What works–and doesn’t–in the new Alien: Romulus trailer?

Before you watch the trailer below for Alien: Romulus, try this: Watch it without the sound (it’s one of those things everyone does now and then while sneaking a peek at their social media throughout the business day). You might agree the version without sound is quite different. Better. Kudos to the trailer’s editor for piecing together bits that evoke the original Alien, except for when it shows too much, both of gore and revealing characters who don’t make it to the end. Ridley Scott managed a balance between H.R. Giger’s body horror visions and what mainstream audiences would tolerate. It’s a nugget of horror moviemaking that Jaws got right–hiding the horror for a few select scares. That said, Ridley Scott’s Alien still showed more than typical, which is largely why audiences stood up (sometimes literally) and took notice.

The outer space ship sequences look promising, but overall will this be more The Predator and Terminator: Genisys… and Prometheus than the better entries of the sci-fi/horror franchises? Without the sound it’s a pretty solid trailer, but this trailer–and presumably the final cut of the movie–would be smarter to keep out the actual body invasion stuff and stick to the kind of frights Blumhouse has been monopolizing in the 2020s. Jumps and scares appeal to a wider audience than slashery gore, so it’s likely this trailer alone will limit ticket sales immensely. Fair warning it’s not for everyone, here is the new trailer for Alien: Romulus:

From director Fede Alverez, with music that is hopefully better than what made it into the trailer courtesy of one of our favorite composers, Benjamin Wallfisch, the latest cinematic installment (film #7) celebrates the 45th anniversary of Alien. It takes place between that film and its first sequel, Aliens. A group of young people encounter Zenomorphs on another distant world… which seems to be all the franchise has been able to do on the screen lately. The film stars Cailee Spaeny (Pacific Rim: Uprising) as Rain Carradine, Isabela Merced (Transformers: The Last Knight) as Kay, Murder is Easy star David Jonsson as Andy, plus Archie Renaux, Spike Feam, and Aileen Wu.

It may be hard to avoid repeat scenes from the franchise, like the obvious redo here of Sigourney Weaver’s first face-to-face with a Xenomorph, which also reveals the effects aren’t what fans of the franchise are accustomed to.

Look for Alien: Romulus in theaters August 16, 2024.

borg is your best source for Alien franchise news. I think Alien tie-in writers must cringe when they see what actually makes it into the theatrical releases. Check out my reviews of previous books and tie-ins in the franchise:

Alien: The Roleplaying Game

Alien and Predator comics

Alien: Out of the Shadows by Tim Lebbon

Alien: Sea of Sorrows by James A. Moore

Alien: River of Pain by Christopher Golden

Alien: The Cold Forge by Alex White

Alien: Colony War by David Barnett

Alien: Inferno’s Fall by Philippa Ballentine

Alien: Prototype by Tim Waggoner

Alien: Into Charybdis by Alex White

Alien: Enemy of My Enemy by Mary Sangiovanni

Alien The Complete Collection: The Shadow Archive Collection by various