Sigourney Weaver says the 'ship has sailed' on playing Ellen Ripley in another 'Alien' movie

• Sigourney Weaver said she won't return to play Ellen Ripley in another "Alien" movie.
• She said she wanted to star in a planned Neill Blomkamp movie but they "didn't get to do that."
• Weaver last played Ripley in "Alien Resurrection" in 1997.

When it comes to iconic female heroes of cinema, Sigourney Weaver's Ellen Ripley stands head and shoulders above the rest.

Ripley first fought her way through space in 1979's "Alien," which saw her try to stay alive while being hunted by the terrifying Xenomorph. 

Weaver would later step into Ripley's boots again for "Aliens," "Alien 3," and "Alien Resurrection," and she was at one point slated to reprise the role for a Neill Blomkamp-directed sequel back in 2015 that never came to fruition. 

Speaking to Total Film magazine (via Games Radar), Weaver said that she's moved on from the role, and won't play Ripley again in the future.

"There are all kinds of younger actors taking this kind of role," she said. "And there was an 'Alien' that I really wanted to do with Neill Blomkamp and we didn't get to do that, but, you know, that ship has sailed. I'm very happy doing what I'm doing. I put in my time in space."

Weaver also praised original "Alien" director Ridley Scott and writer Dan O'Bannon for making Ripley such a formidable character in the first place.

She said: "They made Ripley a woman, without making her this helpless creature. Because I think I was very lucky. These were men who were creating this woman character, but they liked and respected strong women."

Blomkamp's "Alien 5" would've taken the character in a surprising direction by ignoring the events of "Alien 3" and partnering Ripley with Corporal Dwayne Hicks (Michael Biehn).

Concept artist Geoffroy Thoorens also showed off a variety of interesting designs he created for the film on Instagram, which shows Ripley wearing Xenomorph-inspired armor, as well as someone being attacked by a new Xenomorph snake-like creature.

Unfortunately, Ridley Scott confirmed to AlloCiné in 2017 that Fox had canceled the film.

"There was never a script. It was an idea that evolved from, I believe, a 10-page pitch, and I was meant to be the producer on that. And it didn't evolve. Fox decided that they didn't want to do it and that was it," he said.