8 Intriguing-Sounding Sequels That Should Never Have Been Cancelled

3) Vincent Ward’s Alien 3

While its superior director’s cut has its admirers, no one – not even David Fincher, the guy who directed it – loves the Alien 3 that was first released in theatres. After a lengthy pre-production period that saw several writers and directors come and go, the film ended up shooting without a finished screenplay, and came out the other side as much a mess as its history would suggest.

It wasn’t always this way: Alien 3 originally had a strong, singular vision courtesy of Vincent Ward, in fact. In Ward’s version, Ripley’s escape pod (from Aliens) would crash-land on a wooden planet inhabited by monks, bringing the xenomorph – a creature the monks believe is a demon – along with it.

The basic concept didn’t diverge greatly from what audiences eventually got – a planet comprised solely of bald men being dispatched one by one by an extraterrestrial monster – but Ward’s version brought a striking visual sense and rich subject matter to the table, his film dealing in religious themes and sexual politics. Ultimately, Ward refused to compromise with execs on his vision – paving the way for an embattled, confused David Fincher to come on board and wrangle with a fatally formless final shooting script.