Will Alien's Upcoming TV Show Have Aliens In It? Why I'm Skeptical

Summary Alien: Earth may not feature xenomorphs due to timeline and setting constraints, potentially changing the essence of the franchise.

The upcoming TV series showcases a dystopian future with a focus on character-driven narratives over alien creatures.

Despite the absence of xenomorphs, Alien: Earth could still be a compelling show if the storytelling and characters are captivating enough.

It would seem like a no-brainer to put aliens in an Alien TV show, but the premise and timeframe of FX’s upcoming Alien series Alien: Earth would suggest otherwise – and that has me worried. Alien: Earth is the brainchild of Fargo creator Noah Hawley, who apparently didn’t find turning one untouchable cinematic masterpiece into a TV show to be daunting enough and is now taking another crack at it. Alien: Earth will take the franchise to humanity’s homeworld of Earth for the first time (outside of the Alien vs. Predator movies, whose canonical status is debatable).

Alien: Earth is set three decades before the events of Ridley Scott’s original Alien movie. Whereas the film takes place in 2122, the TV show will take place in the early 2090s. This timeline and the fact that the show is set on Earth make it unlikely that xenomorphs will appear in Alien: Earth. And I’m worried about that, because what is Alien without xenomorphs? It would be like doing a Jaws series without a shark or an Exorcist series without demonic spirits. Without the xenomorphs, Alien is just an indictment of corporate America set in the distant future.

Alien: Earth's Timeline & Setting Make It Hard To Include Xenomorphs

It's set on Earth around the time of Prometheus

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The fact that Alien: Earth is set on Earth (hence the very creative title) and it takes place around the same time as Prometheus, which chronicled the creation of xenomorphs in deep space, makes it unlikely that xenomorphs will make an appearance in the upcoming TV series. In the original Alien film, the Nostromo’s corporate overlords secretly enlist Ash to bring the xenomorph back to Earth, suggesting that the xenomorphs haven’t come to Earth yet. And that’s three decades after Alien: Earth takes place.

None of the announced characters in the Alien: Earth cast are xenomorph-adjacent. Sydney Chandler will star as Wendy, a woman who has the body of an adult but the consciousness of a child, alongside Alex Lawther as a soldier named C.J., Samuel Blenkin as a powerful CEO named Boy Kavalier, and Timothy Olyphant as Wendy’s synth mentor, Kirsh. Nothing about these character descriptions suggests the involvement of xenomorphs. It sounds more like a straightforward dystopian futuristic drama. The only thing that will connect this series to the Alien franchise is tangential lore connections like the Weyland-Yutani Corporation.

Alien: Earth is expected to premiere in the first half of 2025.

Alien: Earth Doesn't Necessarily Need Xenomorphs In Order To Be Good

If the characters and storylines are compelling enough, the lack of xenomorphs won't matter

Just because Alien: Earth will be a standard TV drama set in a dystopian future without featuring bloodthirsty xenomorphs, it doesn’t mean it’ll be a bad show. If the characters and their storylines are compelling enough, then it’ll work just as well as any other TV show. It does make it seem pointless to use the Alien lore and the Alien universe if the showrunner isn’t planning to include any xenomorphs on-screen. But a big-budget sci-fi series is more likely to get made if the studio bankrolling it can count on brand recognition to bring in a hefty initial audience.

Hawley has demonstrated his ability to craft captivating narratives around lovable characters in his five seasons of Fargo (or, at least, the first, second, and fifth seasons, when the show achieved true greatness). He can do it again in a futuristic setting with Alien: Earth. There’s a lot of storytelling potential in the Alien universe outside of the aliens themselves. Weyland-Yutani’s history of corporate greed and corruption could make for a really chilling satire of capitalism and humanity’s lust for power. Alien: Earth doesn’t need xenomorphs for a story worth telling (but it would help).

How Alien: Earth Can Feature Xenomorphs (Without Breaking Canon)

Alien: Earth could create its own xenomorphs

Although it could still be a compelling series without xenomorphs, Alien: Earth would certainly benefit from featuring at least one xenomorph. And it would be possible for Alien: Earth to feature xenomorphs without breaking canon – Hawley and co. just have to get creative with it. Alien: Covenant introduced a new kind of xenomorph, dubbed the neomorph, to get around the fact that it was a prequel and couldn’t just jump into showing a full-blown xenomorph in all its glory. Alien: Earth could do something similar, introducing a sort of proto-xenomorph.

Weyland-Yutani could take a crack at creating its own synthetic xenomorphs before sending the crew of the Nostromo to capture an organic one. The events of the original Alien film might be Plan B. If they can create an android that’s indistinguishable from a real human being, then they can surely create a bloodthirsty killing machine. Alien: Earth might revolve around the company’s disastrous attempts to create and contain its own xenomorphs.