FX’sAlien: Earthfinally touched down on July 14, 2025, and the reviews are in. The first small-screen attempt at the mega-popular cinematic sci-fi franchise has earned glowing remarks for its world-building, visual effects, performances, and new creature design. While all that is to be expected from a project produced by SirRidley Scott,Alien: Earthis more timely and topical than anticipated.
By tackling the weighty themes of AI, cyborgs, and robots,Alien: Earthfuses the best of Scott’s two landmark sci-fi franchises:AlienandBlade Runner. Remember, theAlienandPrometheusmovies feature biomechanical androids called Synthetics, whileBlade Runnerexplored the soulful consciousness of human Replicants. With such rapid scientific advances occurring in reality,Alien: Earthtranscends the sci-fi/horror subgenre and recalls the best of Ridley Scott’s past to warn humanity about the fraught future.
‘Alien: Earth’ Is the Latest Prequel in the Sci-Fi Horror Franchise
It’s off to a Great Start
Designed as a prequel to Ridley Scott’s indelible sci-fi horror movieAlien,Alien: Earthtakes place in 2120, two years before the events of the ill-fatedNostromospace vessel. Unlike previous entries in the franchise, which take place in deep space, the new TV series follows a diverse band of tactical troops under attack by vicious Xenomorphs when their research ship, theUSCSSMaginot,crashes on Earth.
Upon surviving the crash, the research crew is led by Wendy (Sydney Chandler), the first-known human-synthetic hybrid whose consciousness has been transferred to an android.Although theAlienfranchisehas almost always featured a synthetic among its crew (Ash, Bishop, Call, and David), they are often disguised as real humans and do the evil bidding of the Weyland-Yutani corporation.
Alien: Earthis slightly different in that there are more synthetics aboard theMaginot, including cyborgs and several hybrids. There is also the rival Prodigy Corporation, pulling strings in the name of scientific research, and its greedy ulterior motives that it must serve to expand its control and influence.
When Wendy sets out to find her missing brother Joe Hermit (Alex Lawther), a purebred human who got lost during the crash, she and her crewmates encounter a race of mortifying Xenomorphic monsters. Complicating matters is Joe’s role as a medic for the Prodigy Corporation’s Security Force.
Prodigy’s CEO, Boy Kavalier (Samuel Blenkin), appears more interested in creating a superintelligent race than rescuing Joe, putting Wendy in a moral bind that challenges her human soul and AI commands. Meanwhile, Wendy’s mentor,Kirsh (Timothy Olyphant), is a synthetic and serves as Prodigy’s leading scientist, teaching Wendy everything she knows.
The ‘Alien’ Franchise Continues To Evolve Synthetics in Fascinating Ways
AlthoughAlien: Earthis set two years beforeAlien, the franchise continues to evolve its synthetic beings with fascinating intrigue. InAlien, Ellen Ripley (Sigourney Weaver) not only fought against the deadly Xenomorph, but was also met with resistance by Ash (Ian Holm), a secret synthetic taking orders from the “Mother” ship. Mother’s orders were to preserve the deadly extraterrestrial lifeform at all costs, including human lives.
InAliens, corporate malfeasance was expanded by Carter Burke (Paul Reiser), a Weyland-Yutani corporate stooge who also directed the crew to keep the alien alive as long as possible. However,Aliensalso features Bishop (Lance Henriksen), an android that Ripley does not trust due to her experience with Ash. Ripley’s distrust proves foolish, as Bishop has evolved far beyond Ash to become more human and compassionate. In the end, Bishop risks his life to rescue Newt, proving how far the synthetics have come in the franchise.
InAlien 3, Henriksen plays Bishop II, an android impersonating the human creator of Bishop I. This time, Bishop II reverts to the Weyland-Yutani directive to retrieve the alien at all costs. From movie to movie, the synthetics evolve and devolve based on corporate input and human programming. InAlien Resurrection, Call (Winona Ryder) is revealed to be a female synthetic who incorporates vast knowledge about the aliens to help Ripley 8 and the crew survive.
Of course, in terms of semantics, synthetics are akin to androids.In Ridley Scott’sBlade Runner, based on Philip K. Dick’sDo Androids Dream of Electric Sheep, the androids are referred to as Replicants.InAlien: Earth, Scott’s overarching mythology fromAlienandBlade Runner,Synthetics and Replicants, converges as a 21st-century cautionary tale regarding AI.
How ‘Alien: Earth’ Merges Two Iconic Ridley Scott Franchises
With clear-cut roots in theAlienworld,Alien: Earthalso combines elements from Ridley Scott’s masterful sci-fi opus,Blade Runner. The titleBlade Runnerrefers to a police officer assigned to hunt and kill unlawful Replicants (androids) on the run on Earth. Aside from the futuristic world-building and stunning visual achievement, much ofBlade Runner’s compelling grip tightens around whether Deckard (Harrison Ford) is a Replicant or not, forcing viewers to grapple with what it means to be human or synthetic. The movie’s antagonist, Roy Batty (Rutger Hauer), is a highly evolved replicant nearing enlightenment as he begins to feel what it means to have a human soul.
Such weighty existential concepts and themes show up inAlien: Earthtime and again. Although only two episodes have aired thus far, there’s a major plot point involving five megacorporations (including Prodigy and Weyland-Yutani) vying against one another in a “race for immortality.”
These corporations control the Earth in the year 2120, with various companies specializing in different areas of AI and robotics that pose a threat to humanity’s future. Between the android synthetics, enhanced cyborgs, and hybrid protagonists,Alien: Earthevokes the crossbred anatomy ofAlienandBlade Runner. The only thing missing is Scott at the directorial helm.
Also reinforcing the franchise’s evolutionary theme and human versus AI struggle are the protagonists.Alien: Earthmarks a franchise first in which the lead character straddles the line between humanity and artificiality. This blurs the distinction between the us-vs-them formula that continues to evolve in lockstep with human technology and the exponential advances of AI.
What’s truly remarkable is how Ridley Scott planted these seeds over 40 years ago.AlthoughAlien(1979) andBlade Runner(1982) were released three years apart, their prophetic views on androids remain as relevant in 2025. TheAliensequels andBlade Runner 2049helped evolve the concepts throughout the years, withAlien: Eartharriving as biological beings are faced with the most dire artificial threats. Themes of personhood, consciousness, autonomy, and mortality are threaded through both franchises.StreamAlien: EarthonHulu.
