Everyone’s favorite apex space predator, the xenomorph of the Alien franchise, returned to terrorize audiences with Alien: Romulus last summer, and now the legendary science fiction saga is coming to television for the first time. Alien: Earth, the franchise’s debut TV series, premiered on FX and Hulu on August 12, 2025, bringing the iconic creatures to the small screen and giving viewers a glimpse of new, terrifying territory in the Alien universe.
Before you subject yourself to another round of terrifying, deep-space suspense, it’s a good time to get up to speed on the whole Alien franchise. Fortunately, you can watch all of the Alien movies on DIRECTV, as well as the new TV series! Sign up today!
Here’s your guide to watching all of the Alien movies (and TV show), either in order from best to worst (based on consensus) or chronologically.
How Many ‘Alien’ Movies Are There?
Currently, there are seven Alien movies, or nine if you count the two crossover films with the Predator franchise, spanning nearly 50 years of theatrical filmmaking. The first film, Ridley Scott’s Alien, was released in 1979 and the most recent, Alien: Romulus, came out in 2024.
Ridley Scott has directed three of the Alien films (Alien, Prometheus and Alien: Covenant). Scott went on to become a fixture of science fiction films, directing classic films such as Blade Runner, Avatar, The Terminator and Terminator II: Judgement Day.
Other Alien series directors have included James Cameron, David Fincher, Jean-Pierre Jeunet, Paul W.S. Anderson, the Brothers Straus and most recently, Fede Álvarez.
What About ‘Alien: Earth’?
While not a theatrical release, Alien: Earth, significantly expands the franchise canon as the first television series in the Alien universe. As is the benefit of a full TV season, Alien: Earth will provide fans a more in depth look at various storylines and characters within the established mythology.
To get a full overview of the new Alien franchise addition, check out this Alien: Earth Watch Guide.
‘Alien’ Movies in Order: How to Watch Chronologically
We’ll get into our ranking of the Alien movies in a bit, but if you want to get the full Alien experience, it’s best to watch the series in chronological order.
But where does Alien: Earth fall into the chronological storyline, you wonder? Alien: Earth is set exactly two years before the events of Ridley Scott’s Alien, in the year 2120, making it a direct prequel to the original film that started it all.
Here’s the chronological order to watch to get the full story so far:
- Alien vs. Predator (2004)
- Aliens vs. Predator: Requiem (2007)
- Prometheus (2012)
- Alien: Covenant (2017)
- Alien: Earth (2025)
- Alien (1979)
- Alien: Romulus (2024)
- Aliens (1986)
- Alien 3 (1992)
- Alien: Resurrection (1997)
Which ‘Alien’ Movies Should You Absolutely Watch Before ‘Alien: Earth’?
While the new TV series is written in a way that new viewers can jump right in, there is some benefit to watching the films that come before the new series in cannon order. That means you’d have to watch Alien vs. Predator (2004), Aliens vs. Predator: Requiem (2007), Prometheus (2012) and Alien: Covenant (2017).
That being said, the crossover Alien-Predator films are sort of their own unique thing, so we don’t expect them to directly tie into the story of the new Alien series. You should be able to start with Prometheus and have no issues.
We still recommend watching the entire series though!
All of the ‘Alien’ Movies, Ranked
So which Alien movie reigns supreme? Here’s our list of all of the movies in the Alien franchise, ranked from best to worst.
While we won’t add Alien: Earth to the ranked list, as it’s more difficult to accurately compare a tv series with movies, based on early reviews (IMDb: 8.5/10 | Rotten Tomatoes: 93% | Metacritic: 84%), the series would fall between Alien and Aliens, which are ranked 1 and 2 on the list.
*** Minor spoilers ahead ***
1. ‘Alien’
IMDb: 8.5/10 | Rotten Tomatoes: 93% | Metacritic: 89%
It’s hard to beat the classic. Alien started it all, introducing us to what is arguably the most anxiety-inducing extraterrestrial killing machine ever devised in the franchises’ iconic antagonist, the H.R. Giger-designed xenomorph. The action starts when the crew of the spacecraft Nostromo is awakened to investigate another derelict ship in deep space. What follows is one of the most memorable misadventures in all of science fiction as Ellen Ripley (Sigourney Weaver) and the rest of the ship’s crew desperately try to kill the alien creature and escape to safety.
Alien is a masterclass in tension-building directing, and it also includes one of the most iconic scenes in the franchise, and in the genre at large: the moment the alien bursts forth from a crew member’s chest in the mess hall and escapes into the ship’s depths to begin its rampage.
2. ‘Aliens’
IMDb: 8.4/10 | Rotten Tomatoes: 94% | Metacritic: 84%
Aliens picks up where the first film left off, with Ripley again waking from stasis only to find that the company she works for, Weyland-Yutani Corporation, is colonizing the planet where the xenomorph is suspected to have originated. What could possibly go wrong?
Aliens expands on the Alien mythos by exploring Weyland-Yutani’s nefarious goals with the xenomorphs in much more depth, setting the stage for the subsequent films. It’s big bad even also even bigger and badder than the monster from the first film. This one is required viewing in the Alien franchise and one of the best sci-fi sequels ever made.
3. ‘Alien: Romulus’
IMDb: 7.1/10 | Rotten Tomatoes: 80% | Metacritic: 64%
Romulus was a welcomed addition to the franchise, bringing back much of the adventurous storytelling and deeply anxiety-inducing tension that made the first two films the classics that they are today. Critics praised the film’s visuals, tension and Cailee Spaeny’s performance, among other things.
Set in 2142, the film gives viewers a glimpse into the time between the original two films, a previously unexplored era. It follows a group of space colonists who hatch a plan to escape their oppressive mining colony, inadvertently releasing facehugger parasites and sparking a catastrophic onboard crisis.
4. ‘Prometheus’
IMDb: 7/10 | Rotten Tomatoes: 73% | Metacritic: 64%
Prometheus wasn’t extraordinarily well-received upon its release despite the film marking Ridley Scott’s return to the franchise due to its at-times confusing plot lines and loose ends, but it’s still one of the stronger and most well-produced films in the series.
Prometheus is an origin story for the xenomorph species, following the crew of the starship Prometheus as they search the stars for the origin of life at the behest of — you guessed it — Peter Weyland of Weyland-Yutani Corporation fame.
Michael Fassbender’s portrayal of the sinister android David is a standout performance in this movie.
5. ‘Alien: Covenant’
IMDb: 6.4/10 | Rotten Tomatoes: 65% | Metacritic: 65%
Prometheus was widely criticized for its many plot holes, so Ridley Scott got right to work trying to fill some of them with the film’s sequel, Alien: Covenant. This film is designed to tie the story from Prometheus to the wider Alien universe, and again follows the android David after the events of Prometheus and his identical and benevolent counterpart, Walter, who arrives with the crew of the colonization ship Covenant, to bring the origin story of the xenomorph home.
This film still wasn’t as beloved as the original Alien films, but it makes a good fast follow to Prometheus.
6. ‘Alien 3’
IMDb: 6.4/10 | Rotten Tomatoes: 44% | Metacritic: 59%
Despite its place in the original trilogy of Alien films, Alien 3 lands a bit further down this list. Story-wise, the film kills off multiple major characters and most consider its plot to be among the weakest of the Alien films. In fact, director David Fincher went to great lengths to distance himself from the work, which was his first film.
The movie once again features Ellen Ripley, following her crew after they crash land on a planet with an abandoned prison on it. Ripley just can’t seem to shake the xenomorphs, and one of them once again hitches a ride on her ship before escaping to wreak havoc and force Ripley and the prison’s inmate inhabitants into a fight for survival.
7. ‘Alien Resurrection’
IMDb: 6.2/10 | Rotten Tomatoes: 55% | Metacritic: 62%
Ripley’s back again, albeit in a different form (We won’t spoil it for you here!) in the chronologically latest entry in the Alien franchise with Alien: Resurrection. Resurrection was the last main Alien film in the original storyline before future films pivoted to focus on the origin stories and Predator crossovers. This one didn’t quite capture the iconic thriller tone of its predecessors and had a distinctly more action film-esque vibe, but it’s still worth a watch to bring home the saga of Ellen Ripley.
8. ‘Alien vs. Predator’
IMDb: 5.7/10 | Rotten Tomatoes: 21% | Metacritic: 29%
Alien vs. Predator and its sequel are at the bottom of this list because they’re early examples of innovative cross-over filmmaking and lots of fun to watch, but they’re just not true Alien films. That said, both of these movies combine elements from two of the most famous sci-fi film franchises into one glorious, gory mess where two of the most adept hunter species in the universe try to out-do each other at their favorite game.
9. ‘Alien vs Predator: Requiem’
IMDb: 4.6/10 | Rotten Tomatoes: 12% | Metacritic: 29%
Requiem picks up immediately where the original Alien vs. Predator left off and takes the notion of a crossover to its extreme: It features a hybrid xenomorph-Predator species called, predictably, a Predalien and the efforts of a skilled veteran Predator as he hunts it down to eliminate it while it terrorizes a Colorado town. On the whole, this movie was widely panned as the worst of both the Predator and Alien franchises.
Watch ‘Alien’ Movies & Alien: Earth on DIRECTV
Grab your anti-alien liquid oxygen tanks, harpoon launcher or shoulder-mounted plasma blaster and get ready to take on the xenomorph in the Alien movies on DIRECTV.
And, you can watch the brand new series on FX! Get your DIRECTV subscription today and start watching.
Frequently Asked Questions
How many Alien movies have been made?
There are seven official Alien movies, along with two crossover films with the Predator franchise.
Is Alien vs. Predator canon to the Alien franchise?
Not entirely. Alien vs. Predator is canon to the Predator franchise and features the xenomorph from Alien as its antagonist, but it's not considered canon to the main Alien films.
How many Alien movies has Ridley Scott directed?
Three: the original Alien from 1979, plus the two prequel films Prometheus and Alien: Covenant.
Is there a new Alien TV show?
Yes, the first ever TV series in the Alien franchise was released on FX on August 12th, 2025.
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