James Cameron Reveals If He’d Return to Alien Franchise After Romulus

James Cameron‘s Aliens is widely regarded as one of the best sequels of all time. Released in 1986, the film expanded on the lore established by the 1979 original film, Alien, directed by Ridley Scott. Since then, there has been considerable speculation on whether Cameron will ever return to the franchise. And now, as Alien: Romulus continues to do well at the global box office, Cameron has addressed the issue.

James Cameron gives honest response on potential Alien franchise return

During a recent interview, Cameron offered a candid and honest response to a question about his potential return to the Alien franchise. The Oscar-winning filmmaker, who has the unprecedented distinction of making three films that crossed the two-billion-dollar mark at the global box office, directed Aliens early in his career. When it came out, it garnered around $131-183.3 million at the worldwide box office against an $18 million reported budget. The film currently has a 94% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes.

While speaking to The Guardian, Cameron reflected on whether he would return to the franchise. Although he didn’t completely reject the prospect, he indicated that it was unlikely.

“It’s kind of trampled ground at this point,” the Avatar director said. “I wouldn’t rule anything out but I’ve got 23 other projects in the queue before that hypothetical one so I’m going to guess, with me turning 70, that ain’t gonna happen. You’ve got to pick your battles at some point. You know what I mean?” he added.

In the same interview, Cameron also addressed the speculations about his involvement in Alien: Romulus, a film that chronologically takes place between Scott’s Alien and Aliens.

“I wasn’t really helping out,” Cameron explained. “I know Fede [Álvarez], the director, and very early on he and his writing partner came to me and said, ‘Got any ideas?’ – no, they had plenty of ideas but they just wanted to kind of, I don’t know, pilgrimage to Mecca or something like that. But that was years ago, then they went off and wrote their thing and I had nothing to do with it,” he further stated.

Cameron revealed that Álvarez showed him an early cut before adding that while he gave the younger filmmaker some notes, he had nothing to do with how the movie ultimately turned out.

“Then six months ago or so he shared an early cut of the film with me and I gave him some notes for like an hour,” he said. “I don’t want to take any credit whatsoever. If the film is great, I don’t want to take any credit; if it sucks, not my fault! Seriously, it’s his thing, so credit [is] due where it’s due, and, from what I’m hearing, it’s pretty good.”

James Cameron’s upcoming theatrical feature, Avatar: Fire and Ash, is slated to debut in the U.S. on December 19, 2025.