One Upcoming Ridley Scott Movie Will Finally Fulfil A Career Dream After Almost 50 Years

Published Oct 17, 2026, 12:20 PM EDT Padraig is a Senior Features Writer and has been part of Screen Rant since 2017. Padraig is a writer, editor and retired Game of Thrones extra who has been writing about movies and TV online for over a decade. He has also written for The Irish Times, Den Of Geek, Little White Lies and many more. It's pronounced Paw-rick, BTW. After almost a half-century, an upcoming Ridley Scott epic will see the director fulfil a career-long dream. Ridley Scott's movie CV contains just about every genre. There are action films, dramas, horror, historical epics, and so on. Of course, Ridley Scott's sci-fi movies are his most groundbreaking. Both Alien and Blade Runner presented visions of a future audiences simply hadn't seen before, with the latter, in particular, influencing the look of just about every subsequent futuristic movie, TV show and video game. One genre the legendary helmer has yet to tackle, however, is the Western. Over the years, he's been linked with various projects, such as the Cormac McCarthy book adaptation Blood Meridian, or S. Craig Zahler's (Bone Tomahawk) Wraiths of the Broken Land. Neither has come to fruition (yet), but Scott told Screen Rant in 2026 that he would "love" to finally make a Western, and he has one in his back pocket called Freewalkers. Ridley Scott Will Finally Make A Western With Freewalkers Credit: MediaPunch/INSTARimages Scott was actually primed to shoot Freewalkers back in 2024, until that version was canceled and pushed back. Plot details are scarce, but the story is said to involve a Native American girl who, after becoming infected with measles, undergoes a dangerous quest in the snowy Midwest to find a cure. Scott has described the project to The New Yorker as particularly "savage," and it would be fascinating to see the director getting his hands on an uncompromising, R-rated Western. All of the "Oaters" Scott has attached himself to over the years have been especially dark, with Blood Meridian featuring some infamously violent passages. Freewalkers appears to be a project Scott really wants to push forward, however. Ridley Scott Could Still Make Another Western Image by InstarImages Scott is a filmmaker who attaches himself to MANY projects, some of which never see the light of day. He was meant to shoot a Bee Gees biopic a few years ago that doesn't appear to be happening anymore, while he still wants to make a third and final Alien prequel. It's tough to get a big-budget Western financed at the best of times too, so in spite of Scott's love for Freewalkers, its lack of broad commercial appeal could be the reason it hasn't happened. There is also the possibility Scott reverts to either Blood Meridian or Wraiths of the Broken Land. Blood Meridian feels like one of those beloved books that will never get an adaptation because it's so fundamentally bleak, but Wraiths of the Broken Land stands a better chance. After years in development hell, S. Craig Zahler's other big Western, The Brigands of Rattlecreek, is finally happening, with Park Chan-wook directing and Matthew McConaughey and Pedro Pascal starring. Why A Ridley Scott Western Movie Is So Exciting Assuming The Brigands of Rattlecreek is a hit or at least an awards contender, Wraiths of the Broken Land could finally move ahead. Whatever the case, getting to see a Ridley Scott Western is an enticing idea. Scott has one of the best visual eyes in the business, and getting to experience a classic "Oater" from his perspective is too good to pass up. Love it or hate it, Scott's refusal to compromise his vision at the very least results in unique projects. Of the three potential Westerns on his "to-do" pile, Freewalkers sounds like the one Scott is most jazzed about. The setup alone makes it stand apart from most outings in the genre, and it might tap into some of the nihilism that Scott explored with his 2013 thriller The Counselor. Coincidentally, The Counselor was written by Blood Meridian's Cormac McCarthy. More importantly, Scott has been trying to get a Western off the ground since his career began, so Freewalkers would be the realization of a career-long wish. The ever-busy director is currently focused on a new adaptation of Treasure Island, but once that is in the can, he will hopefully get back in the saddle on Freewalkers. Source: The New Yorker Birthdate November 30, 1937 Birthplace South Shields, County Durham, England Notable Projects The Martian, Gladiator, Alien Height 5 feet 8 inches Professions Film Director, Producer