Alien: Romuluspromised to bring the franchise back to its roots, and while it delivered on that, it still had time to reference Ridley Scott’s prequels thanks to a majorPrometheusconnection. WithRomulusbeing the firstAlienmovie in seven years as well as the firstAlienfilm to be produced following Disney’s acquisition of FOX, it only made sense for it to be the start of a new story rather than a direct sequel toAlien: Covenant.Set between the first and second movies in theAlientimeline,Romuluswas very much a standalone film.
While there are plenty ofAlienEaster eggs inRomulus, the movie works just fine for those who never watched any of theAlienmovies. The fact thatAlien: Romulusis getting a sequel only confirms that it was meant to be the start of a new chapter in the series rather than just a legacy sequel or a follow-up toCovenant. That said, withRidley Scott potentially working on a newAlienmovie, many still hope that David’s story is revisited somehow. If this never happens, at leastRomulushad a bigPrometheusconnection through the “black goo.”
Alien: Romulus’ Black Goo & Offspring Means Prometheus’ Story Still Matters
Prometheus’ Divisive Lore Changes Are Still Canon After All
Alien: Romulusnot only bringing back the Chemical A0-3959X.91 – 15 but also making it a central part of the story was very surprising for a movie that was expected to move on completely from the divisive Ridley Scott prequels. Even though Scott was a producer inAlien: Romulus,it was easy to assume that the new film would have little to no ties toPrometheusandCovenant, focusing instead on its connections withAlienandAliens. Director Fede Álvarez even talked about how the first twoAlienfilms were his biggest inspiration forRomulus.
Rook describes the black goo as"Prometheus' fire"inAlien: Romulus.
And yet, theblack goo first featured inPrometheus’ opening scene made its way back into the franchise. By revealing that theRomulusand Remus space station was hiding a lab dedicated to studying and experimenting on the strange pathogen,Alien: RomulusmadePrometheusandCovenantmore important than everto the largerAlienrole. Before the 2024 film, Scott’s prequels were relatively self-contained, and their very existence automatically retconned other entries in the series, particularlyAlien vs. Predator.
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There were even those who believedPrometheusshould have been the start of its own franchise, and that itsAlienconnections only served to make the saga’s lore more complicated. The idea that the Xenomorph was now apparently a relatively recent life form created – or at least partially engineered – by an android was not universally well-received, especially because the mystery behind the Alien creature was always one of the best things about the original movies.Alien: Romulusdoesn’t give a definitive answer about the Xenomorph’s origins, but it does “welcome”Prometheusinto the largerAliencanon.
Alien: Romulus Could’ve Chosen To Ignore Prometheus & Covenant Altogether
Alien: Romulus Having Not Only One But Two Prometheus Connections Is Significant
The return of the black goo was not the only major connection betweenAlien: RomulusandPrometheus. The Offspring – the horrifyingxenomorph-human hybrid born from Kay Harrisonafter she injected herself with the pathogen – looking like an Engineer fromPrometheuswas no coincidence. Having the final monster of a newAlienfilm be a direct reference to the divisive prequels from the past decade was an interesting decision, particularly becauseAlien: Romulushad all the reasons to completely ignorePrometheusandAlien: Covenantif it wanted to.
Alien: Covenant’s poor box office performance made a third movie all but impossible, and it was clear that the nextAlienmovie after that was going to have to be its own thing rather than a sequel. Even thoughAlien: Romuluswas set not too long afterCovenant, there was no reason for the film to include two major Engineer connections. This is why the reveal of the Z-01 mutagen as well as the birth of the Offspring were both so surprising and arguablyAlien: Romulus’ biggest twist.
Alien: Romulus’ Prometheus Connections Have Major Implications For The Franchise
We Still Don’t Know What Happened To David After Alien: Romulus
WithPrometheusandAlien: Covenantbeing directed by the filmmaker behind the originalAlienfilm, there was no reason not to perceive them as canon. In fact, between sticking to whatAlien vs. Predatorhad shown about the Xenomorph’s ancient past and the story Ridley Scott was telling inPrometheus, the latter seemed like the better option anyway. Still, some preferred to perceive Scott’s prequels as a separate story. However,Alien: Romulusmade it clear that David’s journey not only happened in “canon” but also continues to be important to the saga.
Why Fede Alvarez Is Being Cautious About An Alien: Romulus Sequel: “That’s Always A Recipe For Disaster”
Alien: Romulus director Fede Alvarez wants to do a sequel to his $350 million sci-fi action movie, but won’t make it until he has a good story.
It’s still unclearwhat happened to David afterAlien: Covenantand how Weyland-Yutani Corporation’s research with the black goo came to be. It is also unclear whether David was the actual creator of the Xenomorph, or if he was just reverse-engineering something that the Engineers had either created or encountered.A popular theory is that David perfected his experiments and eventually created the version of the Xenomorph we saw in the originalAlienfilm, but that too is just speculation.
Prometheus & Covenant’s Role In Alien Canon Is Still At Risk Due To The New Show
Alien: Earth’s Premise Means Prometheus Could Be Retconned After All
TheAlienfranchise arguably works better when each movie is perceived as its own thing, which also applies toAlien vs. Predatoras well as the games and the comics. Still, it can be a lot of fun to try to find a definitive chronology that works for the entire series – or at least most of it. This is whywhetherAlien: Romuluswas going to acknowledge the events ofPrometheusandAlien: Covenantin any way was such an important question. However, the rewriting of theAlienlore may not be over.
Alien: Earthwill likely have to retcon or reimagine certain aspects of the franchise for its premise to work.
Alien: Earth,FX’s upcomingAlienTV show, will take place before the events of 1979’sAlien, which puts it around the same time asPrometheus. However, as suggested by its title,Alien: Earthwill apparently bring the Xenomorph to our planet.How a Xenomorph – or at least a version of it – arriving on Earth before or around the same time thePrometheusmission started will affect theAlientimeline remains to be seen. However,Alien: Earthwill likely have to retcon or reimagine certain aspects of the franchise for its premise to work.
Alien: Romulussuggests the Engineers never created the black goo but rather reverse-engineered it from the Xenomorph.
Hopefully, the new series will be a way to combine what was shown inPrometheusandAlien: Covenantwith a new story about theAliencreature arriving on Earth without ruining Ripley’s journey to prevent the company from getting its hands on the Xenomorph. This is not an easy task, and it will be understandable if retcons have to be made. Still, it’s good thatAlien: Romulusfound a clever way to givePrometheus’ story some closure while not relying too much on a divisive, overcomplicated part of the saga.
Cast
Alien: Romulus is the seventh film in the Alien franchise. The movie is directed by Fede Álvarez and will focus on a new young group of characters who come face to face with the terrifying Xenomorphs. Alien: Romulus is a stand-alone film and takes place in a time not yet explored in the Alien franchise.
