"Alien: Romulus": Director corrects controversial CGI effect

Few franchises have managed to claw their way into the pop culture landscape like "Alien". Since Ridley Scott's 1979 masterpiece, xenomorphs have been making their way across cinema screens, home cinemas and, most recently, streaming platforms.

But not every computer-generated effect is perfect right from the start - a fact that director Fede Alvarez also had to realise with his "Alien: Romulus". For the home cinema release, a CGI effect that caused a lot of unrest in the cinema version was significantly reworked.

Spoiler warning: If you haven't seen "Alien: Romulus" yet and don't want to spoil the surprise of which CGI effect it is, it's better not to read any further.

An android with "uncanny" problems

In the story of "Alien: Romulus", which takes place between the events of "Alien" and "Aliens", a new android named Rook appears - with the face of Ian Holm, the late actor who played the iconic Ash from the first film. Permission was obtained from Holm's family beforehand for his computer-animated return. Nevertheless, the decision caused stomach pains for fans and directors alike.

"We simply ran out of time in post-production to get it right," explains Alvarez in an interview with the renowned industry magazine Empire. "In fact, I wasn't happy with some of the shots where you could see the digital effects too much. So I understand that some people are critical of that."

But Alvarez didn't give up. For the Blu-ray and 4K version of the film, he persuaded the studio to provide more budget and - above all - more time for post-production of the effect.

"We fixed it," says the director. "We were finally able to give the companies that worked on it the time they needed to get it right." The effect was recalibrated using a mixture of practical and digital techniques. Most excitingly, the production utilised an animatronic head by Ian Holm, which was once made for "Lord of the Rings". However, this puppet was barely used for the cinema version - a mistake that has now been corrected.

Here is the result (above the new, improved version from Blu-Ray, below the old cinema version):

From 15 January, the film will also be added to the streaming catalogue for Disney+ subscribers.

The saga continues: sequel to "Romulus" confirmed

Interestingly, "Alien: Romulus" will not only be released digitally and on Blu-ray, but also - attention, retro alert - on VHS! The film is being released in a limited collector's edition on the medium that dominated the home cinema market in the 1980s and 1990s. A tribute to the 45th anniversary of the "Alien" franchise, not a gag, according to director Alvarez.

But that's not all: Fede Alvarez is already working on a sequel to "Alien: Romulus", but it's still a while off. The director wants to take enough time to ensure that the sequel not only fulfils the high expectations, but exceeds them.

Meanwhile, "Alien" director Ridley Scott has also already hinted at plans for a new Alien film. Whether he will continue the controversial "Prometheus" series or devote himself to a new direction remains unclear for the time being. Before that, however, the Xenomorph will be back on home screens: Noah Hawley ("Legion", "Fargo") is bringing a new TV series to the streaming programme with "Alien: Earth" - later this year.

Alvarez's decision to rework the effect retrospectively may further fuel discussions about digital immortality, but one thing is certain: "Alien: Romulus" continues to find new ways to go down in the history books of cinema - whether on Blu-ray, digitally or nostalgically on VHS.