Ridley Scott developing Alien: Covenant sequel centred on David
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Ridley Scott is developing a follow-up to 2017’s Alien: Covenant, centred on Michael Fassbender’s android David. The film would revisit David’s efforts to create a “brave new world”, potentially continuing the prequel storyline about his genetic experiments and their connection to the xenomorphs.
David was last seen aboard a colony ship carrying sleeping settlers and human embryos, leaving his future and plans unresolved. The project would join a sequel to 2024’s Alien: Romulus and a second series of Alien: Earth, giving the franchise three separate directions; Scott had previously discussed several Covenant prequels, then said he had done enough with Alien before returning to the idea.
- Scott is planning an Alien: Covenant follow-up focused on David.
- Fassbender’s android may continue his xenomorph-origin storyline.
- Alien now has three distinct future projects in progress.
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The Alien series is a long-running science-fiction horror franchise about humans encountering deadly creatures known as xenomorphs in space. Its films have taken different approaches, from survival horror involving space crews to stories about the companies, colonies and artificial people connected to the creatures.
Ridley Scott directed the original 1979 film and later made the prequels Prometheus and Alien: Covenant. Those films focused heavily on David, an android played by Michael Fassbender, whose experiments with alien life raised questions about who created the xenomorphs and why.
Alien: Covenant ended with David in control of a ship carrying settlers to a new world, setting up the possibility of further films about his plans. Other recent Alien projects have followed separate characters and periods in the fictional timeline, so new entries may explore different parts of the same wider story.
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The strongest fair case each way — we don't pick a winner.
The case for
A David-centred sequel could give the franchise a rare opportunity to resolve the deliberately unsettling cliffhanger from Alien: Covenant and complete Ridley Scott’s long-running exploration of creation, consciousness and human hubris. Supporters may argue that Michael Fassbender’s performance and David’s ambition offer a distinctive antagonist whose threat is intellectual as well as physical, allowing Alien to remain more than a conventional monster series. They may also value a filmmaker-led continuation that develops an unfinished story rather than abandoning it for safer, familiar territory.
The case against
Critics may reasonably argue that returning to David risks reviving a divisive prequel approach that shifted attention away from the xenomorph’s elemental horror and from human characters facing immediate danger. With Alien: Romulus and Alien: Earth demonstrating appetite for other tones and settings, they may prefer the franchise to broaden its storytelling rather than devote another major instalment to mythology and android philosophy. They may also question whether a third direction would make the wider series feel fragmented, particularly after Scott himself had suggested he had taken the material as far as he wished.
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Originally published by The Guardian as “Memo to Ridley Scott: no one needs more Alien: Covenant movies – get the franchise back to stalk’n’slash”.