10 Actors Who Got Kicked Out Of Their Own Movie Franchises

Back when Alien prequel Prometheus was first released and concluded with protagonist Elizabeth Shaw (Noomi Rapace) surviving to seek out the Engineer homeworld, it seemed like a pretty clear implication she'd be the protagonist of this new prequel franchise.

Shaw was easily Prometheus' most likeable character, and while certainly no Ripley (Sigourney Weaver), earned the audience's sympathy and admiration due to the gruelling wringer she was put through during the film.

And so, when the Prometheus follow-up was being put together, it seemed only natural that she'd reprise the role, only for Alien: Covenant to ultimately focus on a new cast of characters, led by Katherine Waterston's Daniels.

Rapace was invited back to film a brief prologue released on YouTube, but in the movie proper only her likeness is used when it's revealed that Shaw was murdered by malevolent android David (Michael Fassbender), to the intense frustration of fans.

Ridley Scott has never stated precisely why Shaw was jettisoned from the series so abruptly, though Covenant's creature designer Carlos Huantes suggested, "I think it was a studio call as to why she didn’t return. What a shame." Indeed.

Though Waterston gave a solid performance, audiences were already fully invested in seeing the continuation of Shaw's journey, so to have that plotline randomly shut down and the character offed so perfunctorily was baffling to say the least.

Covenant bombing at the box office and leaving the series' future in doubt seems to further confirm how ill-advised its shifted focus truly was.