As director Ridley Scott continues the pre-production process in Australia for his highly-anticipated Alien: Covenant, the growing cast has yet another new addition. The Hollywood Reporter reveals that The Hateful Eight star Demián Bichir has signed on, but no details were given regarding his role. We reported earlier this month that production will begin in April, on location in Sydney, Australia.

Demian Bichir joins a cast that includes Prometheus star Michael Fassbender, who returns as the android David, along with franchise newcomers Katherine Waterston and Danny McBride. Ridley Scott teased last month that he's aiming for a hard R rating, which makes sense since all of the previous Alien movies were R except Alien Vs. Predator. While no official plot details have been given yet, we know this will be the first in a new trilogy that will eventually lead up to the original Alien.

Ridley Scott is directing from a script by Jack Paglen, Michael Green and John Logan. It has also been confirmed by the director that Alien: Covenant will feature some sort of connection to Sigourney Weaver's iconic Ellen Ripley character from the original Alien. Some have speculated that we may even see Ripley conceived on the Covenant ship, and that Katherine Waterston's character may actually be Ripley's mother.

The story centers on the crew of the colony ship Covenant, who are bound for a remote planet on the far side of the galaxy. They discover what they think is an uncharted paradise, but it actually turns out to be a dark, dangerous world. And the sole inhabitant is the "synthetic" David (Michael Fassbender), survivor of the doomed Prometheus expedition. 20th Century Fox has set an October 6, 2017 release date for Alien: Covenant, putting it up against Warner Bros.' The Jungle Book: Origins.

Demián Bichir most recently starred in Dom Hemingway and Quentin Tarantino's revenge Western The Hateful Eight. He will next be seen in Universal's Lowriders alongside Theo Rossi and Gabriel Chavarria. What do you think about the growing Alien: Covenant cast?