Ridley Scott directed both “Alien” and “Blade Runner,” two stone-cold classics of the sci-fi genre and he’s continued to delve deep into these worlds, 40 years on.
However, back in 2017, Scott found himself in a real predicament where he had to choose between either directing “Alien: Covenant” or “Blade Runner 2049.” He would choose the former.
In an honest interview with Empire Magazine, Scott admits having regrets in his decision to not direct “Blade Runner 2049,” which was eventually helmed by Denis Villeneuve:
"I should not have made this decision, but I had to do it. I should have done Blade Runner 2049”
His comments have to do with Warner Bros, suggesting that the two films had a specific release window, and colliding production dates, which forced him to choose between one or the other. These time constraints played a major role in Scott not being able to direct both projects.
These two films were released five months apart, with “Alien: Covenant” in May 2017 and “Blade Runner 2049” in October of that same year. Scott ended up as a producer on BR2049.
The result is that “Alien: Covenant” received lukewarm reviews and Denis Villeneuve’s “Blade Runner 2049” glowing reviews. I honestly don’t know if Scott could have done a better job on BR49 than Villeneuve had, aided by his ace cinematographer Roger Deakins.
Scott has “Napoleon” coming up, but he is also very involved in the preparation of his new ‘Blade Runner 2099’ series, which will be streamed on Amazon Prime. Meanwhile, Fede Álvarez's new ‘Alien’ film and Noah Hawley's new Alien series are said to not be linked at all with Scott’s Prometheus/Covenant universe.
Marvel's "Ghost Rider" just hired one of the best cinematographers working today. Linus Sandgren will serve as DP on Shawn Levy's MCU flick, and, most notably, the project will be shot on film.