had to get on the phone and fight every day for us to shoot what he wanted to the next day. And I’m sorry that he didn’t get a chance to make the script his own before we started. That makes filmmaking very difficult.
I recall that Vincent Ward’s original script had been about monks in a monastery and Ripley was in a coma for half of it. So, I keenly felt the lack of studio support. That was a transition moment when studios stopped being about “let’s make great films” and started being about “let’s not lose money.”
They had the great idea to put David Fincher aboard for his first film, but then not to support the guy was very idiotic. It helped shooting in England so we could get on with things to an extent. I heard recently that David has disowned the project and I’m sorry about that because I loved working with him, and I think we made a good film. I’m glad he got a chance to do his version. It was a great ensemble.
Alien Movies In Order (Release & Chronological)
From Ridley Scott’s Alien to the sci-fi franchise’s prequel series beginning with Prometheus, here’s how to watch the Alien movies in order.
Alien 3’s Reception & Divisiveness Explained
What David Fincher Has Said About His Experience In The Alien Franchise
After making a name for himself directing music videos, Fincher made his feature film debut withAlien 3. Before he joined the project, the film had gone through numerous directors and screenwriters, and Ripley, as Weaver states, wasn’t originally going to be a big part of the story. Eventually, however, Fincher was brought on board, and the script reportedly changed constantly during production, including theAlien 3ending. Speaking at the 2023 Tribeca Film Festival (viaThe Wrap), Fincher said the following about his experience on the movie:
I came out of a truly f–ked-up situation and kind of swore that I would never make the same mistake. I made a lot of brand new ones, butI’d never start something that didn’t have a script that I didn’t believe inor that I didn’t understand or that I couldn’t articulate to people. And I’d also very much learned that I wanted to make all my own mistakes instead of inheriting them from other people.
Fincher’s original vision for the film isn’t what ultimately ended up on the screen, though many cut scenes were eventually restored for anAlien 3Assembly Cut. Though the Assembly Cut is more positively received,the theatrical cut earned lackluster reviews from critics and a muted response from audiences. OnRotten Tomatoes,Alien 3currently holds a disappointing 44% critics' score and a 46% audience score, a major step down from the glowing responses to the previous two entries.
1979’sAlienholds a 93% Rotten Tomatoes critics' score, while 1986’sAliensholds a 94%.
Made on an estimated budget of $50 million,Alien 3was a commercial success, however, grossing close to $160 million worldwide. Despite this, it’s generally regarded as one of the lesser entries in the franchise, along with1997’sAlien: Resurrection. Weaver, for her part, does ultimately think thatAlien 3works, though, and there are certainly elements of the film worth celebrating.
Alien 3
Cast
Alien³ follows Ellen Ripley as she crash lands on Fiorina 161, a bleak prison planet housing a correctional facility. Stripped of weapons and facing a new alien threat, the inmates must unite with Ripley to survive while awaiting external assistance. Released in 1992, this film continues the iconic sci-fi horror saga.
