Sci-Fi Bulletin: Exploring the Universes of SF, Fantasy, Horror and Spy-fi!

Blade Runner star Rutger Hauer is set to encounter the Xenomorphs in Dirk Maggs’ audio production of Tim Lebbon’s Alien: Out of the Shadows.

Hauer will be playing Ash, the alien-seeking AI introduced in the first Alien film, in the story, set between the first two Alien movies. “Working on such a famous franchise was a challenge, but an amazing one to have,” Hauer noted. “This was also my first introduction to audio work; it was fascinating to focus on just how powerful the voice can be for such a unique, non-human character like Ash. In the art form I work in, creating compelling audio drama is the ultimate illusion.”

Matthew Lewis, Corey Johnson and Kathryn Drysdale star alongside Hauer in the story which follows Chief Engineer Hooper (Corey Johnson), who finds himself in command of a stricken orbital mining vessel after its captain is killed. Hooper finds himself not only responsible for the lives of his fellow crew, but also for the survivor of the only previous alien encounter, Ripley (Laurel Lefkow).

Hooper’s ship, a large mining freighter, is in orbit over a planet whilst servicing a mine on its surface below. Suddenly, two of its drop ships appear unexpectedly from the storm-lashed planet, with on-board cameras revealing alien creatures are loose on the vessels, attacking the mining crew on their return to the freighter. The crew must struggle not only against the ferocious predatory aliens but also against Ash (Hauer), the Artificial Intelligence on board the freighter that will stop at nothing to secure an alien specimen alive.

Matthew Lewis (voicing Baxter) says of working on audio, “Audiobooks and dramas are a new medium for me, but luckily I was working with some true professionals who I could learn from; since its audio only, you have to squeeze as much emotion from every line as you can without overdoing it. I’m a huge fan of the Alien universe and the opportunity to be a part of that was very exciting – I love playing all kinds of different characters from different walks of life, and a seasoned bridge officer such as Baxter in a science fiction scenario was a completely new one for me too.”

Tracey Markham, Country Manager at Audible UK, says, “We are thrilled to add a dramatized chapter of the Alien franchise to our collection of original audiobooks. Starring one of sci-fi’s best loved actors, Rutger Hauer, in his first audio role, ‘Alien: Out of the Shadows’ not only allows fans to once again get lost in this fantastic world, but also adds to Audible’s popular sci-fi collection.”

Alien: Out of the Shadows was directed and produced by Dirk Maggs, who also adapted it for audio from the original novel by Tim Lebbon. It is available to download from 26th April (pre-order now) at http://www.audible.co.uk/scream.

Read our review of the original novel here, and our interview with Tim Lebbon here.