Summary
- The teaser trailer for Alien: Romulus features characters running from a swarm of facehuggers and paints Cailee Spaeny's protagonist as a Ripley-like figure.
- The movie is directed by Fede Álvarez and takes place between the first two movies in the franchise.
- The teaser suggests the movie will be going back to the franchise's roots and leaning more heavily into horror.
The Alien franchise for the first time since 2017's Alien: Covenant. The new film, which features franchise creator Ridley Scott on board as an executive producer, is set between the first two movies. Cailee Spaeny and Isabela Merced lead the Alien: Romulus cast, with a story that features young travelers from a distant planet encountering a xenomorph.
Now, ahead of the film's release this August, trailer for Alien: Romulus. Check it out below:
The trailer features lots of blood and an army of facehuggers, in addition to providing a brief look at the return of the xenomorph. Spaeny is also shown wielding a pulse rifle in a moment that is a clear ode to Sigourney Weaver's Ripley. Álvarez has now taken to X, formerly Twitter, to share the official poster for the film, which is included below:
Alien: Romulus Looks Like A Return To The Franchise's Roots
Álvarez Is Bringing The Horror Back To Alien
Generally, the first two installments in the Alien franchise are considered the best. The first film, which Scott directs, is more of a horror film set in space, while James Cameron's sequel ups the sci-fi action. The following sequels and prequels vary in quality, but Scott undeniably takes the franchise into some bold new directions with Prometheus and Alien: Covenant. The latter film, especially, proved divisive, and Alien: Romulus appears to be going back to what made Scott's original film so beloved.
Scott originally had intended to make a sequel to Alien: Covenant, but the film was a critical and commercial disappointment, resulting in a change of plans.
Instead of introducing a new planet or biome, the new teaser suggests that Alien: Romulus will primarily take place on board a spaceship. Scott's first film memorably took place almost entirely on board a space vessel as crew are picked off by a xenomorph, and this contributed to the film's scary and claustrophobic atmosphere. While it won't be without moments of action (and an increase to the number of facehuggers), Alien: Romulus certainly appears to be leaning into horror more than recent installments.
Alien: Romulus’ “Disgusting” Scene Is Exactly What The Franchise Needs 45 Years After The Original Chestbuster Sequence
Alien: Romulus' cast has revealed that the movie will include at least one "disgusting" scene – and that's good news given the franchise's past.
Álvarez's work on 2013's Evil Dead remake suggests audiences could be in for a particularly bloody take on the franchise. To that end, Merced teased in an interview with THR earlier this year that she was part of an Alien: Romulus scene that was "so disgusting" that her fellow cast mates had to look away. It remains to be seen how audiences and critics receive Alien: Romulus, but a return to its roots is arguably just what the franchise needs right now to introduce the story to a new generation.
Source: 20th Century Studios, Fede Álvarez
Alien: Romulus is the seventh film in the Alien franchise. The movie is directed by Fede Álvarez and will focus on a new young group of characters who come face to face with the terrifying Xenomorphs. Alien: Romulus is a stand-alone film and takes place in a time not yet explored in the Alien franchise.
- Cast
- Aileen Wu, Rosie Ede, Soma Simon, Bence Okeke, Viktor Orizu, Robert Bobroczkyi, Trevor Newlin, Annemarie Griggs, Daniel Betts
- Director
- Fede Alvarez
- Writers
- Fede Alvarez, Rodo Sayagues, Dan O'Bannon, Ronald Shusett
- Franchise(s)
- Alien
- Studio(s)
- Scott Free Productions, 20th Century
- Distributor(s)
- 20th Century
