James Cameron bluffed his way to get Sigourney Weaver to reprise her role in ‘Aliens’.

James Cameron is often considered as someone who would go beyond his way to ensure he gets his demands fulfilled. Take for example, when the filmmaker had to send out empty threats of making an Ellen Ripley-free version of Aliens, after Sigourney Weaver wasn’t approached by her agent with the offer of returning for a sequel.
James Cameron at the 2016 San Diego Comic Con International | image: Gage Skidmore, Wikimedia Commons
According to GQ, James Cameron had spent months writing the sequel story for 1979’s Alien after he was assured by 20th Century Fox that Sigourney Weaver was tied in for a follow-up. However, after writing the script, as he was informed that the actress wasn’t even approached with the offer for a sequel, Cameron decided to fast-forward the process and get what he wanted, by bluffing.

James Cameron’s Plans for a Sequel After the Success of Alien

Ridley Scott’s 1979 sci-fi horror movie Alien, starring Sigourney Weaver, was undoubtedly an epic masterpiece that went on for a successful journey at the global box office. Not only did the film inspire several other filmmakers, but it also simultaneously entertained audiences at large. Hailing a 93% RT rating, Alien earned over $184M as per The Numbers, following its $11M estimated budget.

Therefore, after witnessing the grand success of Ridley Scott’s sci-fi movie, which was largely based on Sigourney Weaver’s performance in the lead role, James Cameron wanted to try his luck on the sequel. As he was assured by 20th Century Fox that Weaver was tied in for a follow-up, Cameron swooped in to write and direct the sequel Aliens.
Sigourney Weaver in a still from Ridley Scott’s Alien
However, little did James Cameron know that Sigourney Weaver’s agent was acting laid back with the offer for the sequel. Excited to create his 1986 follow-up movie, Cameron had already started writing the story for the sequel. And shockingly, after spending six months writing the script, he was informed that Weaver hadn’t even been approached about returning for a sequel.

Cameron’s Empty Threats to Get Sigourney Weaver Back For Aliens

Speaking with GQ in 2022, James Cameron looked back at his journey of making Aliens. That’s when he addressed how the movie almost didn’t get made, as there was one super important detail missing. Well, that particular detail was apparently Sigourney Weaver who had no idea that Cameron was planning on making a sequel to her 1979 epic hit, Alien.

“They had assured me that they had [Weaver] under an option for a sequel option. And so I went off and wrote this thing, [like], ‘Okay, I’m gonna get to work with Sigourney. This will be cool.‘”

However, after spending months writing the script by keeping Sigourney Weaver’s Ellen Ripley as the central character, James Cameron nearly lost his mind when he got to know that Weaver’s agent hadn’t even informed her about the sequel. That’s when the filmmaker employed a cunning move as he sent out an empty threat via Arnold Schwarzenegger’s agent who was in the same agency as Weaver’s agent.

“I called Lou Pitt, Arnold [Schwarzenegger]’s agent and I said ‘We’re kinda over this. We’ve decided we really like the story and all the Marine Corps characters, and the world we’ve created. And we’ve thought about it and we really just don’t need Sigourney. I’ve created all these characters and my pride of authorship tells me I should go ahead with this and we’ll just cut her out.’”

Sigourney Weaver as Ellen Ripley in James Cameron’s Aliens

“Did I have any intention of doing that? No, not at all. But I happen to know Lou is in the same agency as Sigourney’s agent, and I knew the second he hung up with me, he would call him.”

And James Cameron was certainly right. His bluffing worked wonders as Arnold Schwarzenegger’s agent quickly shared Cameron’s plan with Sigourney Weaver’s agent and the latter called in to strike a deal within 12 hours.

Alien and Aliens are both available on Apple TV.