Alien Prequel now Prometheus, Noomi Rapace – Angelina Jolie or Charlize Theron Next?

Ridley Scott’s Alien prequel has taken on a life of it’s own and transformed into Prometheus, and Deadline is telling us that one of the five major roles has gone to Noomi Rapace, the actress who caught Scott’s eye with her portrayal of Lisbeth Salander in the Swedish version of The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo, as well as the follow-up films in Stieg Larson’s Millennium series. Have you seen the photos of Rooney Mara for the U.S. version?

Rapace will portray the character of Elizabeth Shaw, while Angelina Jolie and Charlize Theron are both rumored to be under consideration for the part of Vickers, another lead role.

The first draft of the script was written by Jon Spaihts and was bases on Scott’s ideas. Scott and Damon Lindelof have been working together on the current storyline, expanding it from a run-of-the-mill prequel to something completely new.

While details of the plot aren’t being revealed at the moment, Scott did explain the basic concept, “While Alien was indeed the jumping off point for this project, out of the creative process evolved a new, grand mythology and universe in which this original story takes place. The keen fan will recognize strands of Alien’s DNA, so to speak, but the ideas tackled in this film are unique, large and provocative. I couldn’t be more pleased to have found the singular tale I’d been searching for, and finally return to this genre that’s so close to my heart.”

Scott hasn’t messed with science fiction since Blade Runner in 1982 but Hollywood must be expecting good things because there’s apparently already talk about a second Alien prequel in the works. Prometheus will creep into theaters on March 9, 2012.