Last week we brought you a first look at the teaser for director Fede Alvarez’s Alien: Romulus. Now, after taking a few days to pour over every frame, we’re taking a closer look at what the trailer might be telling us about the film’s story. 20th Century Studios will release Alien: Romulus in UK cinemas on August 16, 2026.
Before we dive in, why not watch the teaser one more time:
Whilst we haven’t seen the film, we must warn you that there may be potential spoilers ahead!
Deep Space Setting
The teaser opens on a shot of a small craft approaching a considerable larger space station. We know from the synopsis released by the studio that the young group of colonisers will be “scavenging the deep ends of a derelict space station”. This appears to be our first look at said station which director Fede Álvarez has confirmed is called Renaissance Station.
It’s been confirmed that Alien: Romulus is a standalone story in the Alien universe so it’s unlikely any familiar faces will turn up. At least not any human ones. The next few shots in the teaser show there has certainly been a devastating attack on the station’s crew.
There were almost 60 years between the end of Alien and the beginning of Aliens. Perhaps Romulus will pick up on what Weyland-Yutani was up to whilst Ripley (Sigourney Weaver) was floating across the galaxy in stasis. Could this station be a research centre where other Xenomorph eggs were taken for experimentation?
Classic Designs
Something which is abundantly clear from both the above images and these later shots from the trailer is that Alvarez is sticking close to the production design in the original Alien. Franchise creator Ridley Scott remains on Romulus as a producer with James Cameron (director of Aliens) acting as a consultant. The corridors and technology seen in the trailer are instantly reminiscent of Michael Seymour’s 1979 design work.
From the octagonal corridors to the strip lighting plus the mix of grey and white colouring all perfectly fits in with the Alien aesthetic. The look of the film is something Alvarez touched on in a recent interview with Total Film: “… the characters of this movie and the world are very blue-collar. The technology is still very low-tech and analog. And, look, I’m a kid from the ‘80s. Any monitor with some VHS tracking issues puts a lot of joy in my heart”.
Return of the Facehugger(s)
Whilst the Xenomorph is the first creature anyone will think of when you say the name Alien. The dastardly Facehugger is equally as likely to give the audience nightmares. But whilst previous films have given us one or two Facehuggers in isolation – who could forget the legendary chest buster scene? – it looks as though Alien: Romulus will take things to the next level.
During two key moments in the trailer we see what appears to be an army of Facehuggers advancing on the young group of colonists. Even these two quick shots are enough to chill anyone to the bone. Alvarez appears to be using the spider-like creature as a force of nature on the station. Given that the Facehuggers come from the Xenomorph eggs, implanting human hosts with the actual titular Aliens themselves. Could this lend credence to the station playing home to the Xenomorph king?
The latter shot appears to be a Facehugger successfully planting itself on the face of Aileen Wu’s as-yet-unnamed character. A moment the trailer potentially calls back to when we see one of the Facehuggers being forcibly removed from someone’s face. Could this be Wu? Will it be too late and lead to a new incarnation of the chest buster?
The Origins of Romulus
The trailer only gives us one brief glimpse of a Xenomorph. The final shot goes close up on the mouth of one of the creatures as the smaller mouth protrudes from it. Plenty of nightmare fuel right there. But what could the title of the film possible give away?
The name – and the film itself – has been confirmed to be inspired by the myth of Romulus and Remus. The two were twin brothers, sons of a human mother and the god of war, Mars. After their birth, the king ordered them killed. They were placed in a basket and put into the Tiber River – left to die from exposure in the outdoors. But their basket washed up on the river bank where they were found by a female wolf. The wolf nursed the hungry babies and cared for them until they were found by a shepherd.
The shepherd and his wife raised the babies as their own. Romulus and Remus grew up and helped overthrow the king who had ordered their death. They wanted to build their own city along the Tiber River where their basket had washed ashore. They disagreed about where it should be, and Romulus killed Remus during their quarrels. Romulus built the city of Rome on one of the seven hills along the Tiber – the Palatine hill – and lived a long life as the first king of Rome.
Some have speculated that a literal interpretation could mean that Renaissance Station is home to the Xenomorph King. The concept of the Xenomorph Queen was explored by James Cameron in Aliens but the idea of an almighty king is something completely new.
A New Ripley for 2024
Not a literal new Ripley, but a new heroine for the Alien franchise will be introduced in the shape of Raines, known as Rain, played by Cailee Spaeny. We don’t know much about her character as yet. But in a brief intro shot in the trailer we see her carrying what appears to be an early incarnation of the pulse rifle seen in Aliens.
Speaking of Rain and the young cast Alvarez says “She’s a younger character. All the characters are very young. That was inspired by the beginning of the extended cut Aliens. There’s a shot that really inspired the whole story, where you can see all the kids running around the corridor on Hadley’s Hope. I always thought, “Wow, what would it be like for those kids to grow up in a terraforming colony that still needs another 50 years to be habitable? You’re probably going to take the same job as your parents. What’s the hope?”
I thought: “Wouldn’t it be great to catch up with those characters?” Not exactly those characters, but that type of young kid, growing up in a Weyland-Yutani shake-and-bake colony, and see how their life would be when they reach their early 20s. What do they want out of life? Do they want to stay there, and do what their parents did – work the mines, work the farms – and that’s it? Or do they want more out of life?“
Given Spaeny’s rising star it certainly seems likely that Rain may be the last person standing when the credits roll. But many will question where the character goes from here and how she may tie in to the wider franchise and its future.
Escape the Renaissance
As the teaser comes to a close we see what appears to be the same ship from the first shot making a dramatic escape from the Renaissance Station. This would certainly suggest that someone, or some thing, makes it off the station alive.
We can see the ship makes its daring escape to a backdrop of a huge explosion. Perhaps the surviving members of the colonists group are able to set the station to self destruct before they escape. In classic Alien fashion will the survivors believe they have evaded a terrible fate, only for the audience to learn a stray egg has also made it off the station? As the franchise looks to continue beyond Romulus it would certainly make sense to continue on with any surviving characters in the remaining years before Aliens.
Directed by Fede Alvarez, Alien: Romulus is written by Alvarez, Rodo Sayagues and Dan O’Bannon. The film is set to star Cailee Spaeny (Civil War), Isabela Merced (Superman), David Jonsson (Industry), Archie Renaux (Morbius), Spike Fearn (The Batman), and Aileen Wu.
Alien: Romulus comes to UK cinemas on August 16, 2024.
