When Ridley Scott’s Alien hit theaters in 1979, it was only his second theatrical film and he had no idea it would become franchise. But as Alien celebrates its 45th anniversary this year, Scott regrets that he wasn’t asked to direct Aliens or Alien 3, which were respectively helmed by James Cameron and David Fincher.
“I was slow out the starting gate,” Scott told Vanity Fair. “I mean, I should have done the sequels to Alien and to Blade Runner. You change over the years. At that time, I didn’t want to go through it again. So Jim Cameron came in–and then David Fincher–on [Alien 3].”
Scott eventually returned to the Alien franchise for the prequel film Prometheus in 2012, before helming its direct sequel, Alien: Covenant, in 2017. Regardless, Scott still seems a bit upset that 20th Century Fox didn’t bring him back sooner.