With anticipation building for the upcoming series Alien: Earth, it’s the perfect time to revisit the terrifying and influential cinematic universe of the ALIEN franchise. From Ridley Scott’s groundbreaking 1979 masterpiece to the more recent installments and upcoming series, each film and show has added layers to the horrifying mythology of the Xenomorph. Here’s a chronological journey through the movies and the soon-to-arrive series that have kept us on the edge of our seats for decades.

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1. Alien (1979)

• Director: Ridley Scott
• Writers: Dan O’Bannon (story by Dan O’Bannon and Ronald Shusett)
• Notable Cast: Sigourney Weaver, Tom Skerritt, Veronica Cartwright, Harry Dean Stanton, John Hurt, Ian Holm, Yaphet Kotto
• Synopsis: The crew of the commercial towing spaceship Nostromo is awakened from cryo-sleep to investigate a distress signal from a distant planetoid, LV-426. There, they encounter a mysterious derelict spacecraft and an organism that will become their ultimate nightmare.
• Timeline Placement: The first film in the chronological order, establishing the Xenomorph threat and the iconic Ellen Ripley.

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2. Aliens (1986)

• Director: James Cameron
• Writers: James Cameron (story by James Cameron and David Giler & Walter Hill)
• Notable Cast: Sigourney Weaver, Carrie Henn, Michael Biehn, Lance Henriksen, Paul Reiser, Bill Paxton
• Synopsis: Decades after the Nostromo incident, Ripley is rescued and learns that LV-426 is now a human colony. When contact is lost, she joins a team of Colonial Marines sent to investigate, only to find the colony overrun by Xenomorphs.
• Timeline Placement: Directly follows Alien, showcasing a full-scale Xenomorph infestation and Ripley’s evolution into an action hero.

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3. Alien 3 (1992)

• Director: David Fincher
• Writers: David Giler, Walter Hill, Larry Ferguson (story by Vincent Ward)
• Notable Cast: Sigourney Weaver, Charles S. Dutton, Charles Dance
• Synopsis: Ripley’s escape pod crashes on Fiorina 161, a bleak penal colony inhabited by violent male prisoners. She soon discovers that a Xenomorph embryo was also aboard and is now terrorizing the defenseless inmates.
• Timeline Placement: Continues directly after Aliens, isolating Ripley in a new and dangerous environment with the relentless creature.

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4. Alien Resurrection (1997)

• Director: Jean-Pierre Jeunet
• Writers: Joss Whedon (story by Dan O’Bannon)
• Notable Cast: Sigourney Weaver, Winona Ryder, Dominique Pinon, Ron Perlman
• Synopsis: Two hundred years after her death, Ripley is cloned by the military organization USM to extract the Xenomorph queen embryo that was inside her. When the aliens escape, Ripley, along with a band of mercenaries, must fight to prevent them from reaching Earth.
• Timeline Placement: Set far into the future after Alien 3, introducing genetic manipulation and a new breed of Xenomorph.

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5. Alien vs. Predator (2004)

• Director: Paul W. S. Anderson
• Writers: Paul W. S. Anderson (story by Dan O’Bannon and Ronald Shusett and Paul W. S. Anderson)
• Notable Cast: Sanaa Lathan, Raoul Bova, Lance Henriksen
• Synopsis: A group of scientists investigating a mysterious pyramid buried beneath the Antarctic ice find themselves caught in the middle of an ancient battle between Predators and Xenomorphs.
• Timeline Placement: This film and its sequel are generally considered outside the main ALIEN cinematic canon, serving as a crossover with the Predator franchise. It is set in the year 2004.

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6. Aliens vs. Predator: Requiem (2007)

• Directors: Colin Strause and Greg Strause
• Writers: Shane Salerno (characters by Dan O’Bannon and Ronald Shusett and Jim Thomas & John Thomas)
• Notable Cast: Reiko Aylesworth, Steven Pasquale, John Ortiz
• Synopsis: Following the events of Alien vs. Predator, a Predator ship carrying Alien facehuggers crashes near a small town in Colorado, unleashing both Xenomorphs and a Predalien hybrid.
• Timeline Placement: A direct sequel to Alien vs. Predator, also considered outside the main ALIEN cinematic canon.

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7. Prometheus (2012)

• Director: Ridley Scott
• Writers: Jon Spaihts and Damon Lindelof (story by Jon Spaihts and Ridley Scott)
• Notable Cast: Noomi Rapace, Michael Fassbender, Charlize Theron, Idris Elba, Guy Pearce
• Synopsis: A team of scientists aboard the spaceship Prometheus travels to a distant moon in search of the origins of humanity, only to encounter the Engineers, a powerful alien race, and a deadly bio-weapon.
• Timeline Placement: A prequel set decades before the events of Alien, exploring the origins of the Xenomorph and the mysterious Engineers.

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8. Alien: Covenant (2017)

• Director: Ridley Scott
• Writers: John Logan and Dante Harper (story by Jack Paglen and Michael Green)
• Notable Cast: Michael Fassbender, Katherine Waterston, Billy Crudup, Danny McBride
• Synopsis: Ten years after the Prometheus mission, the crew of the colony ship Covenant stumbles upon what they believe to be an uncharted paradise. However, they soon discover it’s a dark and dangerous world, home to the synthetic David and the terrifying creatures he has created.
• Timeline Placement: A direct sequel to Prometheus and the second prequel film, bridging the gap between Prometheus and Alien.

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9. Alien: Romulus (2024)

• Director: Fede Álvarez
• Writers: Fede Álvarez and Rodo Sayagues (story by Fede Álvarez)
• Notable Cast: Cailee Spaeny, David Jonsson, Archie Renaux, Isabela Merced, Spike Fearn, Aileen Wu
• Synopsis: Decades after the events of Alien: Covenant, a group of young people scavenging on a derelict space station encounter the ultimate horror when they face what is described as the most terrifying version of the Xenomorph.
• Timeline Placement: Set between Alien: Covenant and Alien, further building the narrative leading to the original film.

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Upcoming: Alien: Earth (Premieres August 12, 2025 on FX and FX on Hulu/Disney+)

• Creator: Noah Hawley
• Notable Cast: Sydney Chandler, Timothy Olyphant, Alex Lawther, Samuel Blenkin, Essie Davis, Adarsh Gourav
• Synopsis: Set in the year 2120, this series serves as a prequel to the original 1979 film Alien, taking place two years before the Nostromo‘s fateful encounter.
• Timeline Placement: Chronologically, this series will be set just before the events of the first Alien film, offering a closer look at the world and circumstances leading up to it.

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As we eagerly anticipate the premiere of Alien: Earth on August 12th, 2025 (August 13th internationally on Disney+), this journey through the ALIEN movie franchise and the inclusion of the recently released Alien: Romulus reminds us of the enduring power of fear and the captivating horror that began with a simple distress signal in the cold vacuum of space. The Xenomorph’s life cycle, the corporate greed of Weyland-Yutani, and the resilience of characters continue to define this series as a cornerstone of science fiction horror. We can’t wait to see the new terrors and insights Alien: Earth will bring to this iconic universe, especially set so close to the original nightmare!