| Director: | Fede Álvarez |
| Cinematography: | Galo Olivares |
| Editing: | Jake Roberts |
| Music: | Benjamin Wallfisch |
| Distributor: | 20th Century Studios |
| Runtime: | 119 minutes[1] |
| Country: | United States |
| Language: | English |
| Budget: | $80 million |
| Gross: | $118.7 million[2] [3] |
Alien: Romulus is a 2024 American science fiction horror thriller film directed by Fede Álvarez, who co-wrote the screenplay with Rodo Sayagues. Produced by Scott Free Productions and Brandywine Productions, it is the seventh installment in the Alien franchise, set between the events of Alien (1979) and Aliens (1986). The film stars Cailee Spaeny, David Jonsson, Archie Renaux, Isabela Merced, Spike Fearn, and Aileen Wu. It follows a group of downtrodden young space colonists in pursuit of better life conditions, who encounter hostile creatures while scavenging a derelict space station.
At CinemaCon in April 2019, 20th Century Fox announced their plans to produce future Alien films. Álvarez was attached as director in March 2022, and Spaeny joined the film as the lead later that year. Filming took place from March to July 2023. Alien: Romulus premiered in Los Angeles on August 12, 2024, and was theatrically released in the United States by 20th Century Studios on August 16. It received positive reviews from critics and has grossed $118.7 million worldwide.
A Weyland-Yutani space probe investigates the wreckage of the USCSS Nostromo, collecting an organic object containing a xenomorph.
Rain Carradine, an orphan, works with her adoptive brother Andy, a reprogrammed synthetic human, at the colony Jackson's Star. After her contract is forcibly extended by Weyland-Yutani, she agrees to join her ex-boyfriend Tyler to a derelict spacecraft to retrieve cryostasis chambers. These chambers will allow Rain and her friends—Tyler, his pregnant sister Kay, cousin Bjorn, and Bjorn's girlfriend Navarro—to escape to the planet Yvaga. Andy's ability to interface with the onboard computer system is crucial for the mission. Rain is hesitant to send Andy but is convinced by Tyler and Andy to allow him to assist. They fly the hauler Corbelan to the spacecraft, which is revealed to be a station divided into parts Romulus and Remus, a reference to the Roman legend of Romulus and Remus. While retrieving stasis chambers, Tyler, Bjorn, and Andy accidentally revive frozen facehuggers and trigger a lockdown. To override the lockdown, Rain installs a chip from a damaged android, Rook, into Andy, granting him access to the station while also updating his thought processing and general efficiency. Unbeknownst to the others, this also changes his "prime directive", making him loyal solely to Weyland-Yutani. As the group flees the chamber, a facehugger latches onto Navarro. Rain reactivates Rook, who discloses that the station's crew was killed by the xenomorph and its clones. While Tyler tries to remove the creature, Rook warns it may have implanted a "seed". Despite Andy's attempts to stop him, Bjorn flees with Navarro on the Corbelan. A chestburster emerges from Navarro, killing her. The Corbelan, with Kay and Bjorn aboard, crashes into the Romulus hangar, jeopardizing the station's orbit and leaving less than an hour before it collides with Jackson's planetary rings. Kay is knocked unconscious from the impact and the chestburster escapes into the ship. She regains consciousness and runs into Bjorn, who discovers and attacks the xenomorph gestating into its adult form before dying from its acid blood.
Rain and Tyler navigate to the bay while avoiding the facehuggers. Kay escapes the Corbelan but is stalked by a xenomorph trying to lure the others into a trap. Andy refuses to unlock the door so as not to put everyone at risk, and they watch helplessly as Kay is attacked and dragged away. Andy finds samples of a compound scientists had extracted from the xenomorphs, which Rook calls the "Prometheus fire", intended to "perfect" humans. Rook insists the samples must be brought to the colony and prevents the Corbelan from leaving without them. Rain and Tyler rescue Kay from a cocoon, but Tyler is killed and Andy is incapacitated. Badly injured, Kay injects herself with the compound during their escape. Rain returns to the Romulus, helps Andy by removing the control chip, thus returning his loyalty to Rain, and disables the ship's gravity in order to shoot the xenomorphs while keeping their blood away from the hull. They make it back to the Corbelan just before the station crashes into the rings, destroying Rook. As Rain and Andy prepare for their trip to Yvaga, Kay, affected by the compound injection, gives birth to a rapidly growing human–xenomorph hybrid. The hybrid kills Kay and injures Andy, but Rain manages to eject the creature into Jackson's rings. She places Andy in a chamber and records a log about their hoped-for arrival at Yvaga before entering stasis herself.
Rook, an android science officer onboard the Romulus, is voiced by Daniel Betts, while his physical appearance is based on the likeness of the late Ian Holm, who portrayed Ash in the original film.[4] Trevor Newlin portrays the xenomorph,[5] while the human–xenomorph hybrid (credited as the "Offspring") is portrayed by former Romanian basketball player Robert Bobroczkyi.[6]
After the acquisition of 21st Century Fox by the Walt Disney Company, 20th Century Fox confirmed at the 2019 CinemaCon that future Alien films were in development.[7] In March 2022, it was reported that Fede Álvarez would write and direct a seventh Alien film after pitching his own story, said to be "unconnected" to the previous films in the franchise, with the project set to be released on Hulu.[8] Álvarez later clarified that the film was not a standalone story.[9] The film was said to take place between the events of Alien (1979) and Aliens (1986), with some technical crew members returning from the latter film.[10]
The film features connections and references to all of the six prior Alien films—Alien, Aliens, Alien 3 (1992), Alien Resurrection (1997), Prometheus (2012), and (2017)—in some capacity.[11] [12] In particular, the film ties directly to Alien and Prometheus, with Weyland-Yutani recovering the xenomorph that attacked Ellen Ripley in Alien from the USCSS Nostromo, an android named Rook who physically resembles Ash from the first film, and the "black goo" from Prometheus that gives birth to a human–xenomorph hybrid resembling an Engineer from Prometheus and the creature from the ending of Resurrection.[13] [14] Rook appears via an animatronic with the likeness of the late Ian Holm, who previously portrayed Ash. Álvarez confirmed the connections to Prometheus and stated that the hybrid's resemblance to the Engineers was intentional; this was done to bridge the gap between the prequels and the original films.[15] [16] The film also draws inspiration from the video game (2014).[17]
By November, Cailee Spaeny had entered negotiations to star.[18] In March 2023, Isabela Merced was set to co-star opposite Spaeny.[19] Later that month, David Jonsson, Archie Renaux, Spike Fearn, and Aileen Wu joined the cast.[20] Principal photography took place in Budapest from March 9 to July 3, 2023.[21] [22] [23] The film was filmed chronologically and utilized practical effects.[24] Álvarez consulted Alien director Ridley Scott and Aliens director James Cameron during the film's production, who both expressed approval.
See main article: Alien: Romulus (soundtrack). The score was composed by Benjamin Wallfisch.[25] The score features themes and cues from Alien, composed by Jerry Goldsmith; Aliens, composed by James Horner; and Prometheus, composed by Marc Streitenfeld.[26] The composition "Entry of the Gods into Valhalla" from Richard Wagner's Das Rheingold, which was heavily featured in Alien: Covenant, is also heard.[27] The soundtrack album was released by Hollywood Records on August 16.[28] A vinyl edition of the soundtrack, featuring six bonus tracks, is set for release on November 15.[29]
Disney promptly created digital ads to generate buzz, after early reviews found the third act to be divisive, by urging audiences to watch the movie before hearing spoilers about the ending. The film was reliant on the Alien brand, with the first trailer on March 20 amassing nearly 50 million views within 24 hours. Cinema partnerships offered customized food, beverage items, and life-size xenomorph statues, which were widely shared on social media. These products also included a popcorn bucket, part of a trend after (see popcorn bucket meme) and Deadpool & Wolverine earlier in the year. The campaign also extended across Disney's platforms, with takeovers on ESPN SportsCenter, Alien marathons on FX, and prominent placement on Hulu and Disney+. Promotional tie-ins included limited edition Reebok x Aliens shoes, Alien-themed beer from Angel City Brewery, and cosmetics from Phoenix Rising. Additionally, the franchise offered consumer products and hosted a partnership with the video game Dead by Daylight, which featured a new character tied to the film's release. Marketing efforts ultimately capitalized on the franchise's legacy, according to Deadline Hollywood, with 52% of audiences polled by Screen Engine and Comscore PostTrak citing their love for the series as the main reason for watching the movie on opening weekend.
Alien: Romulus was originally intended to be released directly on Hulu, but Disney moved the film to a theatrical release shortly before filming commenced.[30] The film held its world premiere in Los Angeles on August 12, 2024,[31] and screened at the Edinburgh International Film Festival on August 15 for its British premiere. It was released by 20th Century Studios in the United States and United Kingdom the following day, on August 16.[32]
, Alien: Romulus has grossed $50.7 million in the United States and Canada, and $68.1 million in other territories, for a worldwide total of $118.7 million.
In the United States and Canada, Alien: Romulus was projected to gross $28–40 million in its opening weekend, with some estimates going as high as $45–55 million.[33] [34] The film made $18 million on its first day, including $6.5 million from Thursday night previews.[35] It went on to debut to $42 million, topping the box office.[36] The three-day opening included an estimated 2.7 million admissions and was the second-highest for the franchise and a record for director Fede Álvarez (beating the $26.4 million earned by 2016's Don't Breathe) and actress Cailee Spaeny (surpassing the $28.1 million earned by 2018's Pacific Rim Uprising). When asked about the biggest factors in watching the film, audiences polled by PostTrak listed the in-theater trailer (21%), online trailer (13%), and word of mouth (13%).[37]
Outside the United States and Canada, the film made $68.1 million from international markets in its opening weekend for a global $110.1 million debut, which The New York Times listed as a success.[38] Its international gross included $25.7 million from China, which Deadline Hollywood called an "over-performance".[39]
Alien: Romulus received positive reviews from critics.[40] [41] [42] The review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes reported that critics praised the film's "striking visuals and claustrophobic terror with gory action and a formidable lead performance from Cailee Spaeny", calling it "arguably the best installment since Aliens".[43] On the website, 81% of 308 critics gave the film a positive review, with an average rating of 6.9/10. Its critics consensus reads: "Honoring its nightmarish predecessors while chestbursting at the seams with new frights of its own, Romulus injects some fresh acid blood into one of cinema's great horror franchises."[44] According to Metacritic, the film received "generally favorable" reviews based on a weighted average score of 64 out of 100 from 57 critics.[45] Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "B+" on an A+ to F scale, while those surveyed by PostTrak gave it an 82% positive score, with 65% saying they would definitely recommend it.
Jordan Hoffman of Entertainment Weekly praised the film's direction, design, and writing, calling it "impressive, however, especially in how it looks like a new movie but is simpatico with the tech of the 1979 original" and deemed Spaeny "the finest weapon in the arsenal… differentiating herself quite a bit from the doe-eyed characters she played in Civil War and Priscilla. Her petite nature may not scream action hero, but, as has long been established, in space, no one can hear you scream anyway."[46] Owen Gleiberman of Variety called Alien: Romulus "one of the best Alien sequels... It delivers the slimy creep-out goods in a way that none of the last three Alien films have." He further wrote that "Spaeny, with her clear eyes and serene resolve, makes her presence felt as Rain, the closest equivalent here to the fearless Ripley."[47]
Mick LaSalle of the San Francisco Chronicle criticized the film, writing: "The first 45 minutes are boring beyond description. [...] The script has the aliens waking up and falling asleep at the convenience of the screenwriters, not in a way that makes consistent sense. [...] The foundational mistake came when someone said, 'Hey, let's make another Alien movie.' News flash: The alien concept is dead. Leave it alone, and leave poor Ian Holm out of it."[48] David Ehrlich of Indiewire wrote: "The director would rather torture his cast than develop their characters. There's nothing inherently wrong with that trade-off, but Álvarez doesn't satisfy the first half of the equation well enough to justify his disregard for the second. High on jolts ... and low on more probing scares, Romulus isn't nearly inventive enough to forefront its slaughter at the expense of its soul."[49]
Wendy Ide in The Guardian criticised the decision to digitally add the late Ian Holm for the character of Rook calling it "a queasily misguided choice" that was "ghoulish, exploitative, disrespectful and unnecessary".[50]