One Of The Best Directors Today Is Trying To Remake An ’80s Sci-Fi Crime Thriller Classic

Nichols’ name is renowned in cinema for major releases like Shotgun Stories, Take Shelter, and Mud. His latest film, The Bikeriders, will hit theaters this Friday, ten months after its premiere at 2023’s Telluride Film Festival. 

But all that is conceivably old news after a recent interview in which Jeff Nichols dropped major hints about his next major endeavor—characterizing the project as an enigmatic sci-fi film—in other words, the Alien Nation remake. 

Nichols also announced the film, backed by Paramount, back in 2021. The director did not hold back in evidencing his enthusiasm, describing a movie with big ambitions, yet one tempered by and grounded in an all-American reality: Arkansas.

For some, M. Night Shyamalan’s sci-fi horror movie Signs definitely comes to mind alongside Dan Trachtenberg’s 10 Cloverfield Lane.

Fans of the filmmaker will know Nichols was referencing, however, subtly, the late ’80s crime thriller Alien Nation. The original movie was memorably set in a world where aliens coexist with humans and effectively explored profound themes: racism, xenophobia, and otherness—all through the familiar lens of a buddy-cop narrative.

Given Jeff Nichols’ talent, his vision should retain the spirit of the original Alien Nation while contributing a special touch to the source material. 

This is incredibly likely given how overtly passionate the filmmaker is about the prospective project.

Speaking with The Irish Times, Nichols described a fork in his professional road: either he would realize the film or, in a somewhat macabre turn, be strategizing about how to create it while on his deathbed. 

Indeed, he and the project share a long history. Jeff Nichols was actually poised to undertake the Alien Nation remake in 2018; the project garnered $100 million, and he was all set to commence creating the tale of alien life in Arkansas.

But the production was sadly shelved upon Disney’s acquisition of Fox; the setback certainly affected Nichols, who described it as “soul-crushing.” 

But the director has persevered and committed to his vision. For example, his dreams were revived when the film was momentarily considered a 10-episode Disney+ series—until this idea, too, was scrapped. 

But his persistence proved successful, as today, the filmmaker is yet again primed to shoot his script as a feature film for the original studio attached, Paramount.

Of course, as referenced above, Jeff Nichols’ screenplay is inspired by Alien Nation, critically—to avoid an onslaught of lawyers—involving different characters and plot points. 

With luck, these measures will ensure no rights issues are infringed, which would impede production and, unfortunately, spell out yet another delay in the film’s lengthy production saga. 

And before fans jump for joy, it’s worth sobering up by remembering how halts in film production can come from multiple directions, including the industry-wide strikes last year, which further delayed Jeff Nichols’ Alien Nation-inspired remake from a planned Fall shoot. 

But now proceedings do seem to be in Nichols’ favor, and we can’t wait to see what he churns out. 

Source: ComingSoon