Ridley Scott Says Alien: Romulus 'Was OK,' So He's Returning to the Franchise Because It 'Needs Some Help'
· IGN
Director Ridley Scott said Alien: Romulus "was OK," so he's returning to the Alien franchise because it "needs some help."
The director behind classic movies like Blade Runner and the original Alien, as well as the newly released The Dog Stars, made his feelings about the direction the sci-fi series is heading in during an interview with French outlet AlloCiné (via Deadline). During the conversation, Scott again confirmed that he's "gone back in" to the property that helped put him on the map.
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The reason? He thinks Alien: Romulus could have been better.
"I'm rewriting the next Alien film," Scott explained. "Actually, I suddenly went back and got involved. The one that just came out [2024's Alien: Romulus], it was OK. I think it needs some help. So, I've gone back in."
Alien: Romulus served as a soft reboot for the Alien universe by plopping new characters like Rain (Cailee Spaeny), Andy the android (David Jonsson), and Kay (Isabela Merced) into a story polluted by Xenomorphs, Facehuggers, and if you made it to the end of the film, something…else. It was generally favorably reviewed, with aggregator Rotten Tomatoes reporting an 80% critic score and an 85% audience score.
IGN gave it an 8/10 review. We said its "back-to-basics approach to blockbuster horror boils everything fans love about the tonally-fluid franchise into one brutal, nerve-wracking experience."
For Scott's tastes, however, it seems it simply wasn't enough. It's strange, considering that film's director, Fede Álvarez, said Scott told him it was "f**king great" after watching an early cut.
It's worth noting that Scott does refer to the project in question as "the one that just came out." It's possible he could be referring to 2025's TV show, Alien: Earth, but he does make his comment after referring to the films, suggesting it's Alien: Romulus that's got him wanting to be involved again. For reference, Alien: Earth also landed with a positive reception, earning a 94% from critics and a 65% from audiences.
Either way, Scott wants to be more hands-on. He recently confirmed he was working to continue the trilogy he started with 2012's Prometheus and 2017's Alien: Covenant with a new film starring Michael Fassbender's David. The plan is to see the character "create a brave new world for himself" while tackling the topic of AI. He teased more of his ideas during the new interview.
"I've already got a footprint for the next Alien," he continued. "We did Prometheus and Covenant, so I'm picking up where we left in Covenant. [David], who now thinks he's Ozymandias, is going [circles finger by head].
"I like the fact that AI is going off the rails. If we go AI, the moment we discover it's off the rails, it's too late. It could switch every digital thing off in the world like that. You'd have f**king chaos. It's that kind of stuff that's scary."
Scott is currently encouraging audiences to check out The Dog Stars, which came to theaters yesterday, August 28, 2026. It's a film adaptation of the post-apocalyptic book of the same name and stars Jacob Elordi, Margaret Qualley, and Josh Brolin. When his proposed Alien trilogy cap will premiere, however, remains a mystery.
David is coming back, but Rain and Andy's future remains uncertain. A proper Alien: Romulus sequel was announced to be in the works in November 2024. Although Álvarez was said to be in talks to return to direct, with Scott also confirming he would be in the mix at the time, it was reported in September of last year that Álvarez would only be involved as a producer.
Photo by Kristy Sparow/Getty Images for Disney.
Michael Cripe is a freelance writer with IGN. He's best known for his work at sites like The Pitch, The Escapist, and OnlySP. Be sure to give him a follow on Bluesky (@mikecripe.bsky.social) and Twitter (@MikeCripe).