Sir Ridley Scott’s next project, Prometheus, is currently filming in London at Pinewood Studios. Because of the confusion caused by a “leaked” synopsis, the studio in charge of production, 20th Century Fox, has decided to release an “official” version.

“Visionary filmmaker Ridley Scott returns to the genre he helped define, creating an original science fiction epic set in the most dangerous corners of the universe. The film takes a team of scientists and explorers on a thrilling journey that will test their physical and mental limits and strand them on a distant world, where they will discover the answers to our most profound questions and to life’s ultimate mystery.”

Sir Ridley took cast members Michael Fassbender and Noomi Rapace with him to Amsterdam for CineEurope  (a confab for European film exhibitors) and a Q &A this week, but did not bring any footage and only managed to mete out a minimum of details. He did let slip that Prometheusis not a strict prequel to Alien although it takes place in the same general “world” and stems from his desire to revisit the mystery of the “giant fossilized creature with the burst open chest” that we first see in that film.

Many of you probably know screenwriter Damon Lindelof from his work with J.J. Abrams on “Lost”. He’s also co-writer of Abrams’ Star Trek reboot and of the eagerly anticipated (by me) Cowboys & Aliens. He spoke to /Film recently and had this to say about writing Prometheus:

“It started as an Alien prequel. That is what everybody wanted it to be. Obviously, Ridley Scott has not made a science fiction movie in 25 years, since Blade Runner, so the idea that he’s returning to this genre is huge…I’ve always felt that really good prequels should be original movies. And the sequels to those prequels should not be the movie which already exists because, with all due respect to anyone who makes a prequel, but why would you ruin the greatest twist in the history of cinema, “Luke, I am your father”, by showing me three movies which basically spoil that surprise. You can do movies which take place before Star Wars, but I don’t need to see the story of the Skywalker clan. Show me something else which I can’t guess the possible outcome of. There is no suspense in inevitability. So a true prequel should essentially proceed the events of the original film, but be about something entirely different, feature different characters , have an entirely different theme, although it takes place in that same world. That was my fundamental feeling about what this movie wanted to be.”

First, I couldn’t agree with him more with reference to how a “prequel” should be structured. Second, I think that if that’s how the screenwriter of Prometheus feels about “prequels” then we have a pretty good idea that this new film is not going to try to explain the things that happened in Alienor Aliens but give us something fresh, something we haven’t seen before.

Hey, it’s Ridley Scott, it’s aliens (small ‘a’). It’s Fassbender and Idris Elba and Guy Pearce…I’m in.

Prometheus also stars the above mentioned Rapace as well as Charlize Theron, Logan Marshall-Green, Rafe Spall and Sean Harris. The production features many frequent Ridley Scott collaborators like costume designer Janty Yates and editor Pietro Scalia.  More info will surely follow.  The film is scheduled to be released 1 June 2012 in the UK and 8 June 2012 in the rest of the world.