Something is heading towards the 2025 TV schedule with great speed and anticipation. It's a vague statement, I know, but in the case of FX’s Alien: Earth, those words take on a rather sinister air - as most things involving a Xenomorph or a long standing sci-fi franchise do. As someone who follows the Alien movie timeline with glee, this new project has been on my radar for some time.
That being said, a new story from Variety has dropped an interesting comment on how this project fits into this lineage. Or rather, how it might not fit, as you’ll see in this statement from FX Entertainment president Gina Balian:
Everything doesn’t have to fit together the way you expect from Marvel. Fans don’t expect that in this universe. It doesn’t have the same pressure.
Now I know I might be an interesting case study in Alien fandom, as I don’t actually hate any of the movies. Yes, even Alien: Resurrection has some interesting ideas, and I say that by acknowledging Alien and Aliens as the heavy hitters. With that in mind, I just want to go over some concerns I have with Alien: Earth’s storyline in regards to what we have in front of us.
Alien: Earth Has Doubled Down On Its Choice To Sidestep The Xenomorph Origins
I honor Noah Hawley’s choice to ignore Prometheus’ plot, specifically the point that sees David (Michael Fassbender) as the creator of the Xenomorphs. When it comes to Alien: Earth’s story, the creator of Fargo wants these beasts, and whatever else is hiding in this series, to be a product of natural evolution.
That’s a pretty big swing for two reasons, one of which is how the special features of Alien: Covenant flat out show us that David was the one to tip off Weyland-Yutani about the existence of his creation. As for that other concern, it involves how 2024’s summer hit Alien: Romulus interacted with the existing prequel canon.
Alien: Romulus Actually Accepted Prometheus’ Xenomorph Canon
In Alien: Romulus’ ending co-writer/director Fede Álvarez bound the lore of the Engineers and Weyland-Yutani’s pursuit of their genetic gifts in uniquely horrifying ways. The move could be seen as quite successful - at least judging by Romulus’ financial results.
With Alien: Earth being stated as existing “in parallel with Romulus,” whatever’s planned for the next developing Alien sequel might need to change as a result. That’s going to make things a bit confusing, particularly with fans who are using their Hulu subscription to revisit previous entries to prepare. That brings me to one final point.
Fans May Not Expect Alien To Be The MCU, But They Expect Consistency
Alien: Earth looks like a dream project, as it takes the universe Ridley Scott helped shepherd into existence and scales it up to series length. To a point, I can agree with Gina Balian’s feelings that people who enjoy this saga aren’t expecting Arnold Schwarzenegger to swagger out of cryosleep, cock a shotgun and shoot a Xenomorph queen in the head.
At the same time, much as we’ve seen with fans scouring Alien: Romulus for Ripley, there is an expectation of easily followed continuity. Setting Alien: Earth apart from the mostly consistent storyline we’ve already seen raises questions about what to expect. Though I must say, those queries are more out of academic curiosity, as the flashes of Earth we’ve seen so far look like a lot of twisted fun.
I may have thoughts, but these questions actually make me even more invested in seeing what's in store. I can't ignore the magnetic lure of Weyland-Yutani competing against other mega-corporations to get their hands on the Xenomorph - and some other beasties we've gotten sneak peeks at in the marketing. If you feel the same, then don’t forget to tune into the two-episode premiere of Alien: Earth on August 12th, at 8 pm ET! New episodes will drop at that time on Tuesdays, through FX and Hulu.
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