“You’ve got to assume to a certain extent success and from that you’d better be ready,” Scott said. “You don’t want a two-year gap. So I’ll be ready to go again next year.”

If there was any doubt that 79-year-old Scott is game to keep expanding this universe — the prequel saga is planned as a four-film cycle starting with Prometheus — he added, “If you really want a franchise, I can keep cranking it for another six. I’m not going to close it down again. No way.”

Scott says Alien: Covenant is a return to the sci-fi horror of the original Alien, which is later confirmed by seeing 20 intense minutes of footage of the unfinished movie. He sees it as one of three sequels to Prometheus that will take the saga to "the back entrance" of the original Alien.