Last March, word came that 20th Century Fox was gearing up for an Alien Nation remake and now Deadline reports that Mud and Midnight Special director Jeff Nichols is finishing up a deal to write and direct the feature.
The original film, directed by Graham Baker, took place in a near future Los Angeles, shortly after a race of humanoid extraterrestrials, known as Newcomers, took refuge on Earth. An allegory for racial prejudice, the narrative followed a pair of police officers, human Matthew Sykes (James Caan) and Newcomer George Francisco (Mandy Patinkin).
The film was followed by a single season, 22-episode television spinoff with Gary Graham and Eric Pierpoint playing Sikes and Francisco, respectively. The show’s popularity was such that, even after being cancelled, Alien Nation continued through a series of telefilms with five different movies were aired between 1994 and 1997.
Iron Man scribes Matt Holloway and Art Marcum were previously attached to provide the screenplay for the film. It remains to be seen if Nichols will simply start over or revise their previous draft.
Nichols’ next feature, Loving, stars Joel Edgerton, Ruth Negga, and Michael Shannon. It debuts in theaters on November 4.
