Another day, and another devastating movie-related rumor has made the rounds. This time around, 20th Century Studios is rumored to be "considering" bringing back popular actor and franchise star Sigourney Weaver to reprise her legendary role as Ellen Ripley in the still unconfirmed sequel to "Alien: Romulus". This latest report comes courtesy of scooper Daniel Richtman (also known by his social media handle DanielRPK) at recent post on Patreon exclusively available to subscribers, claiming that the powers that be were considering the use of widespread de-aging technology in order to make this version of Ripley's period accurate, as "Romulus" took place approximately 20 years after the events of the original "Alien" film.

Well, consider this rumor squashed. No less an authority than the director and co-writer of Romulus. Fede Alvarez confirmed the same in a post made on X (the website/app formerly and still popularly known as Twitter), responding to a fan page by simply stating:

"Fun gossip. But not true at all."

Fun gossip. But it is not true at all.

— Fede Alvarez (@fedalvar) January 23, 2025

That sound you hear is probably a huge sigh of relief from members of the film community, many of whom had good reason to remain cynical about such a controversial narrative choice. After all, Romulus was the same film that came under fire for using similar de-aging technology to digitally resurrect the late, great Ian Holm as the android antagonist—a decision that Alvarez claimed it was "fixed" for his home release in order to improve the performance of some dirty visual effects. Of course, the real The issue was related to the ethical issues of recreating dead actors and an over-reliance on nostalgia. Compounding that problem by going right back into the same well and bringing back another fan-favorite character like Ripley would be ... curious, to say the least.

Whatever the case, those anxiously awaiting the follow-up to Alien: Romulus and nervous about the prospect of an aging Ripley seem to be in the clear.

As far as rumors and speculation go, it's worth taking a deep dive into whether or not this Sigourney Weaver rumor actually passed the smell test in the first place. Alien: Romulus was meant to serve the same purpose as a soft reboot (albeit in his review, /Film critic Chris Evangelista thought it played things too safe in that regard), returning the franchise to its grungy, low-fi roots after a couple of divisive prequels by original director Ridley Scott left the future of Alien somewhat uncertain. That obviously meant playing the series' greatest hits, dropping references to virtually every previous installment along the way. In that sense, going full circle and bringing young Ripley back into the mix kind of checks out ... but falls apart once you think about it a bit more.

There are too many logical and narrative holes in the tightly plotted "Alien" timeline for this to make much sense. Immediately following the events of the 1979 classic, Ripley is stuck in cryo-stasis until Aliens begins — which, of course, takes place nearly 60 years later. Given the very specific time period in which Romulus is set, a sequel could not include a young Ripley without seriously disrupting the continuity of these films. (Alvarez previously hinted at Imperia that any Romulus sequel would once again focus on Kaylee Spenny's Rain and her surviving android bestie Andy, played by David Johnson. by swinging some nasty-looking VFX. And, let's be real, James Cameron has already beaten them to a punch his own younger character Sigourney Weaver in Avatar: The Last Airbender.

For now, the sequel to "Alien: Romulus" remains only hypothetical until 20th Century Studios officially gives it the green light. Until that happens, though, at least we know Ripley will earn her break and not be dug out of cryo-sleep for another encounter with the Xenomorph. In other words? Stay away from her, you b****!