Sigourney Weaver is an actress known for her legendary roles as strong women, particularly as Ripley in the ‘Alien’ franchise. For decades, Weaver has been a powerful icon for young women to look up to. So, it’s no surprise when THR asked the actress about #MeToo (and a little bit about ‘Alien 5’) in a new interview.
As you might expect, Weaver is a very vocal supporter of the #MeToo movement. However, she does differ from many in that movement when it comes to one Hollywood figure — Roman Polanski. For those that aren’t familiar with Weaver’s career, the actress starred opposite Ben Kingsley in the 1994 Polanski film “Death and the Maiden.” And when she was asked about her experiences with Polanski, who has been in self-imposed exile, evading a prison sentence in relation to the rape of an underage woman, Weaver voiced her support and explained why she would work with him again.
“I have to say, looking back, and I wasn’t really in Hollywood [at the time of the Polanski crimes], but things that I would hear, it was a much different time and that’s no excuse for what he did at all but all I’m saying is it stands out more now than it did at the time because people were desperate to be in movies and I think it’s unimaginable now for a mother to drop off a thirteen-year-old with someone like Roman,” explained the actress.
And when she was asked if she enjoyed working with Polanski, Weaver was quick to defend him and explain that “Death and the Maiden” was probably a therapeutic experience for the filmmaker. “The story we were telling was a very personal story. He had been the accused, he had been the victim in Poland and he been the absolutely helpless husband. So, I felt that a lot of what his feelings about this issue were going right into this film, [‘Death and the Maiden’],” she said.
READ MORE: Quentin Tarantino Has Found His Roman Polanski For ‘Once Upon A Time In Hollywood’
Weaver continued, “He’s changed his life. He’s doing this film about the Dreyfus affair, a very important story to tell. Apparently he’s getting some push back about that. It’s tricky but I learned a lot from Roman… Obviously, I think it’s exactly what #MeToo is about. As sisters and mothers and daughters, we are all aligned so that this kind of thing, putting a young girl in harm’s way, just simply wouldn’t happen.”
Obviously, as is the case with the numerous actors who have worked with Polanski, the ‘Alien’ actress was asked if she’d work with the controversial filmmaker in the future. “Yes, I think I would. To be quite honest I think I would. He’s now happily married; he has two children. I’m sure that he and the children have had some interesting conversations about it. He pled guilty. Does he regret it? I’m sure he does,” she says.
The actress continues and explains why this decision doesn’t interfere with her support of #MeToo, “The #MeToo movement asks that we listen to those who’ve experienced sexual harassment or assault — really listen. So when Roman’s victim asks us all to move on with understanding and compassion, I choose to listen to her.”
READ MORE: Roman Polanski’s Wife Refuses Academy Membership Due To “Insufferable Hypocrisy”
Now, the interview wasn’t all #MeToo and Roman Polanski talk. Weaver confirmed that she’s already finished shooting her scenes for James Cameron’s upcoming “Avatar 2” and “Avatar 3,” and is about to begin work on “Avatar 4” and ‘5.’ Basically, she’ll be stuck underwater for a while, as she also talked about how the next two films in the series are largely underwater affairs.
However, there’s also a bit of an update on the ‘Alien 5’ project that she was working on with director Neill Blomkamp. Sadly, that film seems to have been canceled forever, but Weaver is holding out hope because she said it would have been pretty great.
READ MORE: Neill Blomkamp’s ‘Alien 5’ Is Officially Dead After The Film’s Time “Has Come And Gone”
“We almost started to do it when I was working with James Cameron. But by the time we were put off by Fox, Neill had gotten so many jobs that we’d have to wait probably,” she explains. “I’m busy doing ‘Avatar 4’ and ‘5.’ I love working with Neill and I think he’d do a terrific job, and James Cameron really thinks it’s a great idea, so you never know. Right now, I think Neill’s got like three projects going at once.”
The first of the 4 upcoming “Avatar” sequels is scheduled to hit theaters on December 18, 2020.