As much as paying tribute to the films before was part of “Alien: Romulus” Director Fede Álvarez’s intent, he noted how he wanted the film to stand apart on its own and “do its own thing,” saying how he wanted to “modernize” the series for contemporary audiences.
“We kept a lot of the perfect elements about those original movies untouched because we didn’t need to improve them, but then we had a lot of new stuff. That’s what makes it modern and new,” he said. Hopefully, it takes its place among the other ones, and for me, it’s never a bad time in theatres when you’re watching an ‘Alien’ movie. It was such a joyous experience watching it for the first time.”
However, he found a way to make his mark as a director by opting for a much younger cast than the previous films before them, “For me it was a way in to imagine what it would be to a bunch of young people, to grow in one of these colonies in sci-fi and at the end of the world and having to face this creature. They’re closer to the audience in a way. They don’t know anythign about the world they’re getting into.”
Plus, there’s another great benefit to having such a youthful cast as the director explained. “As a rule of thumb, in horror, the younger the people the tougher it is to watch them die. Let’s agree on that. An 80-year-old man dies on screen; you lived a good life, [if a] 12-year-old kid dies in a movie, heartbreak.”
And he knows, “it’s our job to terrify.”
Álvarez was ecstatic when Ridley Scott’s reaction to his latest interstellar venture into the “Alien” franchise was that it was “fucking great.” Saying, “I couldn’t be more grateful that he let us do it.”
Álvarez, Cailee Spaeny, Isabela Merced and the cast of “Alien: Romulus” joined Variety Studio, presented by Google TV, at the 2024 San Diego Comic-Con to chat about the latest entry in the franchise and how they were able to “honor the series’ legacy.”
Spaeny and Merced, in particular, reflected on being part of a franchise that, from its inception with Sigourney Weaver’s performance as Ripley, has always placed women and female characters at the forefront of action/horror movies.
Spaeny reflected on how she was grateful not to have felt any pressure stepping into her character, primarily because of the role Weaver’s performance played in paving the way for women like her.
“I think what Sigourney did was she really properly paved the way and made a conscious decision to—whatever it meant to be a woman in a horror film or a sci-fi film beforehand—I think she intentionally went the other direction,” Spaeny said. “Stepping into that role, I wouldn’t say it was easy; there’s a lot of pressure going on, but I felt comfortable in that place.”
Merced reflected on the characterization of her co-star Aileen Wu’s Navarro and how her character’s writing reflected Wu’s natural intelligence, which led to more authentic and respectful representations of their female protagonists.
“[Navarro] makes really smart decisions in the movie. It’s more believable because Kaylee herself is a very intelligent individual,” Merced said. “I think that’s what’s really cool about the movie, too: the odds are against them, but their intelligence usually allows them to persevere and overcome the other creature.”
Watch the full interview above to find out which “Alien” movie the cast’s top pick was; watch Merced talk about the science of getting her Hawkgirl costume for the “Superman: Legacy” movie to fit correctly and Spaeny’s first day on the set of Rian Johnson’s “Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery.”
