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There's plenty of mystery surrounding the impending release of "Prometheus." The trailer did nothing to clear the air about the movie's plot or connection to the "Alien" franchise, and all of the film's stars have been doing their best to keep it that way.

Needless to say, when MTV News recently caught up with star Idris Elba, no one expected him to give much more information than what is already out there. And that's exactly what he did, though I'm pretty sure he's downplaying how significant his role is in the movie.

"There's a ship and I fly it. That's it! It doesn't get any more interesting than that," Elba teased of his character, the captain of the ship at the heart of the film.

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Tags alien, idris elba, prometheus, ridley scott

A new international poster for "Prometheus" has been released, but for those of you hoping it would give some insights into the movie's many mysteries, it's a little bit of a letdown. This is pretty much the same poster as the one released in the United States, albeit showing a bit more of that giant stone head that we've seen floating around in the promotional material.

AllNewz, an Italian news site, has the poster. At least what we can take away from the consistency between these two posters is that the big head will have a major role to play in the movie.

Check out the new international poster for "Prometheus" after the jump.

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Tags alien, prometheus, ridley scott

Ridley Scott's "Prometheus" is one of the hottest projects to keep an eye on in 2012, no doubt about it. But among the film's many merits—including Scott's much awaited return to science fiction and a stellar cast that includes Charlize Theron and Michael Fassbender—there is one nagging question… is this movie an "Alien" prequel or not?

"Prometheus" stars Fassbender and Noomi Rapace have both confirmed the "Alien" connection, but it's the word "prequel" that has some folks still scratching their heads. But there's at least one person connected to "Prometheus" who doesn't view it as an "Alien" prequel at all: none other than Fox Filmed Entertainment CEO Tom Rothman.

"It is not [an 'Alien' prequel]. It's not," Rothman passionately defended when MTV News pressed him on the question at the Gotham Awards this week. "Hand on heart."

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Tags alien, prometheus, Tom Rothman

For all the mystery wrapped around Ridley Scott's probably "Alien"-related next film, we do know a few things about "Prometheus." For one, a plot summary revealed that one of Hollywood's most in-demand actors, Michael Fassbender, will play an android in the upcoming film.

MTV News sat down with Fassbender while he was promoting his new film, "Shame," and he asked the actor what it was like to join the legacy of "Alien" robots.

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Tags alien, Michael Fassbender, prometheus, shame

When it comes to the biggest, baddest villains in movie and literature history, Sauron and his Mordor hoard from "Lord of the Rings" are easily in the top 10. First off, Sauron is the ultimate evil, and secondly, there just doesn't seem to be anything redeeming about any of his minions.

Yet one Russian novelist felt otherwise. In 1999, paleontologist Kirill Yeskov wrote a novel called "The Last Ringbearer" which revisited the climactic final battle of "The Lord of the Rings" from the perspective of Sauron's underlings. In this version, Gandalf is a war-monger whose sole purpose is to crush the scientific and technological initiative of Mordor while Sauron is forward-thinking by passing a "universal literacy law." It's certainly a different take on the story, to say the least.

Salon recently reviewed the novel in its new English translation, and though they debated whether it qualifies as fan fiction or something greater, the online mag felt the book was a soaring accomplishment all the same. And that got us thinking -- are there other stories begging a retelling from the villains' perspective? The answer is a resounding yes, and we've got our wish list after the jump!

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Tags alien, Harry Potter, star wars, the lord of the rings, the matrix, the twilight saga

There's a lot of deserved excitement over "Prometheus," Ridley Scott's glorious return to the science fiction genre. But there's some confusion as well: what started out as an "Alien" prequel morphed into what Scott has described as an "original story." So, should we take that to mean there's no longer any connection between "Prometheus" and the "Alien" franchise?

No, we shouldn't. According to leading man Michael Fassbender, "Prometheus" is absolutely connected to "Alien."

"Oh, absolutely. There's a definite connecting vein," Fassbender told MTV News when asked pointblank whether or not "Prometheus" and "Alien" are connected. "You realize you're part of something else, but it's definitely in keeping with the old ones."

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Tags alien, Michael Fassbender, prometheus

Talk about pulling the old switcheroo.

You know that "Alien Prequel" that Ridley Scott has reportedly been in pre-production on for some time now, the one that was rumored to star Noomi Rapace, a.k.a. the original Swedish "Girl With the Dragon Tattoo"? Well, turns out it's NOT an "Alien" prequel after all; it's a sci-fi flick called "Prometheus" that Scott says was borne of the "Alien" DNA but is a completely original idea.

Twentieth Century Fox made the announcement today, setting the film for a March 9, 2012, release date and confirming that Scott would direct, making his first foray into the sci-fi genre since "Blade Runner." Rapace is set to star in one of five major roles as a character named Elizabeth Shaw, while Deadline reports that Angelina Jolie and Charlize Theron are circling the other main female part of Vickers. Read more...

Tags alien, Alien prequel, Angelina-Jolie, Charlize-Theron, damon lindelof, noomi rapace, prometheus, ridley scott

Sigourney Weaver may have a future on Pandora, but how about a return trip to LV-426? As "Alien" director Ridley Scott prepares to dive into a series of prequel films set before his 1979 space horror masterpiece, there doesn't seem to be a place for Ellen Ripley, the strong-willed heroine at the heart of the science fiction series.

While Weaver's involvement in the untitled "Alien" prequels is unlikely, that doesn't mean the Oscar-nominated actress has washed her hands of the franchise; indeed, she's still hopeful that Ripley could return some day.

"I don't feel her story is quite finished," she told MTV News in a phone interview conducted this past weekend. "It's not because I need the work. I just feel like it would be interesting to see Ripley older, with her wisdom and her history in this world again." Read more...

Tags alien, aliens, sigourney weaver

Surprise, surprise: Damon Lindelof's rewrite of Ridley Scott's "Alien" prequel has allegedly made the film infinitely more awesome. Culture Vulture got the exclusive that executives at Fox read the new draft of the screenplay (originally penned by Jon Spaihts) and were "very pleased with it indeed."

While all of Vulture's sources were sworn to secrecy on details of the plot, two big reasons Fox was happier than a pig in poop are that Lindelof's version lacks any big-budget set pieces, which is likely to bring down the suggested $150 million budget, and the film could also could potentially pull off a PG-13 rating, making it more accessible to mass audiences. But the reason we're so psyched for this script is the news that Lindelof and Scott are returning the sci-fi action franchise to the horror-suspense roots planted by Scott's original "Alien." Read more...

Tags alien, damon lindelof, Gravity, natalie portman, noomi rapace, Pride and Prejudice and Zombies, ridley scott

Noomi Rapace, a.k.a. the original Swedish "Girl With the Dragon Tattoo," may not have landed the Lisbeth Salander role in the planned U.S. adaptation of the Millennium Trilogy... but she isn't having trouble nabbing meaty roles in other big-budget tentpoles. She's already been cast as the female lead opposite Robert Downey Jr. in "Sherlock Holmes 2," and now comes news that she's a strong candidate to play the E.T.-butt-kicking lead in Ridley Scott's 3-D "Alien" prequel.

According to Deadline, studio 20th Century Fox has also met with actresses Abbie Cornish and Carey Mulligan about the part, but Rapace reportedly left a "strong impression." Read more...

Tags alien, Alien prequel, noomi rapace, Sherlock Holmes 2, sigourney weaver, The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo