Forces of Geek is proud to welcome correspondent Patrick Lee, who covered WonderCon for us this past weekend.
Without doubt, the big hit of WonderCon this past weekend was a preview and discussion of Ridley Scott’s upcoming sci-fi movie Prometheus, which he described “as having the DNA of Alien,” confirming cagey hints and rumors for months that the film is somehow a prequel or precursor to Scott’s classic 1979 sci-fi monster movie.
Scott, aided by co-screenwriter Damon Lindelof and accompanied by stars Charlize Theron and Michael Fassbender, revealed a few secrets in a packed ballroom Saturday about the upcoming movie and debuted the new, full two and a half minute trailer.
Among the revelations:
- The movie does take place in the Alien universe. Not exactly a surprise, but Fox et al. have been very cagey about just how Prometheus fits into the long-established Alien mythology.
- Scott teased that Prometheus may be followed up by at least one more movie.
- Fassbender plays an android, à la Ash in the original film. Fassbender modeled his artificial person on an unlikely Olympic star and an obscure 1963 Dirk Bogarde movie.
- Theron said Fassbender smells like musk and chilies, with a hint of mint.
- Most tantalizingly, Scott said he’s eager to do more science fiction in the future.
After the jump check out some extended quotes from the panel as well as a new viral video featuring Fassbender. Prometheus opens June 8th.
Scott on why he returned to science fiction for the first time since 1982’s Blade Runner: “The thing I felt that … was of interest to me, and I kept thinking about the very first experiences I had–which you know Alien, Blade Runner–and I thought there was a genesis of a very small idea that hadn’t really been examined. So I think in the press in recent months it’s been talked about as having the DNA of Alien which is a perfectly good description. Once we met and we evolved in our … storytelling process and the experience with Damon at it across the table–which is really where all the work was done, six weeks of that talking–the story just started to evolve and take off into another universe, and I think that’s what we managed to pull off very successfully. And if we’re lucky maybe there’ll be a second part to all of this, because the film does leave you with some really nice, big open questions.”
Scott on whether it was difficult returning to the genre: “No, I mean I think … the four of us sitting here on stage are just damn lucky to be doing the profession we do, and so for me to come back and do anything, I don’t care what it is, I’m relieved and grateful I’m still allowed to do it. So for me it was a real pleasure coming back to it.”
Theron, on how she got involved: “We were exchanging emails. I was in Malaysia during monsoon season, and Ridley said, ‘I think you’re available, do you want to read this? You have two hours to read it and then it will implode on itself.’ And I couldn’t find any reception because it was monsoon, so I climbed onto a hilltop under a tarp and, like, read it in two hours and said–I don’t even think I finished it. I was like, of course, I’ll do this. Are you kidding me?”
Fassbender, on how he got involved: “Same thing, minus Malaysia and the monsoon. I was at home at my flat in London, and there was a man with a gun to my head, and I had two hours to read the script. I’m a slow reader, so I was sweating. … Each page, there was something new, and there was something unexplained. … You could never put your finger on anything. … Like a fish keeps slipping from your hand. It was such an intelligent piece of writing. … And then, of course, with the master at the helm, it was just an amazing opportunity. I’m so grateful. We had a lot of fun making it, and hopefully it’s going to do you proud, all the fans out there.
Scott, on casting Idris Elba (The Wire) and Noomi Rapace (the Swedish version of The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo) in key roles: “Once the most difficult thing is set is the script, the story and the script. The next most important thing is who am I going to have to play all these wonderful parts? And so I spend a great deal of time thinking. And with, of course, the casting director. But I’ve already got pretty good preconceptions of, you know, who the main players are going to be. Therefore I just hope that that’s who I’m going to get. Because I’ve done enough on it by that moment, and also I’ve watched them enough to think that’s what I’m looking for … when I’m going to work with an actor or actress. And I’ve said this before. I rarely talk about the screenplay initially. I spend a couple of hours just talking to them as a person. And trying to get them to open up and evolve themselves. Because then … now [I] know who they are as a person as best I can in a two-hour process. Because I’m always looking for someone who actually is going to be a good partner with me in the process of making a movie. Because that’s how I like to do it. … Whatever I do, whenever I work in a film, I try to make it always an ensemble. Because that way you get better work, you get interreaction on and off camera, and it just makes for better performances.”
Fassbender on playing an android: “I call him a robot. … We discussed it, and it wasn’t like it was going to be a reveal of any sort. … The fact that David is a robot is revealed early in the film. And then, you know it was just again the wonderful hints that Ridley sort of put my way before we started. He was, like, take a look at The Servant. Film with Dirk Bogarde and various other things. And so, you know, the idea that he was a butler type character. That he’s there to sort of service the aircraft and the crew on it.
“And … then I … thought, ‘Well, what sort of physicality am I going to find there?’ For some reason I thought of [Olympic diver] Greg Louganis. I don’t know, early on, I thought of this guy. I always remembered him when I was younger, and I … see him … just the way he walked before he dove off the … diving board, … and I always thought there was something very funny about it to begin with. And also there was a real economy of movement. And I thought that would lend quite well to David. And then I just really wanted to have as much fun as possible with the character. And then also the question of like, OK, how much of a programming would start to program itself? So you have this robot who was supposed to respond and interact with human beings and be able to sort of understand human beings. Would that start to manifest itself in other forms? Would he start to develop his own personality traits, and ego, insecurities, all the fun human stuff? And then it was just sort of about playing around with that, really, and seeing sort of how much, for the audience when they’re watching it, they’re like, is this guy taking the piss [i.e., kidding] or is he for real?”
Do robots piss? “They do, but only to make humans feel more comfortable around them.”
Asked about rumors that David is in fact the precursor of humanity, Fassbender answered: “Absolutely.”
Was he taking the piss?
We’ll know on June 8th.
