Ridley Scott attempted to get the Alien franchise back on its feet with Prometheus, and his approach, a quasi-prequel heavily steeped in philosophical ideas, wasn’t what fans wanted. He tried to course correct with Alien: Covenant a few years later but the damage was done. However, 20th Century Studios wasn’t going to let it sit idle for long. There’s Noah Hawley’s FX series coming up, but more prominently there’s Alien: Romulus, a new film that goes back to Alien’s horror roots.
Disconnected to Scott’s most recent films and set between the events of 1979’s Alien and Aliens in 1986, Alien: Romulus centers on “a group of young people on a distant world, who find themselves in a confrontation with the most terrifying life form in the universe.”
Pretty simple premise, and based on the new teaser, pretty simple in execution by Evil Dead director Fede Álvarez. He also co-wrote the script with Rodo Sayagues. Scott remains aboard as a producer
Gone are the high-profile A-list stars, with Cailee Spaeny (Priscilla, Civil War) the biggest name in the ensemble. She’s joined by Rye Lane actor Davd Jonsson, Madame Web‘s Isabela Merced, plus Archie Renaux (Shadow & Bone), Spike Fearn (Sweetheart) and Aileen Wu (Closing Doors)
Alien: Romulus opens in theaters on August 16th.
