Variety reports that Scott is now officially attached to helm the prequel, and Jon Spaihts is set to write the script. It was Spaihts who apparently lured the director back to the franchise, and he had a little help from actor Keanu Reeves.

Reeves is set to star in Spaihts' script "Shadow 19" which is set up at Warner Bros, and he subsequently hired the screenwriter to pen the sci-fi epic "Passengers." It was that script that got him a meeting with Fox and Scott, and his pitch won him the prequel gig and reportedly sold the director on returning.

Naturally, no one knows what an "Alien" prequel will entail. The most popular theory holds that it'll be the origin of the mysterious "Space Jockey" whose distress signal was so fatally answered by the crew of the Nostromo in the first film. Though I agree with the current fan consensus that Scott and Spaihts should go in a completely different direction, and leave the doomed pilot purely to our imaginations. Scott did all right back in 1979 though, so it's probably best if we just trust him...

Do you think there should be an "Alien" prequel? Are you glad to see Scott return? Should the whole idea be scrapped?