Announced back in 2020, Disney is currently working on the first-ever television series set within the Alien universe for FX/Hulu, with Noah Hawley (“Legion,” “Fargo”) developing.
What we know so far, which isn’t very much at all, is that the series will be set on Earth. FX had teased, “Expect a scary thrill ride set not too far in the future here on Earth.”
Speaking with Esquire this week, Hawley updates on the slow-moving project, while also teasing that threats both alien and “cyborg”/”transhuman” will be found within the series.
“It’s going great. It’s going slowly, unfortunately, given the scale of it,” Hawley tells Esquire. “I’ve made a certain business out of reinvention. Alien is a fascinating story because it’s not just a monster movie; it’s about how we’re trapped between the primordial past and the artificial intelligence of our future, where both [are] trying to kill us. It’s set on Earth of the future. At this moment, I describe that as Edison versus Westinghouse versus Tesla. Someone’s going to monopolize electricity. We just don’t know which one it is.”
Hawley continues, “In the movies, we have this Weyland-Yutani Corporation, which is clearly also developing artificial intelligence—but what if there are other companies trying to look at immortality in a different way, with cyborg enhancements or transhuman downloads? Which of those technologies is going to win? It’s ultimately a classic science fiction question: does humanity deserve to survive? As Sigourney Weaver said in that second movie, “I don’t know which species is worse. At least they don’t fuck each other over for a percentage.” Even if the show was 60% of the best horror action on the planet, there’s still 40% where we have to ask, “What are we talking about it, beneath it all?” Thematically, it has to be interesting.”
“It’s humbling to get to play with the iconography of this world,” he adds.
Last we heard, Ridley Scott is expected to be on board as producer.
Expect to wait until 2023 for the return of the Alien franchise.
