It’s fair to say that the Alien films have moved into an entirely different (and Predator-ial) place in popular culture than their original space, and it’s time to take the franchise back to basics. That’s what Fede Álvarez, the atmosphere obsessed director of 2013’s Evil Dead and Don’t Breathe, does in the upcoming movie that appears to pretend that those Prometheus movies don’t exist. To fuel that spirit, Álvarez travels back in cinematic time to the place between Ridley Scott’s Alien (1979) and James Cameron’s Aliens (1986).
As a result, Álvarez will take those face-huggers back to their horror roots and the humans back to their blue-collar beginnings. Expect the ship to be a character as much as those who find themselves running from invading creatures, and overwhelming claustrophobia will reign supreme while stoking tension. Let’s get down to xenomorphic business with what to expect.
This film is not to be confused with the other currently in-production Alien project, a series from FX that is currently filming in Thailand and stars Timothy Olyphant. That show hails from showrunner Noah Hawley (Legion, Fargo) and will revolve around a monster on earth, where it cannot be as easily confined as within a ship floating in space. However, a positive aspect of that scenario is that there should be places to hide in the wide-open environment, yes?
Whereas in Alien: Romulus, with Ridley Scott coming back as producer, there is no such luck. Álvarez was inspired to take on this project while watching Aliens‘ extended cut, and he wondered what would happen when a group of colony children grew up and forged out on their own. As a result, this film shows 20-somethings who are also “very blue collar… but they are way younger than before.” The simple synopsis: “Young people on a distant world find themselves confronting the most terrifying life-form in the universe.”
Expect practical effects, and Álvarez recently provided a look at the face-huggers in exploration mode. Yikes.
Playing with my favorite toy on set of #AlienRomulus last summer. RC Facehugger created by the amazing team from @wetaworkshop Happy #AlienDay everybody! pic.twitter.com/XKqc5StFtR
— Fede Alvarez (@fedalvar) April 26, 2024
This interquel’s story hops into the timeline between Alien (which took place in 2090-ish) and Aliens (which jumped ahead to 2179), so expect the ship and its technology to look very familiar with what we’ve seen onscreen in the original movies. Production designer Naaman Marshall (Nightcrawler, Westworld, The Dark Knight, Dawn of the Planet of the Apes) certainly had a template to work with — look for the ship to closely resemble the “old” days — but this ship is occupied by a group of young-adult scavengers who receive much more than they bargained for.
Hey, nobody ever said that transitioning into adulthood is easy. This film should be a chest-bursting good time, and 20th Century Studios decided that the previously planned Hulu release plan should be scrapped for a theatrical rollout. Álvarez also recently told the Associated Press, “It’s a return to form. At its core, at its heart, it’s a horror thriller.”
Happy #AlienDay everybody! pic.twitter.com/vWyWtThUfj
— Fede Alvarez (@fedalvar) April 26, 2023
The infested ship will be explored by characters portrayed by Cailee Spaeny (Priscilla) in what looks like the Ripley-type role along with leads the cast with Isabela Merced, Archie Renaux, David Johnson, Aileen Wu, and Spike Feam.
August 16 will be the perfect (sweltering) time to duck into a darkened theater to watch Alien: Romulus.
Less is more when it comes to this teaser trailer. Now we’re cooking.
