Sigourney Weaver describes the ‘Alien’ scenes that were “awful” to film
Although Sigourney Weaver has built a filmography that is full of countless beloved projects, the one movie that plays a central part in defining her legacy will always be Alien. Featuring Weaver as the iconic Ellen Ripley, Ridley Scott’s 1979 masterpiece changed the landscape of sci-fi horror and inspired countless works that have tried to follow in its footsteps.
Revolving around the crew of a commercial spaceship, Alien charts a disturbing descent into violence and horror as a strange extraterrestrial entity enters the vessel. As the creature works its way into the collective fractured psyche of the human beings onboard, Scott draws the viewers into a claustrophobic vision of pure terror. This same atmospheric paranoia became a vital addition to the language of horror films, evident in its successors like John Carpenter’s The Thing.
While the movie emerged as a critical and commercial success, the role was very demanding for Weaver, who suffered minor injuries while working through the difficult takes. Not only did the content of the script have a lasting impact on Weaver’s mind, but some of the scenes were especially tough. When asked about the most challenging segment of the film in an interview, the actor unhesitatingly referred to its most infamous scene.
Referring to the immortalised vision of the alien bursting through a crew member’s chest, Weaver recalled: “What affected me the most was… John Hurt was lying on the table with this false body – most of him was underneath the table, and there was a hollow cavity that the baby Alien was supposed to come out of. Just to see John not whole was upsetting to me. But by the time it actually came out of his chest, it was especially awful.”
According to the actor, the practical effects were repulsive to be around. She added: “Plus, I knew that the special effects men were trying to rig the blood so that it would hit me. I was absolutely green. There had been a huge vat of kidneys and livers and intestines floating around on the set for two days, and the stench was awful. All the cameramen were covered with blood. By the time we had been filming for two days, it was just awful.”
Although Alien spawned an entire franchise full of multiple sequels and spin-offs, the first film will always have a special place in the hearts of horror enthusiasts all over the world. A major part of that magic can be attributed to Weaver’s incredible performance, fuelled by her impressive dedication to the craft.
Watch the iconic scene below.
