The seventh Alien film is set to make its way into theaters this summer as Disney has confirmed that Alien: Romulus, which was directed by Fede Alvarez (Don’t Breathe, Evil Dead), will be released on August 16, 2024. This will be the first film in the franchise since Alien: Covenant, which failed to recapture the magic of the first two films. In fact, the franchise hasn’t been able to match the quality of Alien and Aliens and has suffered greatly in the mainstream because it hasn’t lived up to the legacy that James Cameron set.
There isn’t much information on what Alien: Romulus is other than this brief synopsis and teaser, “a group of young people on a distant world, who find themselves in a confrontation with the most terrifying life form in the universe.” Admittedly, this doesn’t sound that much different from the first film. Granted, we have yet to see a full trailer of the latest Alien feature, but the teaser confirms that it’s extremely similar to the first film. At the moment, there are a lot of reservations regarding the sequel to a well-worn franchise.
The Franchise Is Held Back By A Premise That Doesn’t Have Much Mileage
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It’s not particularly fair that I’m judging Romulus without seeing the full film, but the synopsis and teaser did not inspire something bold and fresh in the seventh installment. However, it’s not just about the synopsis and teaser itself, the entire franchise has been held back with a premise that doesn’t have much mileage to begin with. Alien worked because it was something audiences had never seen before. That chest-burst scene still sticks out as one of the best moments in any horror movie. However, it wasn’t just the fact that Alien felt new, it was genuinely a good film that took the time to build characters before killing them off one by one.
More importantly, the aliens themselves were a mysterious and threatening entity, causing unpredictability and chaos (in a good way) that nicely translated over to fear. Locking Ripley and her crew inside of the spaceship helped add a claustrophobic fear that only enhanced the tension and dread throughout the entire film. Aliens was more action-based, but it was still fresh and it wisely focused on a likable character battling against these unknown creatures. Again, it was a great film, with fun characters, and just enough new elements adding to the mythology that made it compelling.
The Lack Of Originality
Since then, the franchise has been struggling to maintain that level of quality. The films following Aliens have tried to dig deeper into the mythology, but the newfound substance only hindered the franchise as a whole. These xenomorphs worked best when their objective wasn’t clear. Plus, not knowing how to beat these strange creatures added to the tension of each scene in the first two films. Prometheus was an interesting deviation from the series, but Alien: Covenant ultimately squandered the entire arc with Michael.
Romulus seems to be going back to the drawing board, but the brief synopsis and teaser come across as the traditional slasher you’ve seen a million times before. Even then, the good majority of the franchise has been about unsuspecting civilians coming in contact with strange aliens and being picked off one by one. The formula has become rather boring and it’s not clear how much new they can get out of this latest venture in the Alien saga.
The Upcoming Noah Hawley Series Doesn’t Help
What’s even more interesting is that Noah Hawley is developing an Alien series for FX. There’s no confirmation that the film has ties to the upcoming show, but putting out a new film before it airs could damage the product even more. Realistically, no one is expecting this to be an Oscar-level film, so it’s best to keep the film simple as fans likely just want to see alien carnage. But that doesn’t mean it can’t offer something new, like Alien: Covenant did.
The series is expected to further explore the creation of these mysterious creatures, and since Noah Hawley has a strong television track record that includes Fargo and Legion, it’s quite possible that the series could be a new change that nicely adds to the Alien lore. However, with the rumored release date being in early 2025, it feels that Alien: Romulus is an unnecessary cash grab. Fede Alvarez is a talented filmmaker who can bring a new voice to the Alien franchise.
However, if this ends up being another forgettable entry into the series, it could harm the excitement for the Noah Hawley series and kill the franchise altogether. Just look and The Terminator and Transformers series; both franchises are struggling after a string of bad films.
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