Alien: Romulusis set to terrify audiences next week, and directorFede Álvarezissharing the grim reason why its cast is so young. Set between the events depicted inAlienandAliens, Álvarez’s film is the seventh installment in the long-running franchise, and focuses on a group of young colonists who get way in over their head when they go off to scavenge a derelict space station, and come face to facewith the legendary Xenomorphs.
Speaking withVarietyahead ofRomulus’ premiere on August 16, Álvarez revealed that the reason he chose such a young cast for the moviewas because it would resonate more with audiences when they die. He says it’s much harder to stomach watching someone who is in their prime get ripped to pieces, compared to someone who has already lived a full life. Check out his comments below.
“As a rule of thumb, in horror, the younger the people the tougher it is to watch them die. Let’s agree on that. An 80-year-old man dies on screen; you lived a good life, [if a] 12-year-old kid dies in a movie, heartbreak.”
Alien: Romulus
Alien: Romulus takes the phenomenally successful “Alien” franchise back to its roots. While scavenging the deep ends of a derelict space station, a group of young space colonizers come face to face with the most terrifying life form in the universe.
That might be the case, as movies such asPet SemataryandA Quiet Placeshocked audiences when children were killed in their opening sequences. However, films such as the classic slasherFriday the 13thdidn’t click as much because we didn’t really care enough about those young campers to feel sad when they died. The key is creating enough of a three-dimensional characterthat audiences can relate toso that when they die it’s more hard hitting. you’re able to’t just kill off a 20-year-old and expect viewers to feel something if you haven’t given us enough of a reason to bother with them in the first place.
Fede Álvarez Believes He’s Done Enough to Make Us Care
Has Álvarez crafted such a story that it will make us care about its stars before they meet the reaper? The verdict is still out on that one, but theEvil Deaddirector believes that he’s done the necessary work to make audiences relate to the young cast, whichincludes the likes of Cailee Spaeny(26), Isabela Merced (23), and Archie Renaux (26). He says that audiences will get to see them in their natural habitat before they face off against the Xenomorphs, something he’s hoping will suck us in.
“For me it was a way in to imagine what it would be to a bunch of young people, to grow in one of these colonies in sci-fi and at the end of the world and having to face this creature. They’re closer to the audience in a way. They don’t know anything about the world they’re getting into.”
This Alien: Romulus Japanese Trailer Teases Far More Facehugger Horror
The latest look at the Alien prequel promises a sci-fi horror classic.
“For me, it’s never a bad time in theaters when you’re watching an Alien movie,“he added. One can only hope that his words ring true, and thatAlien: Romulusis everything we’re hoping it will be, and more. Álvarez has already proven himself not only with 2013’sEvil Dead, but also with the 2016 tense horror-thrillerDon’t Breathe, so if there’s anyone who can pull it off, it’s him.
We’ll have to wait until August 16 whenAlien: Romulushits theaters from 20th Century Studios to find out if we care about the characters, but in the meantime, you can check out the pule-pounding trailer below to get a taste of what’s to come.
