Bursting Alien For A New Generation, Interview with Alien: Romulus Writer/Director Fede Alvarez

[@namelessnocebo]

Fede is so chill and down to earth and just an honest fan, I really think the franchise is in better hands with him.

[@paulj5336]

This is eaisly the best interview for this movie that's come out. Hands down. Well done lads and thank you Fede. 👏👏👏

[@Ashy_Slashy3]

Yes it's awesome 👍 Although I will still say. Force awakens still sucks lol so that I disagree with

[@hudson01blue]

Listened while driving my lorry !! Well done guys!! Absolute quality interview and what a gentleman Fede is and also a complete nerd like rest of us !! 😂

[@saintmanuel]

Great interview. I like the way he is able to talk about the franchise as well as his own movie. Quite down to earth, honest and critical about the craft and the limits.

[@danielb6803]

I could listen to Fede shoot the xeno-semen-shit for hours. I am so jealous you guys got to do this interview with him. Thanks so much for this.

[@MrFrogwaffles]

AVP Galaxy, you guys have outdone it again! Thank you so much for your involvement in the franchise and presenting material like this. Awesome interview, loved hearing Fede talk about some Evil Dead (2013) as well as Aaron sharing that horrible experience lol. Great job guys!

[@conorbrosnahan5464]

Sunday afternoon sorted! Sad Fede didn't do a commentary for the bluray though, all his previous films have one.

[@YorkiesTV]

This is quite possibly my favorite video on your channel and my favorite interview with a director I've seen on KZbin.

[@YorkiesTV]

@SpecialOrder935 If these guys don't like something, they don't hide it. In this case, they enjoyed the movie, which I think you may have mistaken for shilling. If you're upset by their opinion, I recommend checking out negative reviews for the movie, which may give you a sense of comaderie.

[@andrewnall1931]

Amazing interview! This is an absolute treat to listen to! Loved Alien Romulus! Awesome!

[@The.Crawling.Chaos.]

Great interview! Very informative and fun. Fede seems like a really nice guy! 🙂 Thank you for bringing us this golden nugget 🙂

[@WeyYu_Grunt]

Finally got round to finishing this interview. Really great job on this one gentlemen. Very cool of Fede to take the time to do this. He seems like a very down to earth person, and most importantly he's a fan of the franchise who likes to nerd out like the rest of us. Loved it 👏

[@paulothx138]

Epic podcast, congratulations, guys !

[@chriscarmichael4306]

I'm just happy this franchise is being kept alive and Romulus was a rather interesting film and a welcome addition to the franchise. I very much look forward to the next installment. It does sadden me to learn there is no audio commentary on the blu ray. Is this 100% confirmed? I may not even purchase this until I can get it used for under $5 if that is the case.

[@DonTiberius35]

35:51 it's funny how most of us became fans of the franchise because the xenomorph basically gave us ptsd as curious young kids. I remember coming downstairs from having a nightmare when I was about 5 alien 3 was on, and I basically watched part of the scene where the candles are getting blown out safe to say I didn't sleep well for weeks after that part 😅

[@teletranoats7491]

Gosh !! Never thought I would watch a Moviepodcast for about 2.30hs. That´s my first time experiencing it !!!! CONGRATS

[@isimongardner]

This is a fantastic interview guys and well done for getting Fede.

[@drudi1234]

he seems like a pretty fantastic guy. Love that he made the high pitched voice comment from Curb your Enthusiasm about people telling him they liked it with a high pitch voice. You know they are lying LOL

[@numbernine5044]

Brilliant interview! Especially since we can gobble this up before any 4k/bluray commentary hits the shelf.

[@SpackoZako]

Great interview guys. Fede seems like a great dude, really down to earth. And it was cool to hear his insights on the film and franchise.

[@shogunboxe]

Fede, I take my hat off to you. You managed to make a great movie far beyond everyone's expectations, being faithful and expanding the best saga there is. You are the man to continue this franchise. Arriba Fede carajo!

[@ryangettig274]

Well,you are certainly correct in the regard that it was a balancing act.:)

[@fadyedits8681]

NO

[@davidmoore7668]

Great interview, thanks. He’s definitely the right guy to take this franchise forward imo. Please give him an opportunity to make another :)

[@DonTiberius35]

Tbh, I think the franchise is in safe hands, just the fact that he has sat down with you guys just to conversat with the community says it all and its evan better once you peel the layers back and realise the fede is one of us fans too

[@RedSeaGull]

Love Fede, great guy and a true artist. I rank Romulus just under the original Alien

[@MindVortex7000]

I read this comment after 1st viewing and was hesitant to agree, since me, as many others, are in a way condition by the greatness of first two films. Now I rewatch Romulus and have to admit: it slowly pushing Aliens on the third. Alien, even tho I watch it rearly, compared to others, can not be beaten, cause its an original and a classic sci fi. But Romulus is already too. Fantastic movie. Superb cinema. A sci fi masterpiece. Words cant describe my joy and affection towards this masterful creation. A future classic.

[@AbirTarafdar]

Oh nice. What a treat. I really like Fede. Could listen to him all day.

[@jaegershoemaker8959]

"You didn't spend the whole week talking about HIcks." as Aaron smiles and nods with his tag being Corporal HIcks.

[@silowill]

Great interview!

[@maceharris7656]

ALIEN: ROMULUS is definitely one of my favorite movies of 2024. I loved the characters, especially Rain and Andy. The movie was scary, but it was also thrilling and exciting at the same time. My favorite scenes was the chest busters chase and the anti-gravity fight. All around I thought the movie was what I wanted in a new entry in the ALIEN franchise. My rating for Alien: ROMULUS is 9.8/10. It's my third favorite movie in the franchise after ALIEN (1979) and ALIENS (1986), which were both 10/10s by the way. Well done podcast.

[@MarcMcKenzie-qb6or]

Agree with you on all points. I saw it with my niece and her boyfriend and they enjoyed the film (like I did!). One of the cool things was seeing the "easter eggs" related to ALIEN: ISOLATION which Fede is a fan of. And yes, Andy--played by David Jonsson--was one of the best characters in the film. Looking forward to seeing Jonsson in the upcoming film adaptation of King's THE LONG WALK.

[@maceharris7656]

@@MarcMcKenzie-qb6or 💯% agree with you on your points. Unfortunately I am not much of a gamer, so I never played Alien Isolation but from what I heard on this and other sites, Alien ROMULUS seems to have referenced that game liberally. One of the reasons I loved ALIEN ROMULUS was because it did have that vibe of an scary thrill ride at a theme park or levels to a horror/ sci-fi video game. (not a bad quality to have, in my opinion) Maybe one day Disney will make a park experience based on the ALIEN universe for the Halloween/ spooky season. Just a thought.

[@MarcMcKenzie-qb6or]

@@maceharris7656 An ALIEN-based park ride or experience at Disney would be something! There was one in England years ago based on ALIENS and from what I read it was quite good. If you get the chance to play ALIEN: ISOLATION, do so. Like ROMULUS, it definitely captures the feeling of the first film but it is not an easy game. Still, as a fan of the first and second films--and ROMULUS--I highly recommend it. Just don't play it in a dark room!😁

[@maceharris7656]

@@MarcMcKenzie-qb6or 😁👍thanks

[@yoursocialmediaassistant-d1827]

Awesome interview! ❤ what a legend Fede js

[@CryptidTactical]

Outstanding 😈

[@hanniballkingGaming]

Dope interview!! Thank you Fede!! 🔥🔥🔥

[@gordoncutter9241]

Alvarez seems like a nice guy. Comes across as a genuine, solid dude. And I'm actually happy that this film turned out to be such a success - both for him personally and for the future viability of the franchise. As for the film itself, this quote of his about sums it up (I'm paraphrasing): "I didn't read any of the books to prepare - started some, but didn't finish them. But I read the wikipedia a lot. And I played some of the games". Put the writers' strike on top of that, and that's exactly the level of quality the final script reflects.

[@MrSnaztastic]

The callback argument, specifically dialogue, is an interesting one. "Get away from her" could've worked if the line delivery wasn't so clunky, honestly. It feels like recycling the few elements that have entered the general cultural lexicon as a shortcut. On the other hand, thing's like "busy little creatures" are so obscure and out of place that it makes I think a lot of people annoyed they couldn't just come up with NEW lines that have the potential to be iconic? Writer's strike or no, less wouldve been more here.

[@ryangettig274]

There were 6-7 callback lines-like Robert Myer Burnett said-near plagiarism-God,come up with your own material.

[@pandapropsncostumes]

I would have loved to have a snarky Andy Dad joke. I think that would have been more iconic and wouldn't take away anything from Ripleys Queen scene which came first

[@FP19487]

Prometheus & Covenant destroy much of the Alien lore that they feel the need to really bring it back to originals and jumpstart the whole thing. Now that they done the basic, they can unshackle and finally do their own stuff in the future which they already kinda did with Offspring.

[@Genjitsu17]

That was fantastic. Thank you!!

[@jprobertson-e1j]

I just love the fact that Fede is a fan of Metallica/Sepultura as well as the Alien franchise.

[@bobilly]

Fede is a class act. Liked him on the top 100 horror moments series too. He made a great Alien film 👍

[@DonTiberius35]

56:36 always like to think the blue mist was part of the hives environment. Now I know it sort of is 💯 and also when it comes to alien I like to think is because the xenomorphs look different because the hive is older and the have Sheded their domes 🤔

[@Manovgreatworth]

Great interview! Everyone should like and subscribe to this channel and share too. Thanks heaps guys 👍🏻

[@charleslaine]

The blue mist is an "emergent property" of the hive. That's all that's necessary to know about it.

[@MindVortex7000]

This movie is so fucking great IT got me rewatching this interview. 10/10 alien movie. Sci fi masterpiece. Love, love, love it.

[@t-rexreximus359]

Fede, can you ask Disney to release a UHD / 4K version of the ‘Assembly Cut’ / Special Edition of Alien 3 please?? 🙏

[@AidilAfham]

I love how this is just a geek straightening oht of the lore

[@nanodeath2.0]

In my opinion Fede makes a better argument for not having the recycled lines in his defense of using them. Still enjoyed the movie and plan on buying a physical copy.

[@Tomb_of_Dracula]

Epic!

[@jamesg871]

Great interview but the amount of Ads is INSANE.

[@DeadFool321]

I think the movie dips a little too far into callback territory when you start reanimating deceased actors instead of creating new characters...

[@LSB44446]

Fede seems like a cool dude.

[@teletranoats7491]

Regarding Narcisus......What Did Fede mean about "someone" jumping into it? Jumping??????????? who? Ripley? that´s crazy!!!

[@stdesign9549]

It’s stupid - the harpoon gun is still lodged between the door and the frame of the shuttle when she’s found at the start of Aliens and it’s cut open, so what happens, someone jumps in, flies off, gets out later for some reason and somehow pushes the gun back in place? Another level of stupid when there were enough in the film already - just leave the story alone now

[@johnny05100]

Why did weyland yutani not go back to the ship to retrieve anything?

[@Pablei73]

Peñarol nomá!

[@BonusEggs4Sale]

Fuck yeah finally!

[@drudi1234]

It sucks that Ridley has so much power with it. Make the old man feel good and add his goo to it.

[@jaj9000]

really enjoyed thanx, and it's an enjoyable movie though 1 and 2 never will be topped, what strucks me most with this one is the same kind of things in alien 1979: ripley going to the stasis pod taking of her clothes seeing in underwear, on romulus rain does the same and you immedeately know it's reference, this is the biggest critic I have against the movie though, just saw it once so far (recycled script lines from old movies also but that was what noticed at first...there are some recycled things im not only one bothered by it so hopefully not that in the next alien movie)

[@eldritchmorgasm4018]

Very interesting, but he presented everything way better than it was. Yes, "Romulus" does look, sound & feel ALIEN(S), but the characters are not that impressive. Also, the creature, as in the xeno, doesn't look creepy because it has some human-like details. The legs, that's just showing me there's a stunt-guy in a suit, which is totaly fine, especialy for 70s/80s movies. Making it as mystery-box-ish as possible is kinda lazy, never showing/explaining more IS lazy. You can do that without demystifying everything, but OMFG, for the love of god, push the franchise forward. Copying stuff & presenting it with a slightly different context has to end.

[@ultave]

The black goo is Xenomorph semen.... kinda crazy but it works thematically, makes sense within lore. Works with what the TTRPG says too.

[@rhuulu110]

Makes me wonder what a male xenomorph looks like since we have mostly seen queens and drones across the extended universe.

[@ultave]

@@rhuulu110 I think the idea of male and female Xenomorphs is really stupid. Same with Yautja, but that's a different story.

[@mikerude5073]

​@@rhuulu110They don't need males in the traditional sense, but there easily could be huge monster variants, independent of host species, much larger and more terrifying thay anything we've seen so far.

[@rhuulu110]

@@mikerude5073 My mind went to spiders or ants where the males are smaller and ether die or are eaten by the female after mating.

[@jaegershoemaker8959]

Ridley Scott would never do something like this.

[@fadyedits8681]

Lol of course he do better stuff than this romulus pile of shit

[@fadyedits8681]

Of course he wouldn't do a trash movie at the level of romulus 😂

[@florisvdwetering]

@@fadyedits8681 Yeah he would do even worse with Prometheus and Covenant 😂

[@teletranoats7491]

Fede gave us a lot in this podcast but forgot to answer the ultimate questions of all. How the hell did the Big chap manage to navigate and stay close to the Nostromo Debrees? Did he love that ship much to a point of hanging out close to it even after cocooned itself? maybe he did that on purpose knowning other humans would come soon ? crazy!!!!

[@XenomorphLV426]

1:28:00 another rook android escaped?

[@teletranoats7491]

I hope to see Ripley in the upcoming comic book. We are excited to find out what really happened inside the Romulus Station. Disney is stupid. Why not make a 45-minute movie detailing what took place there? As for Ripley, I wonder what might have happened to her inside Romulus. Was she awakened? Did they keep her in cryo? Was she conscious the entire time? (That’s crazy, considering she doesn’t mention anything about the events in Romulus during Aliens). Was she lobotomized before Narcissus got disconnected from the station? Did they experiment on her? Why did they keep her alive? Did she fight the big chap inside the station by leading a small squad of military soldiers into Romulus? I’m also curious about why the station was divided into two, as in the movie it shows two different dates under the names Romulus and Remus. It looks like one part was built first to carry out experiments on xenos, and then years later, another one was attached, which was essentially built for testing the experiments (scary, by the way). Weyland-Yutani didn’t want to expose Earth, so I’m guessing that Romulus is nothing but a mousetrap, going from colony to colony, harvesting “curious people” who happen to board the station and then get attacked and used as guinea pigs.Or maybe this is the biggest nonsense ever, and the station was simply infested by xenos, who crossed into the safe zone (from Romulus to Remus) and wreaked havoc in that station. Was Ripley there in Remus all that time and managed to escape? Who knows.

[@stdesign9549]

It would stupid to feature Ripley on the book for all number of reasons - only opens another unnecessary can of worms, not least how she’d conveniently forget anything, let alone no word get back to earth or her daughter, or even simple logic like the harpoon gun still being stuck in the Narcissus door between the door and frame from where it was lodged in Alien at the start of Aliens Write something original that’s it’s own take and leave the old story and timeline alone FFS

[@alijah1539]

I'm still mad about the reeboks. I managed to get an order in and reebok canceled my order. It's so disappointing that I'll have to pay some scum scalper to get those shoes. Because they will not make a second batch even though it's clear there are ALOT of people that would buy them.

[@alijah1539]

I'd love to hear about the parks and rides that never got made! I can't wait for the Alien VR game that's coming soon!!

[@alalulu4503]

Im not agree with mr. Alvarez, im already a FAN of Aliem Romulus😊

[@odiedodieuk]

I’d love to know who’s idea all the references were. They were horrible! I hope it was studio.

[@deathismycolor]

He’s just hiding stuff to save his ass that’s all to so-called answer your question it’s both …

[@fadyedits8681]

Romulus is a pile of shit it's so bad the worst in franchise even than avpr but they succeeded to trick the fans and new audience with the marketing

[@alistairrae9807]

I wholeheartedly agree it’s the worst in the franchise I want my time and money back I was to harsh on Ridley Scott his movies were better

[@dreamingorca]

"...for the next generation...for a modern audience": yawn. Translates as "rehash, repurpose and regurgitate classic, brilliantly produced movies made decades ago into a new movie specifically catering to Gen-Z brats that hadn't even heard of Ridley Scott and clap like seals on TikTok for likes. The end of our beloved Alien franchise goes down amidst rapturous applause for absolute cringe.

[@UltraSpesh]

nah it rules

[@florisvdwetering]

As someone from the first years of Gen-Z I'm so tired of these butthurt millennials who act like everything was better in their days and that new generations can't enjoy their franchises. See I grew up with the Alien movies. I love Alien and Aliens. Aliens is imo the best movie I've ever watched. But I could tear these movies apart if I really wanted to. Why did they have to go through the trouble in Alien to have a towing vessel pick up the Xenomorph with this android agent on board? Why not just send a dedicated science vessel full of androids loyal to the company to do the job? In Aliens nobody found out about the derelict even though in Alien there was a constant SOS signal coming from it? Alien: Isolation patched up that plothole. Why did they only think about sending down a second dropship once the reactor was going critical? Why did Ripley have to suggest that? Bishop and the marines should've known that. Etc etc This movie is great apart from a few issues like the face on Rook and the callback lines. But that doesn't bring it any lower than an 8/10 for me.

[@HiMyNameIsDannny]

You sound like a bitter old man who's scared he's being passed by. What Fede said about attracting new audiences to keep old franchises alive is right. Romulus is one of the highest grossing Alien movies ever and has pumped life into the franchise, not ended it. You hating it doesn't change that fact.

[@adam-v7w-w9i]

Callbacks are for consoomers. It's a shame they're being catered to for monetary gain, because Romulus has so much going for it - artistically it doesn't need any of that. As far as money goes, hardcore fans like me are pretty hardcore about going out to see a film like this 4-5 times in IMAX.

[@mike595]

This man made a stupid mistake helping Ridley to destroy an already tarnished franchise. Romulus made no sense, and retcons Aliens in every way.

[@freedomwriter9688]

Look people a hater who knows nothing he is claiming about

[@UltraSpesh]

nah it rules

[@mikerude5073]

It could have done without a couple homage 1 liners, but I didn't see it retconning Aliens.

[@th3lonef0x4]

How on earth does it retcon anything in Aliens?

[@MarcMcKenzie-qb6or]

@@th3lonef0x4 I know, right? It does nothing of the sort. Look, I know some people will dislike this film, but could they find better reasons to do so?

[@ryangettig274]

🛶🌲☄🌲Well Played,Hicks N' Ridgetop-Saving for a rainy nite,but if my name was Federico?I'd be all over & owning that coolness!&So would my ladyfriends:)🛶🌲☄🌲

[@ryangettig274]

The band/music analogy is spot on correct.When GNR came out with Use Your Illusion in 1991,I was like who the fuck is this band?THey're not Funky anymore?THe guitars are buried?PIanos?Keyboards?Shit, I bought Appetite the day it came out & was so disappointed....

[@brians4016]

Fantastic interview!