When Disney bought Fox back in 2019, sci-fi horror fans panicked. The House of Mouse was now holding the keys to two of cinema’s goriest, most nihilistic franchises: Alien and Predator. Would the Xenomorph become a princess, start singing show tunes and teach life lessons about friendship? Would Mickey Mouse burst out of someone’s chest? Thankfully, no. None of that happened. Instead, against all odds, Disney didn’t ruin Alien. In fact, they might’ve actually saved it.
First, Prey (2022) quietly dropped on Hulu and reminded us that Predator could still be terrifying. Then came the surprise of Alien: Romulus, which felt more Alien than Prometheus ever did. And now, the trailer for Alien: Earth, FX’s new TV series dropping on Hulu August 12, is here, and it’s the best thing we’ve seen from the franchise in decades.
Ridley Scott himself might not be thrilled about it. The Alien godfather recently told Screenrant that he’s officially out: “Where it’s going now, I think I’ve done enough, and I just hope it goes further.” He even admitted, “I think mine was pretty damn good, and I think Jim’s was good, and I have to say the rest were not very good. And I thought, ‘F***, that’s the end of a franchise which should be as important as bloody Star Trek or Star Wars.’”
Well, Ridley, you might want to hold that thought.
The Alien: Earth trailer reveals a gritty, grounded, and surprisingly terrifying story that feels like it belongs next to the original two films. Created by Fargo and Legion showrunner Noah Hawley, the show ditches outer space and brings the nightmare to our own backyard. Set in 2120, just a couple years before Ripley ever sets foot on the Nostromo, a xenomorph-infested ship crash-lands on Earth, forcing a group of soldiers to investigate. What could possibly go wrong? Again.
Hawley chose to break the formula. “The Alien stories are always trapped… trapped in a prison, trapped in a spaceship. I thought it would be interesting to open it up a little bit so that the stakes of ‘What happens if you can’t contain it?’ are more immediate,” he said.
The trailer teases all the slimy, spine-snapping horror fans crave, while introducing us to Sydney Chandler’s character Wendy, a meta-human with the body of an adult but the mind of a child.
Fans are already hyped. “Looks so much better than I was expecting!” wrote one Redditor. Another said, “I’m loving the glimpses of the alien we got here. Looking good.”
But, honestly, I personally think Disney didn’t even plan on this working. Prey and Alien: Romulus were supposed to be streaming-only throwaways. They let the creatives and filmmakers do whatever they wanted, and surprise! It worked. No big stars in any of the films (except for Timothy Olyphant, maybe). No studio micromanaging. Just horror, heart, and acid-bleeding chaos.
So maybe there’s a lesson here. Let creators create, and let the executives focus on box office spreadsheets. Are you listening, Marvel? Star Wars? Because if Disney can bring Alien back from the dead, anything’s possible for the rest.
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