20th Century Fox seems to have a game plan with regards to a sequel to last year’s Prometheus. While director Ridley Scott made no secret of the fact that he envisioned the Alien pseudo-sequel as the beginning of a new franchise, firm movement on the follow-up had yet to materialize. Coming off a box office take of over $400 million worldwide for the R-rated sci-fi pic, Fox was initially said to be targeting a 2014 or 2015 release date for Prometheus 2. Screenwriter Damon Lindelof revealed earlier this year that he opted not to return to pen the follow-up, and a few months ago a story surfaced claiming that Fox was “freaking out” over how to continue the story. Well it appears that a logline for Prometheus 2 has indeed been sorted out, as screenwriter Jack Paglen is in talks to pen the script for the follow-up, with Noomi Rapace and Michael Fassbender expected to return in the starring roles. Less certain, though, is Scott’s involvement this time around. Hit the jump for more.

Per Variety, Fox and Ridley Scott have entered talks with scribe Jack Paglen to write the Prometheus sequel script. Paglen most recently penned the sci-fi thriller Transcendence, on which Christopher Nolan’s longtime cinematographer Wally Pfister is making his directorial debut with Johnny Depp leading the cast. The report notes that Rapace and Fassbender are expected to reprise their roles in the sequel, and while Scott will most definitely be producing the film, it’s unknown at this time if he will direct. The filmmaker is currenty in post-production on The Counselor and plans to shoot his Moses epic Exodus later this year, so he likely wouldn’t be available until later in 2014 and Fox understandably wants to get Prometheus 2 in theaters sooner rather than later.

One of the major complaints from audiences about Prometheus was that the film left many plot lines open-ended, especially with regards to the pic’s mythology. Around the time of the pic’s release, Scott talked at length about his plans to explore the origins of the Engineers in further films and explain how the circumstances surrounding Prometheus were put into motion. Given that Rapace’s Elizabeth Shaw and Fassbender’s disembodied David were shown setting out for the Engineers’ home planet at the end of Prometheus, one presumes the ongoing adventures of the two will be the central focus of the sequel.

Fox is clearly ready to get this thing going, but it’ll be interesting to see which director the studio taps to take the helm should Scott opt not to return to the director’s chair. Personally, I think it might be good to let another director step in and take over the franchise going forward. What do you think, folks? What would you like to see in the sequel? Who should direct if Scott doesn’t return? Sound off in the comments below.