Amateur fan-films paying tribute to their beloved sci-fi franchises are mostly a mixed bag...mostly.

Check out this new geek-led salute to Aliens called Alien Identity, which reintroduces us to the characters of Newt and Private Frost from James Cameron's Aliens, erasing at least part of the controversial decision to kill Newt and Hicks in David Fincher's Alien 3.

20th Century Fox has given its supreme approval to this unofficial spin-off project, written and directed by Adam Sonnet and funded by a future Kickstarter campaign. Sonnet's take on the material ignores the plots of Alien 3 and Alien Resurrection as mere cryo-sleep nightmares and picks up the story 14 years after the events of Aliens, reuniting audiences with Newt (Elle Viane Sonnet) as a troubled young adult in an alternate timeline. Carrie Henn, who played the shrieking, hot chocolate-sipping child survivor in Cameron's 1986 film, will play Newt's mother in an extended flashback scene.

Another popular alum from Aliens, actor Ricco Ross, who played Private Robert Frost, will join the cast in Alien Identity, now playing the deceased Colonial Marine's older brother, Richard.

Here's the brief synopsis from their offiicial site:

When given confidential information about her traumatizing youth, deep space colonist Rebecca "Newt" Jorden, must find the courage to face her new found identity.

Are you glad Newt is getting a second chance in life and will she return to Weyland-Yutani's decimated terraforming camp on LV-426 to find her plastic doll?

(Via Den of Geek)