Alien: Romulus is the latest R-rated addition to the Alien saga. Released on August 16th, the film has already grossed close to $300 million worldwide, making it the second highest earning Alien film and the highest grossing horror movie of 2024.
Romulus is a chilling sequel to the 1979 classic, taking place twenty years after the events of the original film. The story follows Rain, played by Cailee Spaeny and her adoptive android brother Andy, portrayed by David Jonsson. The two are both living hand-to-mouth on a distant mining colony lightyears from Earth. However, Rain’s colleagues soon discover a derelict space station drifting aimlessly towards their planet and hatch a plan to smuggle cryostasis pods off of the station with the help of Rain’s android Andy. But as you’d expect, things don’t go as intended as they encounter ‘the most terrifying life-form in the universe’.
Alien: Romulus is plainly a terrifyingly great movie, with an amazing cast and plot that pays homage to the original film and its actors. Unlike more recent modern Alien films, Romulus relies heavily on practical effects, making its often horrifying scenes all the more real. My favorite practical effect would probably be the new facehuggers, which they rigged to literally crawl and jump at the actors.
Despite the movie’s overall positive reviews, that hasn’t protected it from controversy. The film directors ended up using AI to recreate late Ian Holm’s likeness as an injured synthetic android, who passed away in 2020. Holm’s family did approve the use of his voice and face, however it still remains a point of contention for the film and its production. This is just heightened by the SAG-AFTRA strikes from the summer of 2023, which ultimately secured a contract that would require clear consent if a studio wishes to repurpose an actor’s materials with AI.
Aside from that, Alien: Romulus is simply a great horror movie which takes great inspiration from the original 1979 film. Even if you aren’t a hardcore fan of the admittedly stretched out Alien franchise, Romulus is a must see this halloween season.
