Celebrity Life's video: The Cast Of Aliens Then and Now

Where Are They Now? The Cast Of Aliens Released 30 years ago, Aliens saw Ellen Ripley (Sigourney Weaver) return with a bunch of Colonial Marines to declare all out war on H.R. Giger’s acid blooded monster. A radical sequel, Aliens turned the slow dread of Ridley Scott’s Alien on its head, in the process creating one of the most intense action films ever made. The film cemented the reputation of then up-and-coming Canadian director James Cameron, who had just made that other seminal ‘80s sci-fi classic The Terminator and would go on to deliver the two most successful films of all-time in Titanic and Avatar. The movie still stands the test of time, and many would even go as far as to say it’s better than the original Alien. But what happened to the cast once the Alien Queen had been unceremoniously ejected into deep space? While the Colonial Marines may have been wiped out in their droves, we’re going to find out by picking off the cast of Aliens one by one. Here’s Where are they now? The Cast Of Aliens Then and Now . 1 Sigourney Weaver – Ripley Sigourney Weaver’s return as Ellen Ripley netted the actress a Oscar nomination – a rarity for the sci-fi genre. It’s an incredible performance, turning Ripley into an action hero who this time takes the fight to the Alien Queen. The 80s would prove to be Weaver’s decade. Not only did she appear in the smash-hit Ghostbusters and its sequel, but in a rare duel win, she took home the 1988 Golden Globe for Best Actress and Best Supporting Actress for her work in Gorillas in the Midstand Working Girl. Aside from her acclaimed work, Weaver has been called the "sci-fi queen," making appearances in everything from Futurama to Wall-E. She also gloriously sent up the trope of the aging actress in 1997’s Star Trek spoof Galaxy Quest (watch this now). Weaver returned to work with James Cameron on Avatar and is rumored to be returning to Pandora in the upcoming sequels. Given that her character bites it in the first movie, that might seem an odd casting decision. But Weaver knows better than most of sci-fi’s ability to resurrect long-dead characters, once commenting: "no one ever dies in science fiction." However, she hasn’t quite left Ripley behind her, reprising the role in the troubled David Fincher production Alien 3 and the truly out there Alien: Resurrection, despite the character being killed off in the third installment. With Neill Blomkamp’s rumored Alien sequel on an indefinite hold, have we seen the last of Ellen Ripley? 2 Carrie Henn – Newt The inclusion of 9-year-old Newt gave Aliens an emotional resonance that went deeper than the primal fear of the first movie. Not only were you scared for the fate of a child in such a harrowing environment, but Ripley’s maternal connection with Newt added depth and humanity that elevates the film above a sci-fi shoot ‘em up. On casting Henn, Cameron remarked “There was a quiet, soulful quality that I was looking for with the character,” and it seems he found it. Her role is central to Ripley getting over the loss of her daughter and drives much of the plot. But what happened to Carrie Henn, the young actress who played Newt? Well, after filming finished on Aliens, Henn left acting behind, going on to work as a teacher in northern California. To this day, however, she still exchanges letters with Sigourney Weaver and was even the Hollywood star's guest at the premier of follow-up Alien 3. Being a child actor on the set of Aliens, you’d be forgiven for thinking Henn might have been scared of the aliens during filming? Not so. According to Henn, she was friends with the actors inside the alien suits. When it came time to be chased by one of them, she would pretend that they something far worse: dogs. She must have known some terrifying 3 Michael Biehn - Corporal Hicks 4 Paul Reiser – Burke 5 Lance Henriksen - Bishop Henriksen had planned to quit the acting business if his role as white-blooded android Bishop didn’t pan out. In the end, it turned the actor from something of a journeyman into sci-fi movie royalty. But this wasn’t the first time Henriksen had worked with director James Cameron, having played Detective Hal Vukovich in The Terminator. We're sensing a pattern here. 6 William Hope - Lieutenant Gorman 7 Jenette Goldstein - Private Vasquez 8 Al Matthews - Sergeant Hartman 9 Mark Rolston – Drake 10 Daniel Kash - Spunkmeyer 11 Colette Hiller - Corporal Fero 12 Ricco Ross - Private Frost 13 Bill Paxton - Hicks died in 2017