Alien 3: What Really Happened?

1. The Alien Sequels We DIDN'T Get - And Why We're Still Talking About Them

Of course, Alien 3 wasn't the be-all and end-all of the Alien franchise. Another frankly diabolical sequel came in 1997 with Alien: Resurrection, which was then followed up by two other dismal offerings in Alien vs Predator and its sequel, Requiem.

Things haven't been so dire for the series as of late. Prometheus, while divisive, isn't short of admirers, while 2017's Alien: Covenant was a lyrical if not occasionally frustrating prequel that further fleshed out the series' mythos. Even so, though, the scrutiny surrounding Alien 3 refuses to abet - mostly because no sequel since has managed to match Ridley Scott and James Cameron's first two respective efforts.

Those first two films have captivated audiences for decades now, and have spawned a massive multi-media franchise comprising films, comics and video games. Countless stories have been told away from the camera, and have garnered strong reviews, including James Stokoe's Aliens: Dead Orbit comic, and Alien: Isolation, which was made by Creative Assembly in 2014. All are worthy follow-ups to the original two films, and the same can be said of William Gibson's Alien 3 script, which - as I've already established - has since been adapted into a comic and an audio book.

Alien and Aliens are two of the finest sci-fi films ever released, so anything that followed them was always going to have a tough task. However, the fact remains that, because no film has equalled the 1979 classic or its sequel, Alien fans will keep pondering what could've been. And Alien 3, as the first franchise entry to break critical consensus, will continue to bear the brunt of fan frustration.

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What are your thoughts on Alien 3? Have you listened to the William Gibson audio book? Let us know in the comments below!