Neill Blomkamp is probably one of the most talented current filmmakers in the world of SF. After the huge success of District 9 in 2009the filmmaker was eaten by the big Hollywood machinery with Elysium (2013) yet, in our view, unfairly mistreated. He then turned Chappie in 2015 with relative success before returning to short films, his first love. He has, during the pandemic, turned Demonicreleased exclusively in VOD. Conscious of his talent, Hollywood tried to entrust him with the reins of several big projects – in the end – all aborted – whether Alien 5 or Robocop: Returns.
The South African filmmaker will return for Gran Turismowhich he is preparing for a release date set for August 9, 2023. Regarding from Alienwe will have to look at Fede Alvarez and his Alien: Romulus (summer 2024) which has just finished filming.
Neill Blomkamp should have realized Alien 5 but the gargantuan appetite of Ridley Scott for its biblical frankness will have got the better of the project at the time, finally transformed into the very mediocre Alien: Covenant. The filmmaker took advantage of an interview with Empire for the promotion of Gran Turismo to come back to this disappointment:
“I think the biggest setbacks of my career were the projects that didn’t come to fruition, led by Alien. I could have continued to work within the industry in the United States if I had been a simple lackey, in the pay of the studios and making films on the chain every year. Unfortunately, I’m an artist who doesn’t play the Hollywood game. So I retired to reflect and come back with a new perspective on working in Hollywood. »