It’s been a while since we last heard of the Alien project that is set to be directed and written by Evil Dead’s Fede Álvarez. Up until this point, all we knew about the upcoming — and highly expected — movie was that it was in active development, but new information suggests that the wheels are turning a lot faster than expected. According to a new entry in the Film & Television Industry Alliance website, the new Alien project is in pre-production under the working title Alien: Romulus, and it already has a location and date to start filming.
The website slates the beginning of principal photography of Alien: Romulus for February 6, 2023. This means that in the next couple of months we’re bound to see some news pop up that can provide further information about this apparent change in gears. Finally, the website also reveals that the main location – or at least the first one – for the series is going to be in Budapest, Hungary. So naturally, all geek eyes will be turned to the European city in the first week of February.
The fact that Alien: Romulus starts filming so soon also suggests that we should get some casting news as 2023 comes by, and an expected release date is bound to come up in the horizon. All we know at this point is that Cailee Spaeny (Mare of Easttown) has joined the cast, but other than that, news of the project have been scarce at best. The one thing we can say for sure is that the world-famous xenomorph will be back to terrorize humans once again, but we also don’t know at what point in the Alien franchise this project will fit.
What Does Alien's Working Title Mean For the Series?
Even though there's a huge chance that the Álvarez movie is not directly connected to the last two entries of the franchise, it's fun to notice that the working title also refers to European mythology: While Prometheus referred to a Greek titan that created humans, in Roman mythology Romulus is credited as one of the founders of Rome. Of course, this could just be a fun title to work under, but if it turns out to be the official title, we'll have a lot to speculate about the choice. At the same time, we can tell that Álvarez’s selection to write and direct the project is not random. The filmmaker earned his popularity in the horror movie scene, and the Alien franchise flirted a lot more with its horror origins in the 2017 entry Alien: Covenant. So that definitely leaves the Prometheus connection behind. Right?
Alien is one of the most celebrated horror/sci-fi franchises in the movie industry. The story centers around a giant and violent alien who uses humans as vessels to lay their eggs. The first installment is considered a cinematic masterpiece, and it spawned five sequels, as well as two crossover movies with the Predator franchise. Coincidentally, Predator also got a standalone movie recently: Prey chronicles an alien invasion 300 years in the past, and is considered one of the best movies from 2022.
20th Century Studios is yet to release more information of Alien: Romulus, including a confirmation of the title. Stick with Collider to know about new developments as soon as they are announced.
You can immerse yourself in the Alien world for a couple of minutes by watching the classic trailer below: