New Alien Sequel Already Won Over One Of Hollywood's Harshest Critics

Alien: Romulus won over the most hard-to-please creative, who couldn't find anything negative to say about Fede Álvarez's upcoming film.

HIGHLIGHTS

• After a streak of mediocre sequels, Alien: Romulus, directed by Fede Álvarez, has garnered praise from Ridley Scott, the original director.


• Álvarez’s nervousness about showing the film to Scott turned into joy when Scott described it as "f***ing great" and complimented the dialogue.


• Álvarez’s experience in the horror genre and ability to stay true to previous directorial visions make him a promising choice to inject new life into the 40-year-old franchise.

After a long legacy of mediocre sequels, the newest addition to the Alien franchise seems to have impressed one of Hollywood’s most critical creatives.

It has been some time since Sigourney Weaver reprised her iconic role as Ellen Ripley, but the horror films keep chugging along. In recent memory, standalone projects such as Prometheus and Alien: Covenant had some admitted shortcomings. But according to one director, Fede Álvarez's upcoming film, Alien: Romulus, may not suffer the same fate. The director of the Evil Dead reboot and Don't Breathe is putting his spin on the franchise, but the big test was showing the film to the original director, Ridley Scott.

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At the DGA Latino Summit 2023, Álvarez explained how nervous he was to show Alien: Romulus to Scott, who is notorious for giving his unfiltered opinion. But after the Blade Runner director watched Alien: Romulus, his unfiltered thought was one of support. “And then he walks into the room and he did say, ‘Fede, what can I say? It’s f***ing great,’” Deadline reported Álvarez explaining. “For me, it was like… My family knows it was one of the best moments of my life to have a master like him, whom I admired so much, to even watch a movie I made, but particularly something like this… and talk to me for an hour about what he liked about it. One of the best compliments he said was, ‘The dialogue is great. Are you the writer?’ Yes!”

Alien: Romulus will reportedly be a standalone addition to the franchise and take place between the events of Alien and Aliens. Fans of the franchise will recall that during this time with Ripley's story, she was in a deep sleep, waiting to be rescued, and will not appear in the film. Instead, it will focus on a new cast of characters from a distant planet who must confront one of sci-fi’s most terrifying beasts.

Álvarez is practiced in the horror genre, which could only be an asset. Injecting a fresh voice into the 40-year-old Alien franchise is what it needs. His take on the Evil Dead franchise was generally well-received, showing he can stay true to a previous director’s vision. However, fans must wait to see if Álvarez deserves Scott's flattery. The director noted that Scott has strong opinions, even disliking the Blade Runner sequel, which flipped the original on its head.

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Scott isn’t infallible either, having directed some lackluster films himself. For someone who has been in the industry as long as he has, It is natural to make some mistakes along the way. The Alien: Covenant ending was not beloved by fans, while recent films like House of Gucci were bloated and over the top. Only time will tell if Alien: Romulus will be a deserving addition to the franchise.