What Could Have Been: Lance Henriksen and Michael Biehn on William Gibson’s Unproduced ‘Alien 3’
We’ve all spent years debating the theatrical cut of Alien 3, but the franchise almost took a completely different turn. Long before David Fincher brought us to the prison planet of Fiorina 161, cyberpunk pioneer William Gibson penned a legendary 1987 script that kept the survivors of the Sulaco alive and well.
Instead of killing off Corporal Hicks and Bishop, Gibson’s version put them right at the center of a tense, Cold War-style bio-weapons race with a viral Xenomorph outbreak on the Anchorpoint space station.
While the script never made it to the silver screen, Audible famously brought it to life as an incredible audio drama starring the original cast. Check out the official behind-the-scenes promotional clip embedded below to see what the actors had to say about returning to this alternate universe:
What the Cast Said About the Script
Returning to these legendary characters decades later was a surreal experience for the actors, who finally got to play out the proper continuation of James Cameron’s Aliens.
Lance Henriksen (Bishop) loved how the story honored the roots of the franchise while pushing it into new territory:
“It touches upon elements that people really liked in Alien and Alien 2, but it introduces a whole new climate… The core of great films, television, and audio is always about story.”
Michael Biehn (Corporal Hicks) was equally thrilled to finally give fans the survival story they had been robbed of in the 1992 film, noting how the distinct cinematic style of the production translates perfectly to sound:
“The audio production of this script is energized… with many echoing and flat depths, and precise environments.”
It’s a fascinating look at the ultimate “What If?” in sci-fi history, giving our favorite Colonial Marine and synthetic Android the heroic focus they deserved.
Over to You, APFZONE!
- Have you listened to the Gibson audio drama yet?
- Do you prefer this action-heavy, survival storyline over the grim theatrical version we got in ’92?
Drop your thoughts in the comments below – let’s talk Alien history!
Keeping the Genre Legacy Alive
Bringing these historic moments directly to our fans is exactly why we do what we do at apfzone. This massive double-feature perfectly mirrors our passion for definitive genre cinema – from our deep-dive coverage of Aliens Expanded to our current promotion for CreatorVC’s upcoming Jaws Explored documentary.
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