Alien Director Ridley Scott May Have Found His Next Epic Franchise

Ridley Scott is lining up his next directorial project. The man behind the Alien and Blade Runner franchises, as well as All the Money in the World, is looking to dip his toe into the world of magic.

According to a report from Variety, Scott is currently in negotiations with Disney to helm The Merlin Saga, which will follow the origin story of a young Merlin as his journey toward becoming King Arthur's mentor is set in motion. The film will be based on the 12-book series The Merlin Saga by TA Barron. The author's collection of novels were released between 1996 and 2011.

Should Scott wind up directing the film, his production company Scott Free would produce the project with Disney. It's worth noting this isn't the only movie featuring Merlin that Disney has in the works. The company, which is currently in the process of acquiring 21st Century Fox, is also working on a Sword in the Stone live-action adaptation.

Interesting, this isn't the only Disney project on Scott's mind at the moment. Speaking with Digital Spy, the director says he hopes the company will make more Alien movies now that it will own the property. "I think they should because I think, when people have a hard and fast franchise which has ongoing interest, it's crazy not to do something with it," he explains. Then again, he also thinks Alien movies should be as popular as Star Wars. Given the response to Alien: Covenant, though, Disney might disagree with him.