It’s been a few years since FX announced plans to collaborate with Fargo‘s Noah Hawley on an Alien television series, but as we look ahead to the future, the project is closer than ever.
We know some of the cast members joining, and production has now wrapped, so the series is taking shape in a way that gives fans insight into what they might be able to anticipate. Below, we’re breaking down everything we know so far about the series as we await its arrival on FX.
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What is the Title of the Alien Series?
Its new title is Alien: Earth, Hawley and FX boss John Landgraf told Variety.
When Is Alien: Earth Premiering?
According to FX, the series is officially slated to premiere in 2025, but no exact premiere date has been announced at this time.
Does Alien: Earth Have a Trailer?
No trailer for Alien: Earth has been released yet, but FX did post a teaser offering fans a first glimpse at the xenomorph alien with Earth reflecting on its shiny head, alluding to the title. The teaser also announced the premiere, mentioned, above. See it here:
Who Stars in the Alien Series?
The cast of Hawley’s series includes a few Fargo alums with stars Timothy Olyphant and David Rysdahl among the ensemble that also includes Sydney Chandler, Alex Lawther, Samuel Blenkin, Essie Davis, Adarsh Gourav, and Kit Young.
What Is Alien: Earth About?
Inspired by Ridley Scott‘s 1979 sci-fi hit, Alien the series will reportedly be set on Earth rather than in space. While the exact timing of the series is also a mystery, it will supposedly be set sometime before Sigourney Weaver‘s Ripley. In other words, it’s an origin story of sorts for the universe viewers have been spending time with since the late ’70s.
“It’s a very big show. It’s nice to have some time with it,” Hawley told Variety. “The first year of anything, you want to feel like you’re not up against the wall in terms of time. I’ve seen four of the eight hours of director cuts and engaged in the process of figuring out, cinematically, what it wants to be. It’s one of my favorite parts of making a show.”
How Many Seasons Will There Be of Alien: Earth?
It sounds like FX is hoping that this becomes another major series for it. Landgraf told Variety the network is “pretty bullish on Alien: Earth and we’ve told [Hawley] that assuming, as we hope, Alien: Earth is a returning television series, we want him to focus on at least writing two seasons of it before returning to a possible sixth season of Fargo,” he said.
Where & When Is the New Alien Series Filming?
Filming for the series began in July 2023 but eventually halted in August due to the strikes. Filming picked back up in April 2024, as the production moved forward in Thailand. Hawley revealed to Variety on July 17, “We just wrapped production, so now I’m into the long post that gets into visual effects.”
Related‘Alien’ Star David Rysdahl Teases ‘People Will Be Happy’ With Prequel Series
What Has the Cast Said About Alien: Earth?
TV Insider caught up with Rysdahl while Fargo Year 5 was airing and the star noted, “Noah is doing a similar thing with what he did with Fargo… Taking the DNA of something — and what is Fargo dealing with and what is Alien dealing with at a primal level — through Noah’s lens, and then building it off of that.” According to the star, “people will be happy about it.”
Why the Alien Series Won’t Feature Ripley
When it comes to the main protagonist of the original films, Hawley claimed he’ll be steering clear of Sigourney Weaver’s character Ripley in the show because “she’s one of the great characters of all time,” the showrunner told Vanity Fair in 2021. “And I think the story has been told pretty perfectly, and I don’t want to mess with it.”
Is Ridley Scott Involved?
When it came to creating a series set within an existing IP, creator Noah Hawley is no stranger to the idea. Fargo was inspired by the Coen Brothers’ 1996 film, and likewise, Alien: Earth is inspired by the world first introduced to viewers by Ridley Scott. So, when it came to approaching this new story, Hawley told IndieWire. “I talked to Ridley. His company, Scott Free, is a producer on the show. And you know, Ridley is the man… He was very respectful of the fact that I seem to know what I’m doing, and I have my own take on it,” Hawley shared.
Alien: Earth, Series Premiere, 2025, FX
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