Back in May of last year it was confirmed that Ridley Scott would be returning to the franchise that launched his career by making a prequel to his 1979 film Alien. Later it was reported that Fox only wanted to make the film with Scott's involvement and refused to greenlight the project until they had him firmly in the director's chair. But as I've said time and time again, nothing ever works they way you think it will in Hollywood.

Script Flags is reporting that the Alien prequel is now on the rocks as Scott and 20th Century Fox bicker over both budget and content. Citing unnamed sources, Scott has been fighting to make a $250 million film with an "18" rating (equivalent to the U.S. "R" rating) for "violence and horror." According to the story, Fox doesn't want to invest "anywhere near that sum" and wants Scott to target a "15" rating instead (equivalent to the U.S. "PG-13" rating) so that they may broaden the audience.

Should the story be true, there isn't a fan alive who would be okay with a PG-13 rating for this film. I can somewhat understand the budget fears (Avatar had cost an estimated $237 million), but forcing the director to lower the rating is equivalent to castration. Did they not learn their lesson after Alien vs. Predator? Unlike some, Scott actually has integrity, and hopefully a stubborn stance will be enough to make Fox change their minds.