Alien Complete Timeline Explained (2024)

The Alien franchise has a vast and rich mythology that extends across all the movies to create a full timeline of events. Ridley Scott launched the original horror/sci-fi series in 1979 with the release of the first Alien movie. The futuristic series explores humanity's run-ins with the alien race known as Xenomorphs, whether they are sequels that directly build on the existing canon or prequels that expand what was previously known. Every Alien movie plays a vital part in creating the overall franchise timeline that audiences need to know to understand the world.

Looking at the Alien movies in chronological order provides a general overview of the franchise timeline. Following Alien's release in 1979, audiences got Aliens in 1986, Alien 3 in 1992, and Alien Resurrection in 1997. Ridley Scott then returned with prequels in Prometheus and Alien: Covenant, while Disney's acquisition of 20th Century led to additional projects moving forward. Comics, shorts, novels, and TV shows also explore different points as unconfirmed canon materials, but there is a lot of information and events to keep track of when it comes to chronicling the complete Alien franchise timeline.

The Origins Of Humanity & Weyland

Billions Of Years Ago Through 2029

The very beginning of the Alien timeline was revealed during Prometheus' opening sequence. The movie begins with one member of The Engineers coming to Earth and drinking the black goo. This caused him to die but brought forth the creation of humanity. The exact setting of this event is unknown, as it could be billions of years before Prometheus or 10,000s of years prior. In either instance, the Engineers returned to Earth as needed afterward to check in on their creations. There is even a suggestion that they created Jesus Christ to save humanity from its near destruction.

Fast forward to 2012 and the Alien franchise takes a big step forward with the foundation of Weyland Corp. Peter Weyland started the company that year, marking the beginning of his pursuit to create life. It is not until 2023 that Peter unveils his plans to create androids. The first David android was created in 2024. After a few years of legal battles with Yutani Corp about the David patent, Weyland Corp wins the lawsuit and continues production on its David android models. This brings about the continued evolution of life in the universe later in the timeline.

Alien: Earth

Set In 2092

The Alien franchise timeline explores Earth in roughly 2092 thanks to a series from Noah Hawley. It is confirmed that his upcoming Alien show is set roughly three years before the events of the original movie. Titled Alien: Earth, the series explores the early days of Weyland-Yutani and what it is like to work for a corporation. It is the first TV show in the franchise and the first project to take place primarily on Earth. Based on its setting in the timeline, Alien: Earth could have a very minimal presence of xenomorphs.

Prometheus

Set In 2093

9/10

Prometheus

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Sci-Fi

Horror

Action

Adventure

Drama

Mystery

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See Also

Alien Movie Timeline Explained: All Alien Movies In Order, Chronologically And By Release DateAll Alien Movies In Order: How to Watch ChronologicallyDie richtige Reihenfolge der „Alien“-FilmeHow to Watch the Alien Movies in Chronological Order - IGN

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Director

Ridley Scott

Release Date

June 8, 2012

Writers

Jon Spaihts , Damon Lindelof

Cast

Charlize Theron , Noomi Rapace , Idris Elba , Guy Pearce , Michael Fassbender

Runtime

124 Minutes

Prometheus is the earliest film in the Alien timeline, primarily exploring events set in 2093. After the introduction to the Engineers millennia before, the movie introduces Elizabeth Shaw and her team in 2089. They discover a star map to LV-223 in Scotland that leads to Peter Weyland funding a mission for them to travel to the location in the hopes of finding life beyond Earth. It takes four years for the entire process to take place, including traveling to LV-223 aboard the Prometheus ship. The rest of the movie takes place within a short amount of time in 2093 as Shaw's crew explores LV-223.

As the first prequel in the franchise, Prometheus remains the earliest point in the official timeline that has been explored so far. Various short films from Peter Weyland's files do predate the events of the movie, as they were made as extras for the movie's home video release. These include a Peter Weyland TED talk from 2023, the debut of David 8 in 2079, a video recording of Shaw from 2089 after making the star map discovery, and pre-mission recordings of the Prometheus crew from 2091. The Alien short films lead directly into the events of Prometheus.

Alien: Covenant

Set In 2104

7/10

Alien: Covenant

R

Thriller

Adventure

Sci-Fi

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Director

Ridley Scott

Release Date

May 19, 2017

Writers

dante harper , John Logan , Jack Paglen , Michael Green

Cast

Michael Fassbender , Katherine Waterston , Billy Crudup , Danny McBride , Demián Bichir , Carmen Ejogo , Jussie Smollett , Callie Hernandez , Amy Seimetz , Nathaniel Dean , Alexander England , Benjamin Rigby , Uli Latukefu , Tess Haubrich , Lorelei King , Goran D. Kleut , Andrew Crawford , Tom O'Sullivan , James Franco , Guy Pearce , Noomi Rapace

Runtime

123 Minutes

The Alien timeline jumps 11 years into the future after Prometheus' ending to tell Alien: Covenant's story. The second of Ridley Scott's prequels follows the Covenant crew as they are awakened in 2104 amid ship malfunctions while en route to Origae-6. They intercept a recording from a nearby planet that promises to be more habitable for the colonizing expedition, and they change course to explore the new, unspecified planet. It is only once they arrive that they learn of the dangers that lurk on the planet and encounter David 8 and his experiments.

Like Prometheus, there are short films that predate and continue the story after Alien: Covenant's ending. The Crossing prologue shows what happened to David and Elizabeth after Prometheus as they search for the Engineers in 2094. There was also prologues about the Covenant crew undergoing computer testing and enjoying their final meal together before the mission from 2104. Another short, Meet Walter, was a Weyland advertisement for the new android. The Alien timeline expands beyond Covenant with shorts including David's transmission to Weyland about his creations and the corporation finding his deserted lab years later.

Alien

Set In 2122

10/10

Alien

R

Sci-Fi

Horror

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Director

Ridley Scott

Release Date

June 22, 1979

Writers

Dan O'Bannon , Ronald Shusett

Cast

Sigourney Weaver , Tom Skerritt , John Hurt , Veronica Cartwright , Harry Dean Stanton , Ian Holm , Yaphet Kotto , Bolaji Badejo

See Also

Alien movies in order: chronological and release

Runtime

117 Minutes

Ridley Scott's original sci-fi/horror masterpiece kicked off the franchise as a series that takes place nearly 150 years in the future. Released in 1979, Alien is set in 2122 as the Nostromo ship embarks on a return trip to Earth. Their trip takes a detour as the ship's computer, Mother, detects signs of life on the nearby moon LV-426. This leads Dallas, Kane, and Lambert to investigate a signal and discover hundreds of alien eggs. While Kane is attacked by a facehugger during the trip, the entire Nostromo crew leaves LV-426 alive, but that does not stay true for long.

The original movie only explores a short amount of time in the Alien timeline, as the entire film's story is told over a few days in 2122. It ends with Ripley as the sole human survivor of the chronicled encounter with xenomorphs and in stasis as her return trip to Eath is resumed. Little did Ripley know that this was the start of an ongoing war with the xenomorphs that would carry through the rest of her life.

Alien: Romulus

Set In 2142

Alien: Romulus

R

Sci-Fi

Horror

Thriller

Director

Fede Alvarez

Release Date

August 16, 2024

Writers

Fede Alvarez , Rodo Sayagues , Dan O'Bannon , Ronald Shusett

Cast

Cailee Spaeny , David Jonsson , Archie Renaux , Isabela Merced , Spike Fearn , Aileen Wu , Rosie Ede , Soma Simon , Bence Okeke , Viktor Orizu , Robert Bobroczkyi , Trevor Newlin , Annemarie Griggs , Daniel Betts

The Alien movie timeline expanded in 2024 with the release of Alien: Romulus. Directed by Fede Álvarez, the film is another prequel in the franchise. Alien: Romulus takes place between Alien and Aliens in the franchise's official timeline. Its specific setting is 2142, as it is confirmed to be set 20 years after the original film. Alien: Romulus' timeline setting makes it a completely standalone entry in the canon, as it follows a new group of characters who explore the Renaissance space station and discover the Romulus lab and the deadly aliens that are inside.

Aliens

Set In 2179

10/10

Aliens

R

Adventure

Horror

Sci-Fi

Action

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Director

James Cameron

Release Date

July 18, 1986

Writers

James Cameron

Cast

Sigourney Weaver , Michael Biehn , Carrie Henn , Paul Reiser , Lance Henriksen , Bill Paxton , William Hope , Jenette Goldstein

Runtime

137 minutes

James Cameron was the first person responsible for growing the Alien timeline as he was in charge of directing the original sequel, Aliens. The film only took seven years to make in real life, but the gap between events is much larger in the official canon. This is because Aliens takes place 57 years after the original in 2179 because Ripley was stuck in cryostasis waiting to come back to Earth. She wakes up to learn that Weyland-Yutani have colonized LV-426 by setting up a terraforming station, and they doubt the accuracy of her report on what lives there.

The rest of Aliens explores Ripley and a crew going to LV-426 to investigate why the Weyland-Yutani has lost communication with the colony. They encounter even more xenomorphs upon their arrival, as well as Newt, the sole survivor of the aliens' original attack. After spending a short amount of time on LV-426 and defeating the queen xenomorph, Ripley and other survivors chart their return trip to Earth with the hope that they've seen the last of the deadly creatures.

Alien 3

Set In 2180

6/10

Alien 3

r

Action

Horror

Sci-Fi

Thriller

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Director

David Fincher

Release Date

May 22, 1992

Writers

Dan O'Bannon , Ronald Shusett , Vincent Ward , David Giler , Walter Hill , Larry Ferguson

Cast

Sigourney Weaver , Charles S. Dutton , Charles Dance , Paul McGann , Brian Glover , Ralph Brown

Runtime

114minutes

The Alien timeline grew again six years after James Cameron's hit with David Fincher making Alien 3. However, the actual story is set in 2180 in the official timeline. The film begins with a facehugger being born on the Sulacoone year after the events of Aliens, leading to the survivors leaving in escape pods. Ripley awakens in a factory prison to learn that she is the only one to survive the escape pods crashing on Fury 161. It is there that she learns that Weyland-Yutani knew about the facehugger egg on the ship that caused the crash.

The big development for Alien as a franchise at this point in the timeline is that it is where Ripley dies. She discovers that she is carrying a Queen embryo and learns of Weyland-Yutani's true intentions for the creatures. Knowing that she cannot let another Alien Queen be born, Ripley decides to sacrifice herself in the end by falling into a furnace, ensuring that she and the growing Alien Queen perish.

Alien Resurrection

Set In 2379

4/10

Alien Resurrection

R

Action

Horror

Sci-Fi

Thriller

Where to Watch

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Director

Jean-Pierre Jeunet

Release Date

November 26, 1997

Writers

Joss Whedon , Dan O'Bannon , Ronald Shusett

Cast

Sigourney Weaver , Winona Ryder , Dominique Pinon , Ron Perlman , Gary Dourdan , Michael Wincott

Runtime

109 Minutes

The latest point in the Alien timeline that has been explored comes through Alien Resurrection. The sequel came five years after Alien 3, but it features the biggest jump in the canon for a sequel by setting the story 200 years later. Alien Resurrection takes place in 2379 as they clone Ripley 8 using blood taken from her before her death. Weyland-Yutani spent the 200 years after Alien 3 creating the clone with a Queen embryo inside so more xenomorphs could be created.

Moving the franchise this far into the future means Alien Resurrection leaves many years in between where the state of the universe is a mystery. Still, it advances the mythology in some significant ways through Ripley 8's connection to xenomorphs. But with the film receiving mostly negative reviews and leaving the franchise's future in an uncertain spot, no stories after Alien Resurrection have been told in any official capacity.

Alien vs. Predator & Aliens vs. Predator: Requiem Are Not Part Of The Main Timeline

They Are Officially Non-Canon

In addition to the seven main movies and single TV show that exist in the official Alien timeline, one should not consider Alien vs. Predator or Aliens vs. Predator: Requiem. Neither movie is an official part of the canon as they contradict events depicted in the rest of the franchise. For what its worth, both Alien vs Predator movies take place in 2004, so they would be the earliest films in the timeline if they were considered canon. Since they are not, the complete Alien timeline does not cover their events.

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