After arriving on HBO Max in April, Alien: Romulus is already heading to a new streaming service. The film that revived the Alien franchise arrives on Hulu on May 21.
Alien: Romulus is the first Alien movie produced since Disney gained the rights to the franchise with its acquisition of 20th Century Fox. The movie was a success at the box office, earning $350.9 million worldwide on an $80 million budget.
What Is Alien: Romulus About?
Alien: Romulus occurs between the original Alien movie and its first sequel, Aliens. However, while it touches on some dangling plot threads from Alien, it is not a direct sequel to that story. Instead, Romulus introduces a new cast of characters, young character who become trapped on a space station with a Xenomorph.
Alien: Romulus was a critical hit, earning a “certified fresh” Rotten Tomatoes score of 80% positive, and an 88% positive rating from the website’s users on the Popcornmeter. Reviews credited Romulus with being reverent of Alien franchise’s best movies, while also introducing new ideas into the long-running series.
Ridley Scott, who directed the first Alien, was also a fan of Romulus, according to Romulus director Fede Álvarez. “He was in the theater, and I wanted to see him right away,” Álvarez told Collider in 2024. “I really wanted to get his fresh reaction out of the film and what he felt. I went to see him, sat down, waited on the table, I had a notepad and a pen next to me just waiting just to hear whatever he had to say to write it down. I remember what his first reaction was: he walked in, and he said, ‘What can I say? It’s f***ing great.’ And then he said, ‘You have a big movie here.’”
Álvarez directed Alien: Romulus from a screenplay he co-wrote with Rodo Sayagues. It stars Cailee Spaeny, David Jonsson, Archie Renaux, Isabela Merced, Spike Fearn, and Aileen Wu.
Will There Be a Sequel to Alien Romulus?
Image via Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures / Courtesy Everett Collection
Alien: Romulus was successful enough for Disney to quickly put a sequel into development. However, Álvarez won’t direct Alien: Romulus 2, but will write the script himself for a specific reason inspired by a notorious decision in Alien 3.
“I don’t think I was ever going to [direct Romulus 2]. We always knew right when we finished – this is one of those things where you come in and you do one, and get out. [James] Cameron, [David] Fincher… all those directors I love, they went and did one. Obviously, Ridley [Scott] created it; he has the right to make a bunch of them,” Álvarez said at the HorrorHound Weekend in February 2025.
He continued, “We did want to write it. Honestly, it’s because we love the characters we created, so we want to make sure no one kills them right at the beginning of the next one. They went and killed Hicks and Newt just like that [in Alien 3], hey, let’s not let that happen. We wrote it and made sure they stayed alive, and now we can let someone else make it.”
Alien: Romulus comes to Hulu on May 21.
Release Date
August 16, 2024
Runtime
119 Minutes
Director
Fede Alvarez
