Alien: Romulus director explains his new film’s big Alien: Isolation Easter egg
Aug. 12, 2024Exclusive: How Fede Alvarez’s new Alien film was inspired by a modern classic video game
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Alien: Romulusis taking the iconic sci-fi horror series back to bloody basics, with a stripped-back, survival horror focus, gnarly body horror, and the return of a Giger-authentic biomechanical Xenomorph.
“Alien: Isolation was kind of what made me see that Alien could truly be terrifying and done well [today],” Alvarez tells theInside Total Filmpodcast and GamesRadar+. “I played a few years after it came out. Don’t Breathe was coming out. Or was I waiting for Don’t Breathe to come out, and I was playing the game. That’s why, at the time, I was like, ‘Fuck, if I could do anything, I would love to do Alien and scare the audience again with that creature and those environments.’ I was playing, and realising how terrifying Alien could be if you take it back to that tone.”
The eagle-eyed among you may remember that the very first behind the scenes image from Alien: Romulus (see above) features a familiar-looking Emergency Phone. In the game, these ‘Registration Points’ allow the player to save, but aren’t exactly a safe haven as their agonisingly slow operation leaves main character Amanda Ripley vulnerable to a pharyngeal jaw to the back of the skull – a fact Alvarez pays homage to in Romulus.
“The movie is set up in a way [that] every time something bad is about to happen, you will see a phone,” the Romulus director and co-writer says with a grin when we meet in London. “In the game, every time you knew there’s a phone you’d go, ‘Fuck, I’m about to go into some bad set-piece.’ It’s the same thing here. You’ll see they’re planted strategically throughout the film. When you see the phone, it’s like: brace for impact.”
Alien: Romulus releases in cinemas across the UK and Ireland, and in US theaters, from August 16. Listen to our full interview with Fede Alvarez on theInside Total Film podcast, out later this week.For more, check out our guide to this year’s most exciting upcomingmovie release datesto fill out your watchlist.
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I’m the Deputy Editor at Total Film magazine, overseeing the features section of every issue where you can read exclusive, in-depth interviews and see first-look images from the biggest films. I was previously the News Editor at sci-fi, fantasy and horror movie bible SFX. You’ll find my name on news, reviews, and features covering every type of movie, from the latest French arthouse release to the biggest Hollywood blockbuster. My work has also featured in Official PlayStation Magazine and Edge.
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