Fede Álvarez, the director for the upcoming Alien: Romulus film, explains how the movie connects to the overall franchise.
Director Fede Álvarez on the set of 20th Century Studios’ ALIEN: ROMULUS. Photo by Murray Close. © 2024 20th Century Studios. All Rights Reserved.
In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter to promote the upcoming film and was coordinated to release alongside the first trailer, Alvarez confirmed the film takes place between Alien and Aliens.
He said, “It does take place between the two movies. The way we crafted it is if you haven’t seen any of them, I’m jealous because you’ll have an incredible experience. You’ll have all these worlds of Alien coming at you, and you’ve never experienced any of this. You don’t know how the creature is born, and you don’t know any of these things. That’s fantastic. You’ll have a blast.”
As for individuals who have seen the previous Aliens films, he said, “Now, if you’ve seen the others, then it’s a completely different experience in a way, because you’ll see and you’ll find those connections with the other movies. And if you’re a fan, you’ll be that person who annoys your friends in the theater, by telling them that you know what this is from and where that gun is from and what the characters are talking about.”
“So it is crafted in that way, and hopefully it works that way for everybody, but it is connected to all of them. I love all of those movies. I didn’t want to omit or ignore any of them when it comes to connections at a story level, character level, technology level and creature level. There’s always connections from Alien to Alien: Covenant,” he shared.
Cailee Spaeny as Rain Carradine in 20th Century Studios’ ALIEN: ROMULUS. Photo courtesy of 20th Century Studios. © 2024 20th Century Studios. All Rights Reserved.
As for why the film is based on a younger cast, Álvarez explained, “I wish there was some sort of deep-thinking strategy about it. It was really more based on Aliens. I remember watching an extended cut of Aliens, and there’s a moment where you see a bunch of kids running [and riding a big wheel] around the corridors of this colony. And I thought, ‘Wow, what would it be like for those kids to grow up in a colony that still needs another 50 years to terraform? There’s no sunlight and there’s no real life, except to just take the place of a parent and do the same job they did.'”
” In my movies, I’m always interested in those characters. Maybe it’s because I grew up in the small country of Uruguay,” he posted. “I think it connects to a lot of people who grew up in small towns and think that all the important things are happening somewhere else.”
He continued, “So when I saw those kids, I remember thinking, ‘If I ever tell a story in that world, I would definitely be interested in those kids when they reach their early twenties, and what they want to do and where they want to go.’ And when it comes to having them encounter the creature, the dynamics are completely different. So that might be the reason why we managed to make it.”
“When Ridley [Scott] read it, he felt that it was completely different than the other movies,” he added. “It had all the DNA of the originals and a lot of [the other movies], but it automatically felt different and fresh, mostly because kids that age approach problems in a completely different way than adults do and professional adults do. So it’s just a completely different viewing experience.”
David Jonsson as Andy in 20th Century Studios’ ALIEN: ROMULUS. Photo courtesy of 20th Century Studios. © 2024 20th Century Studios. All Rights Reserved.
Not only does the film’s story and narrative connect to the overall franchise, but Alvarez also shared that he brought in the special effects team from the Aliens film.
“For the creatures, we brought in all the guys from Aliens,” Álvarez revealed. “They were in their early twenties when they made Aliens, and they were a part of Stan Winston’s [special effects] team. And now we had them at the top of their game. They have their own shops, and so we brought them all together to work on all the creatures, because we went with all animatronics and puppets at every level. I even got the chance to be under the table with them, puppeteering all these animatronics.”
He continued, “I have this obsession with no green screens, so we built every creature and set. Everything had to be built so we were really living and breathing in these spaces.”
Isabela Merced as Kay in 20th Century Studios’ ALIEN: ROMULUS. Photo courtesy of 20th Century Studios. © 2024 20th Century Studios. All Rights Reserved.
He also revealed how they used practical effects for the ships as well, “For the sets, we built spaceships and we built miniatures. We went back to all of that. And then we figured out ways to marry it with the CG world. There’s some things that only CG can do for the scope and movement. So it really has to be the right tool for the shot.”
“Ideally, you should never feel like you’re watching CG. Ideally, there should be nothing there where the audience goes, “Well, that was clearly CG.” It should always feel practical, but I prefer practical because I want to see it when I’m there [on set]. There is nothing worse than having nothing to look at when I’m shooting. But some things that are CG can really blow your mind when done right,” he explained.
To that point he shared that even without the visual effects being completed one can still enjoy it, “Ridley [Scott] watched [Alien: Romulus] after I had just finished the director’s cut, and there was no VFX on the director’s cut. There was no time to make any. But he still had the whole experience. There was nothing missing. You know what I mean? So take it that way. You can watch it without VFX, and you’ll know exactly what’s going on. You won’t miss it much. That is a fact.”
Alien: Romulus logo
The official description for Alien: Romulus reads, “The sci-fi/horror-thriller takes the phenomenally successful Alien franchise back to its roots: While scavenging the deep ends of a derelict space station, a group of young space colonizers come face to face with the most terrifying life form in the universe.”
The film stars Cailee Spaeny, David Johnsson, Archie Renaux, Isabela Merced, Spike Fearn, and Aileen Wu. It is directed by Álvarez based off a script he wrote with Rodo Sayagues.
It arrives in theaters on August 16, 2024.
ALIEN: ROMULUS – © 2024 20th Century Studios. All Rights Reserved.
What do you make of Álvarez’s comments regarding how the film is connected to the franchise overall?
