Fantastic Beasts' Katherine Waterston to star in Alien: Covenant

Katherine Waterston, best known for her roles in Inherent Vice and Steve Jobs, has signed up to star in Ridley Scott's new blockbuster Alien: Covenant. 

According to Deadline, the actress, who is currently filming a leading role in J.K. Rowling's Harry Potter spin-off Fantastic Beasts And Where To Find Them, will take the lead role in Scott's new follow-up to Prometheus. 

Scott revealed last month that this new movie is the start of a new trilogy of Alien prequels that will connect Prometheus up to the original Alien. 

Prometheus was released in 2012 and served as a origin story to Alien, it also starred Charlize Theron, Idris Elba and Guy Pearce. 

A further sequel to Alien, this time directed by District 9's Neill Blomkamp, was in pre-production early this year and was set to shoot in 2017, but has now been put on hold due to Scott's new plans.