Sigourney Weaver is well-known among sci fi fans as one of the great leading ladies of genre film, particularly for her portrayal of Ellen Ripley in the first four Alien films. She has also been part of other important sci fi and fantasy franchises such as the first two Ghostbusters entries, Galaxy Quest, and the Avatar series. But her career may have gone very differently if a casting decision had gone another way, and it could have had a major impact on the course of sci fi cinema.
Weaver got her start acting in front of the camera on the ’70s soap opera Somerset, and she had some bit roles in other films and TV shows as well. When casting was underway for the Disney film The Black Hole, she was considered for the lead female role of Kate McCrae, but she was mostly an unknown at that point, and allegedly the head of casting rejected her because of her unusual name.
Had they hired her for the part, that might have kept her from the role of Ripley in Alien because filming for the two overlapped. The Black Hole was in front of cameras from October 11, 1978, to April 20, 1979, while Alien was rolling from July 5, 1978, to October 21, 1978, causing a conflict in schedules. She auditioned for The Black Hole first, so if she had been committed to that, it seems unlikely Ridley Scott would have altered the filming schedule for Alien for a mostly unknown actress.
Since Weaver missed out on the role for The Black Hole, she did eventually join the crew of Alien, but there was another snag that could have impacted her presence in the film. She developed a rash that they first thought was an allergic reaction to the cats appearing as Jonesy. But it turned out to be caused by the synthetic fabrics used in her costume, as well as the heavy stage lighting, makeup, and environmental conditions on the Nostromo sets. They had to pause production because of that, but enough footage had been filmed that they did not seriously consider recasting the role.
If Weaver had starred in The Black Hole instead of Alien, there is no telling what direction her career would have taken. The Disney film turned out to be a box office disappointment, and Yvette Mimieux—who did appear as Kate McCrae—was relegated to mostly guest-star roles and B-movies for the rest of her career. It would also have robbed us of seeing Weaver as Ripley, one of the most iconic female lead roles in all of cinema, and possibly precluded her from appearing in later well-known genre films. Fortunately, though, the stars were aligned correctly, and Sigourney Weaver has enjoyed a long and successful career in cinema and is well-loved by sci fi fans.
Read more about The Black Hole at AxiomsEdgeSciFi.com
