20 Mind-Blowing Facts About Alien Movies
11. Aliens – Sigourney Weaver Set Standards For Sci-Fi Acting
When Sigourney Weaver received an Oscar nomination for Best
Actress at the 59th Academy Awards for her performance as Ellen
Ripley in Aliens, she became the first actress to receive such a nod for a role
in a sci-fi film – a genre not often recognised by the Academy previously.
Though she lost out to winner Marlee Matlin, it’s nevertheless considered a landmark moment in Academy Award history and arguably helped pave the way for future Best Actress nominees recognised for their roles in sci-fi films including Kate Winslet for Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind and Sandra Bullock for Gravity.
Aliens didn’t go home entirely empty handed that year, scooping two Oscars (for Best Sound Effects Editing and Best Visual Effects) out of its seven nominations. Counting other wins and nominations for Alien, Alien 3 and Prometheus, the Alien franchise now boasts a total of eleven Academy Award nominations and three wins.