“Takes too long to get going”: Alien: Romulus’ Lacklustre First Reviews Prove Ridley Scott’s Franchise is Still a Long Way From Its Renaissance

It has been about 45 years since Ridley Scott first terrified audiences with his masterpiece Alien. Following that, several prequels and sequels came around, but it won’t be wrong to say that almost all of them failed to create the same impact as the original.

Now, Don’t Breathe and Evil Dead fame, Fede Álvarez took the responsibility of direction for the 8th installment, Alien: Romulus. The movie is set between the events of Scott’s Alien and James Cameron’s Aliens. But has Álvarez managed to recapture the magic?

Alien: Romulus‘ Early Reviews Don’t Look Great

Ridley Scott‘s Alien came in 1979. Scott was a relatively unknown director back then, and he managed to create a perfect mix of sci-fi and horror that still gives nightmares. The film’s claustrophobic setting, supported by H.R. Giger’s creature design, and Sigourney Weaver’s performance as Ellen Ripley all contributed to its massive success.

According to The Numbers, Alien was made within a production budget of $10.7 million, and it made a worldwide box-office collection of about $186.9 million at that time. It even won an Oscar for Best Visual Effects.

But as they say, lightning doesn’t strike twice at the same place, or probably eight times, in this case. Although James Cameron came with a decent sequel in Aliens, the next entries in the franchise have been hit-or-miss. Scott himself tried to replicate the same impact with Prometheus and Alien: Covenant, but it didn’t work out.

Now, the early reviews of Alien: Romulus don’t exactly seem glowing. Some reviewers are calling it “the fifth-best ALIEN movie,” which sounds like a backhanded compliment. Some complain about the overdoing of fan service in the movie.

ALIEN: ROMULUS is the fifth-best ALIEN movie. Takes too long to get going, overdoes fan service, and risky third act is divisive. D. Jonsson is good but rest of cast is forgettable. Liked it overall but adjust expectations. It’s an above-average Alien movie… and that’s about it.

— Jeff Sneider (@TheInSneider) August 13, 2024

I’m stuck between *really* digging some elements, but overall, feeling a bit underwhelmed. In no way do I think ALIEN: ROMULUS is a failure — like I said, Fede succeeds in making “his” Alien movie.

It just plays as more routine than I was expecting.

— Matt Donato (@DoNatoBomb) August 13, 2024

Honestly, the best thing I can say about ALIEN ROMULUS, and this is in VERY high regards, is that it feels like we've finally gotten a live-action DEAD SPACE. If Fede isn't a fan of those games then I would be absolutely shocked.

— Andrew J. Salazar (@AndrewJ626) August 13, 2024

ALIEN: ROMULUS is a great ALIEN movie in the same sense that one might consider GHOSTBUSTERS: AFTERLIFE a great GHOSTBUSTERS movie.

— The Freewheelin' Silas Lesnick (@silaslesnick) August 13, 2024

ALIEN: ROMULUS is mostly a gratuitous nostalgia play, remixing what came before with some occasionally strong thrills, but in a franchise famous for its psychosexual weirdness, it's the safest, blandest and most vapid the series has ever been. I did not love it pic.twitter.com/n3RtpYvXgJ

— an especially dangerous dug called Brendan (@metaplexmovies) August 13, 2024

Fede Álvarez himself seemed confident in the film. He told IGN that both newcomers and longtime fans will “have a blast” watching Romulus.

The way this movie works is if you haven’t seen any of them, you’ll have a blast. And if you haven’t seen any of them, I’m actually jealous of you because you go, ‘Wow. Wow.’ Man, you’re in for a ride. Because a lot of ideas that will feel like we just created them on here, they were created by masters of this genre in the past, and I’m lucky enough to be able to do it again.

But with reactions ranging from “above-average” to “underwhelming,” it seems doubtful if Alien: Romulus will be able to truly reignite the franchise. 

However, it is not all bad for the upcoming movie. Some reviewers praised Álvarez’s “horror-forward” approach and Xenomorph scenes, and with comparisons to “live-action DEAD SPACE”, it still looks hopeful for sci-fi horror fans.

What to Expect from Alien: Romulus

What is Alien: Romulus actually about? The plot of the movie is about a group of young space colonizers who stumble upon a damaged research station called the Renaissance, and there they face xenomorph shenanigans.

Cailee Spaeny as Raines is leading the cast. Her character is already being compared to Sigourney Weaver’s Ripley. Spaeny told Total Film (via GamesRadar),

I definitely did everything that I could to bring that character to life. Watching Sigourney play that role — she’s part of the changing of the game that those films did.

The rest of the cast includes some new faces like David Jonsson, Archie Renaux, Isabela Merced, and Spike Fearn. Judging by the cast, it looks like the makers are aiming to draw in some new blood into the franchise for its revival.

Álvarez has said in his IGN interview that the film will be a “standalone story” that will have subtle references to earlier movies. In an interview with Digital Spy, he talked about some mythological inspiration with the title Romulus, which is a reference to Roman mythology, and teased, “A lot of the character stories are related to siblinghood.”

But perhaps the most intriguing aspect of Alien: Romulus is its potential to kickstart a new era for the franchise. There is a 57-year gap between Alien and Aliens, which leaves plenty of room for more stories in this space. Scott is also back as producer, and it remains to be seen if Romulus can live up to the hopes.

Alien: Romulus will be released in theaters on August 16, 2024.