(Cover) - EN Movies - Damon Lindelof believes originality is key to a good prequel.

The acclaimed Hollywood script writer and producer was involved in the screenplay for Ridley Scott's upcoming horror Prometheus, scheduled for release in June next year.

Damon explains how the movie had originally been pitched as a prequel to Ridley's 1979 sci-fi smash Alien, which documented the discoveries of a mining ship landing on a faraway planet, although his re-write changed this.

"It started as an Alien prequel," he explained. "That is what everybody wanted it to be. Obviously, Ridley Scott has not made a science fiction movie in 25 years, since Blade Runner, so the idea that he's returning to this genre is huge.

"But there is a real issue which is - what is the state of the Alien franchise at this point in our lives? There has been Alien Vs Predator and all these things, and it's been completely and totally diluted."

Damon says one of the key things he considers when working on film scripts is the element of surprise. He thinks prequels should normally be drawn from the same world as the original, yet also feature very different themes.

"I've always felt that really good prequels should be original movies," he told The Kevin Pollak Chat Show. (C) Cover Media