Alien is a series that seems to be spinning its wheels and doesn’t know what to do with itself. Alien: Romulus promises to return Alien to its horror roots, which is great, but if you’re not doing anything new with the story and characters, it’s not going to be that interesting.

No one seems to want to admit this, but the Alien films need Sigourney Weaver. Maybe she’s too old to be in an Alien horror film anymore, but it’s unlikely they’re going to find anyone to take her place, male or female, with the same vulnerability, relatability, likability, and strength that Weaver portrayed Ellen Ripley. She was one of those instances of perfect casting in a film that was entirely new and fresh at the time, which was back in 1979.

Now Alien is a 45-year old IP that keeps trying to rekindle the old magic of the first films and failing. Prometheus and Alien: Covenant weren’t bad films, but they don’t light the imagination because the stories and the characters aren’t memorable. Alien and Aliens were landmark films. Alien 3 and Alien: Resurrection were good follow-ups, but without Ripley, everything after that has felt somewhat empty. The Alien series needs to find its next leading lady if they want to recapture that same magic it had decades ago.

Unfortunately, the chances of that happening are slim to none given the current state of Hollywood and their obsession with unlikable, agenda-driven, girl-boss characters. Casting an actress with the same combination of maternal femininity, vulnerability, and strength that Ripley had isn’t in their vocabulary. The old Alien films weren’t just memorable for their horror. They also had a phenomenal actress who became a science-fiction icon that Hollywood hasn’t been able to replicate, and probably isn’t capable of replicating anymore.

Then again, given the very last shot of this trailer, maybe director Fede Alvarez has a surprise for us.