Dark Fan-Favorite Sci-Fi Horror Series Needs To Answer So Many Questions

One of the most glaring questions in the entire Alien franchise is exactly how many other intelligent forms of life humanity has encountered out in space. Obviously, when people think of the Alien movies, they typically picture the huge, black, insect-like Xenomorphs that love to kill humans on sight. However, we know for a fact that there are others.

In Aliens, the main marine crew briefly discusses an alien race called the Arcturians who, judging by the conversation, are humanoid enough that Earth men and women can mate with them. For a franchise devoted to space travel, why is our perspective limited to humans and Xenomorphs? How many other advanced lifeforms exist in this world?

Speaking of Earth, why have we seen so little of it in the Alien movies so far? Usually, in futuristic movies, one of the most fascinating aspects is how the Earth has developed and deviated from what we know in real life. But in the Alien movies, we have spent the majority of the screen time on space crafts or other planets.

The only movies that have used the Earth as a setting have been Alien vs. Predator and Alien vs. Predator: Requiem, both of which are regarded as non-canon. There have also been some deleted scenes of alternate endings that explored the setting, but again, they are non-canon. We need an official look at what our planet is like in these movies.

The lack of time on Earth also leaves it pretty vague what the current system of government is like in the Alien movies. There is clearly enough order in place to command space expeditions and to have military forces check out other planets. But what are the goals of this government? Many sci-fi movies depict certain political leanings as being the ones that have become dominant in the world. But the systems in charge in the world of Alien are still largely shrouded in mystery.

Rather than providing more answers, recent Alien movies have instead created more questions, like with the addition of the Engineers. The prequel Alien movies like Prometheus revealed that it was actually the Engineers who created Xenomorphs as well as humans. That is a very intriguing plot twist, but unfortunately, the movies have not given us clarity on the purpose behind the engineers doing those things.

That makes it sound like the Engineers are the dominant species in the universe, so why don’t we know more about them yet?

It is good to have questions to keep the audience coming back, but after 45 years with the franchise, it would be nice to have some concrete answers to a few of these mysteries. We know enough not to consider Predators canon in the Alien universe, but we are ready for Romulus to really clear up some of the more longstanding questions from over the years.

Alien: Romulus will be released in theaters on August 16, 2024.