The "Prometheus" trailer didn't exactly clear up the question of whether or not this is an "Alien" prequel — no direct sightings of the Xenomorph, no, but the Space Jockey is very clearly involved and the "Alien"-esque arrival of the "Prometheus" logo practically oozes acid for blood.
That continued confusion won't be going away anytime soon according to screenwriter Damon Lindelof, who discussed the "Prometheus" trailer's powerful sense of mystery in a new interview with The Los Angeles Times.
“One part of me sort of wants to be working on something where I can say, ‘This is exactly what this is’ without being secretive or mysterious but I think that with the genesis of this a couple of years ago — when Ridley announced that he wanted to make an ‘Alien’ prequel — that’s where this began and where it’s evolved to is this conversation: Is it or isn’t it [an 'Alien' prequel]? And I think this little sort of dance that we’re doing basically existed prior to anybody seeing anything. Now that people are seeing stuff I think the material kind of speaks for itself."
From Lindelof's perspective, you can view the "Prometheus" trailer both as an "Alien" prequel and as its own wholly original story.
"If you’re looking at it through the prism of ‘I want it to be [a prequel],’ you’ll notice the way the word ‘Prometheus’ comes up [in a way that resembles the 'Alien' classic logo] or look at the production design and the way the whole thing feels," he said. "If you’re looking at it from the perspective of wanting it to be something more original, I think the trailer accomplishes that by being pretty cool to people who have never even seen ‘Alien.’”
“It’s accomplishing what we set out to do," he added of the trailer's secretive nature. "I wish that we didn’t have to be so mysterious about it but mystery can be a good thing as long as you’ve got the goods to back it up. In this case, when the movie arrives, one of the most visionary filmmakers in the history of cinema will be putting his cards on the table and I’m just kind of standing behind him with my arms folded.”
Tell us what you think of the "Prometheus" trailer in the comments section and on Twitter!
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