The Alien franchise has a rich mythology that has raised many questions that viewers have speculated about since Ridley Scott released the first movie back in 1979. While aspects of the Xenomorph’s lifecycle and the origins of this alien species were expanded upon in subsequent sequels, prequels, and spin-offs, there are still plenty of mysteries at the heart of this series. Although Scott’s underrated prequel series, which includes Prometheus and Alien: Covenant, answered some questions, it also added new layers of mystery and complexity to the franchise.
As one of the greatest sci-fi franchises ever made, Alien has provided endless entertainment to generations of viewers and has continued with new installments right up to this day. As a franchise that’s been helmed by several iconic directors, including Scott, James Cameron, and David Fincher, the series has always been bustling with creativity and interesting ideas. As the series proved its relevance in the 21st century with the release of Alien: Romulus, it seems that Alien-related mysteries will continue to intrigue and fascinate viewers for years to come.
You are watching: 10 Alien Mysteries That The Franchise Never Answered
|
Movie |
Release Year |
Type |
IMDb Rating |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Alien (1979) |
Ridley Scott |
Original Movie |
8.5 |
|
Aliens (1986) |
James Cameron |
Sequel |
8.4 |
|
Alien 3 (1992) |
David Fincher |
Sequel |
6.4 |
|
Alien Resurrection (1997) |
Jean-Pierre Jeunet |
Sequel |
6.2 |
|
Alien vs. Predator (2004) |
Paul W. S. Anderson |
Crossover |
5.7 |
|
Aliens vs. Predator: Requiem (2007) |
Greg & Colin Strause |
Crossover |
4.6 |
|
Prometheus (2012) |
Ridley Scott |
Prequel |
7 |
|
Alien: Covenant (2017) |
Ridley Scott |
Preuqel |
6.4 |
|
Alien: Romulus (2024) |
Fede Álvarez |
Interquel |
7.2 |
10
Ripley’s Life Before Going Aboard The Nostromo
The adventures of a young Ripley have been left unexplored
Custom Image by Angelica Sarah V. Jimenez
Despite being the initial protagonist of the Alien franchise, not a lot is known about the early life of Ellen Ripley. While the astounding performance of Sigourney Weaver meant that Ripley has gone down in history as one of the greatest sci-fi heroes of all time and a trailblazing feminist icon that opened the door for more female-led genre movies, her time before joining the Nostromo crew has not been depicted.
While not directly about Ellen Ripley’s past, the 2014 survival game Alien: Isolation focuses on Amanda Ripley, Ellen’s daughter.
It’s known that Ripley was born in 2092, at the Olympia colony on Luna and has one daughter named Amanda Ripley-McClaren. Prior to the year 2122, Ripley was hired by the Weyland-Yutani commercial hauler USCSS Nostromo as a Warrant Officer. However, answering the mystery of just where she developed her incredible stealth skills and clever Xenomorph-surviving instincts would make for a great prequel.
9
How Did The Company Know About The Lifeform On LV-426?
This is one of the oldest Alien mysteries
Custom image by Debanjana Chowdhury
There’s a lot of lies and deceit depicted in the Alien franchise, and right from the beginning a question was introduced that was never fully answered. While Special Order 937 specifically said, “Bring back life form. Priority One. All other priorities rescinded,” the circumstances of how the company already knew they wanted the Nostromo crew to return the Xenomorph for studying were unclear.
After the revelation that Ash was an android who valued capturing the specimen over the safety of the crew, it was obvious the company knew more than they let on, but how they learned that the creature was on LV-426 was never given a clear explanation. While radio signals or communications could have told them that there was something to investigate, the order to return the life form hints they knew specifically about the Xenomorph.
8
Where Did the Space Jockey Come From?
The Pilot’s origins and intentions are a mystery
The events of Alien all hinge on one event that viewers know shockingly little about. This was the fate of the Pilot, often also referred to as the Space Jockey, who was killed by a Xenomorph chestburster after his ship crash-landed on LV-426. By the time the Nostromo crew encountered the deceased body of this pilot, his ship was filled with alien eggs, which has led to a plethora of fan theories throughout the years and many questions that have never received a definitive answer.
The Space Jockey’s backstory has long been speculated upon by viewers, and the Pilot has been a contender for inclusion in many subsequent films. James Cameron’s Aliens was initially planned to include a sequence with the Space Jockey, and he was a major character in Jon Spaihts’ original script for Prometheus, titled Alien: Engineers. Considering the Alien franchise hasn’t lost any popularity since the first movie was released in 1979, it’s likely that one day viewers will get to learn the canonical backstory of the Space Jockey and his encounter with a Xenomorph.
7
Why Do Xenomorphs Grow Up So Fast?
The lifecycle of a Xenomorph is rapid and terrifying
The lifecycle of the Xenomorph is shrouded in mystery, but from what viewers have seen throughout the Alien franchise, it’s clear they grow up at an extraordinary rate. As eusocial life forms that are ruled over by a queen, the Xenomorph develop in distinct stages as they begin life as eggs, hatch a parasitoid larval form known as a facehugger, and attach themselves to the face of their host. The facehugger then impregnates their host with an embryo before emerging as a chestburster.
This rapid turn of events sees the creature’s gestation period occur far more quickly than the average lifeform. While Alien: Romulus attempted to bridge the gap between the Xenomorph’s development from a chestburster to a full-blown adult creature, the exact reason these aliens grow so fast does not have a definitive answer. In the real world, when looking at Earth’s inhabitants across insect life, sea creatures, and mammals, there are vast time differences for growth and development, so one can only imagine the complexities across the lifeforms in the entire universe.
6
What Happened to Ripley’s Clone?
After Alien: Resurrection, Ripley 8’s story is unclear
Alien: Resurrections was one of the most divisive movies across the entire franchise, as it made the controversial decision to bring Ellen Ripley back after her sacrifice at the end of Alien 3. However, rather than have her character inexplicably rise from the dead, Sigourney Weaver returned as Ripley 8, a clone who military experts brought back using blood samples in the hopes of extracting her Xenomorph queen embryo. As a blend of human and alien DNA, this new version of Ripley had enhanced strength and a strong connection with Xenomorphs.
In the conclusion of Alien: Resurrections, Ripley 8 and others on board the Auriga escape before the craft collides with Earth. As they looked down on the planet, Call asked Ripley 8 what she wanted to do next, and she said, “I don’t know. I’m a stranger here myself.” This open-ended conclusion left viewers curious about the continued existence of Ripley 8 and how she would come to terms with her life as a cloned Xenomorph-human hybrid who felt out of place no matter where she went or what she did.
5
What About The Rest Of Ripley’s Clones?
Ripley 7 was seen on screen, but not the others
Although Ripley 8 managed to make it out alive in Alien: Resurrection, the stories of the earlier attempts to clone her have not been fully explored. The unstable blend of human and alien DNA in Ripley 7 meant she was badly deformed and kept alive within the Auriga’s laboratory via life support machines; however she was euthanized by Ripley 8 at the clone’s request. The other six Ripley clones were all deemed failures and stored in large tanks filled with a preservative liquid which were later destroyed by Ripley 8 when she incinerated the entire lab.
While this gives an outline of the fates of all previous Ripley clones, the philosophical implications of their existence raise many other questions about their experiences. As each successive cloning attempt refined the process and more closely resembled the genuine Ripley, the experiences of those earlier attempts have dark ethical implications. The earlier clones’ capacity to feel, dream, or understand their unnatural existence has not been thoroughly explored, but upon reflection, they appear as a shocking example of man’s often nefarious desire to play God.
4
What Was the Black Goo’s True Purpose?
The mysterious substance was prominently seen in Prometheus
Custom Image by Alfredo Alvarado
See more : Captivating the King Episode 16 Recap, Review, Ending Explained, and More
Prometheus and Alien: Covenant introduced a strange black substance to the Alien franchise, yet its true purpose was never fully explained. While many aspects of Xenomorph’s existence have been expanded upon throughout the series, this unusual substance has plenty of question marks around it. Although there’s an implication that the goo was created by the Engineers and has some link to the creation of humanity, the unfinished prequel series never explicitly outlined the details behind its appearance.
The Engineers work in mysterious ways, and in Prometheus it’s implied this goo was a living substance that had the power to alter other lifeforms. This has a lot in common with the way that Xenomorphs alter and attach themselves to humans in their gestation process. Yet, the prequel film’s opening featured an Engineer drinking some of the black substance, which seemingly tears apart their DNA, opening up a world of unanswered questions for viewers to ponder over.
3
Why Did the Engineers Create Humanity?
The Engineers’ intentions are shrouded in mystery
Custom image by Milica Djordjevic
Ridley Scott’s Alien prequel movies started with Prometheus, and although series like this usually answer a lot of questions about the original movies, these installments actually introduced many more intriguing concepts. Central to this was the Engineers, who created humanity and, after seeing it fail, likely planned to wipe out the human race with advanced technology. While AI creations like David sought meaning from the actions of the Engineers, their true intentions were never fully explained in the franchise.
While the sequel Alien: Covenant did provide more insight into the Engineers’ behavior, what they initially hoped to achieve through mankind was not detailed. As planet builders who seed worlds with life, the Engineers have a godlike quality about them. However, the idea that they would create humanity and later also choose to wipe it out is a contradiction that’s hard to understand without more insight into their philosophies, motivations, and beliefs.
2
Are There More Species Like the Engineers?
The uniqueness of the Engineers is up for question
The revelation that the Engineers created humanity in the Alien franchise opens the door to further questions about the nature of species across the universe. If another race is responsible for the creation of mankind, then it’s not out of the realm of possibility that the Engineers were also created by some other set of lifeforms. While this philosophical pondering could go on forever, it’s intriguing to wonder if there are other alien races in the franchise that are similar, equal in abilities, or even more advanced than the Engineers.
Similar to the way in religious philosophy, the question of who created God creates a problem of infinite regress whereby every new creator requires another; the Engineers existence hints at a vast array of advanced alien species. While Prometheus and Alien: Covenant give audiences limited information to work with, this mystery is so intriguing it could encourage endless debate. Hopefully, Ridley Scott’s teased upcoming Alien movie will help further unpack this mystery and give viewers more insight into the Engineers and similar species.
1
What Happened To David?
Michael Fassbender’s David 8’s story never fully wrapped up
The android butler David 8 was a major part of Ridley Scott’s Alien prequel movies, Prometheus and Alien: Covenant. With a chilling performance from Michael Fassbender, David represented the creeping threat of artificial intelligence and as the series went on, revealed himself as a villain even more chilling than a Xenomorph. While David was introduced as a loyal assistant to his “father” Peter Weyland, his enhanced intelligence meant he acted in his own self-interest and showed contempt for those he was supposed to serve.
Alien: Covenant revealed that David killed the Prometheus protagonist Elizabeth Shaw and was set up as a threat to Daniels after the Covenant encountered him when they investigated a habitable planet en-route to Origae-6. Alien: Covenant’s ending set David up as the ultimate threat as he regurgitated two facehugger embryos and continued his attempts to craft the perfect lifeform. This haunting conclusion left hordes of unanswered Alien questions about David’s future activities that only a true third installment in the Prometheus prequel series can answer.
Source: Alien: Engineers
Your changes have been saved
Email is sent
Email has already been sent
Alien
The Alien franchise, which began with Ridley Scott’s 1979 film, is a Sci-Fi series comprised of several horror films, games, and comic books centered on humanity’s encounters with a hostile extraterrestrial species known as Xenomorphs. Characterized by their lethal prowess and capability to reproduce at an alarming rate, these creatures pose a profound threat to human existence. The primary series protagonist, Ellen Ripley, acts as the voice of reason as she seeks to keep the creatures out of the hands of greed-driven corporate scientists.
Movie(s)
Alien
, Aliens (1986)
, Alien 3 (1992)
, Alien: Resurrection (1997)
, Prometheus (2012)
, Alien: Covenant (2017)
, Alien: Romulus (2024)
Created by
Ridley Scott
First Film
Alien
Latest Film
Alien: Romulus
Upcoming TV Shows
Alien: Earth
Cast
Sigourney Weaver
, Tom Skerritt
, Veronica Cartwright
, Harry Dean Stanton
, John Hurt
, Ian Holm
, Yaphet Kotto
, Michael Biehn
, Paul Reiser
, Lance Henriksen
, Carrie Henn
, Bill Paxton
, Charles S. Dutton
, Charles Dance
, Pete Postlethwaite
, Winona Ryder
, Ron Perlman
, Dan Hedaya
, Noomi Rapace
, Charlize Theron
, Idris Elba
, Guy Pearce
, Michael Fassbender
, Katherine Waterston
, Billy Crudup
, Danny McBride
, Demián Bichir
Spin-offs (Movies)
Alien vs. Predator
, Aliens vs. Predator: Requiem
TV Show(s)
Alien
, Alien: Isolation – The Series
Character(s)
Ellen Ripley
, Arthur Dallas
, Joan Lambert
, Brett (Alien)
, Gilbert Kane
, Ash (Alien)
, Dennis Parker
, Corporal Hicks
, Carter Burke
, Bishop (Alien)
, Rebecca ‘Newt’ Jorden
, Private Hudson
, Dillon (Alien)
, Clemens (Alien)
, Bishop II
, David (Alien)
, Annalee Call
, Johner (Alien)
, General Perez
, Elizabeth Shaw
, Meredith Vickers
, Janek (Alien)
, Peter Weyland
, Walter (alien) Daniels (Alien)
, Christopher Oram
, Tennessee
, Lope (Alien)
Video Game(s)
Alien: Isolation (2014)
, Aliens: Colonial Marines (2013)
, Aliens vs. Predator (2010)
, Aliens vs. Predator 2 (2001)
, Aliens vs. Predator (1999)
, Alien 3: The Gun (1993)
, Alien 3 (1992)
, Aliens (1990)
, Aliens: The Computer Game (1986)
, Alien (1984)
Summary
The Alien franchise, which began with Ridley Scott’s 1979 film, is a Sci-Fi series comprised of several horror films, games, and comic books centered on humanity’s encounters with a hostile extraterrestrial species known as Xenomorphs. Characterized by their lethal prowess and capability to reproduce at an alarming rate, these creatures pose a profound threat to human existence. The primary series protagonist, Ellen Ripley, acts as the voice of reason as she seeks to keep the creatures out of the hands of greed-driven corporate scientists.
Expand
Source: https://www.phonggdkrongpac.edu.vn
Category: Entertainment