Alien: Romulus Star Reveals Blunt Advice He Got From Ridley Scott

Summary Ridley Scott's advice to David Jonsson for his role in Alien: Romulus was: "Don't be sh-t."

Alien: Romulus' story takes the franchise back to its roots, mixing horror with elements of sci-fi action.

Fede Álvarez's upcoming film could breathe new life into the franchise after the somewhat divisive response to Prometheus and Alien: Covenant.

Alien: Romulus star David Jonsson reveals the blunt advice he got from Ridley Scott. Directed by Fede Álvarez, the upcoming installment in the long-running Alien franchise follows a young crew as they encounter a deadly Xenomorph while aboard a derelict ship in deep space. Cailee Spaeny and Isabela Merced lead the Alien: Romulus cast, with Jonsson starring as Andy, an android. After breathing life into the franchise with his 1979 original film, Scott returns to produce the upcoming installment.

In a recent interview with Rolling Stone, Jonsson reveals that Scott gave him some fairly blunt and straightforward advice for his performance in Alien: Romulus. According to Jonsson, the legendary director told him: "Don’t be sh-t." Check out Jonsson's full comment below:

Yeah, he was just like, 'Don’t be sh-t.' Something along the lines of that! I’m not just saying this, but the studio and Fede and all the team had supreme trust in me, and I kind of needed that. I think I’m one of those actors: you need to let me off the lead to bring me back on again, otherwise I just don’t function. So, they let me off the lead, which was fun.

Will Alien: Romulus Recapture The Magic Of Ridley Scott's First Film?

How Romulus Goes Back To Basics

Image via 20th Century Studios

Generally speaking, the first two installments in the Alien franchise are widely considered the best, with Scott's film serving as the audience's terrifying introduction to the Xenomorph threat, while James Cameron's 1986 movie takes a more action-oriented approach. After that, it's something of a mixed bag, and Scott would eventually return to the franchise with Prometheus in 2012 and Alien: Covenant in 2017, both of which proved somewhat divisive. Álvarez's upcoming installment very much feels like a return to the franchise's roots.

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Alien: Romulus takes place between the first and second films, and trailers would suggest that its tone will be something of a hybrid of the two. While the premise certainly seems very horror-forward, which makes sense given Álvarez's previous movies, there also looks to be some elements of Aliens-style action. The premise, too, largely ignores the deep lore exploration in Prometheus and Alien: Covenant, instead opting to tell a relatively simple story that takes the franchise back to basics.

Álvarez previously directed 2013's Evil Dead and 2016's Don't Breathe.

From what's been revealed thus far, Alien: Romulus has the potential to be a much-needed return to form for the franchise, giving viewers more of the terrifying Xenomorph action that made the first installment so successful. If the upcoming installment is a hit, it could lead to a follow-up getting the green light. Many questions still remain about Alien: Romulus, but what's been revealed thus far paints a promising picture for the film and the franchise as a whole.

Source: Rolling Stone