The recently aired fifth episode of Alien: Earth revealed its biggest ties yet to the original 1979 film that started the franchise.
The FX TV series has been receiving a lot of praise from fans and critics due to its bold take on the Alien mythology and its philosophical depth, which matches the greatness of the first two films. While it is set years before the events of the original Alien, it is a standalone story with new characters and a different setting that has never been explored in the franchise.
What is Alien: Earth's Connection to the Original Movie? Episode 5's Ties to the 1979 Classic Explained
Episode 5 of Alien: Earth, titled "In Space, No One...", focused on the events that led to the space vessel Maginot's crash-landing on Earth. It is a standalone flashback story that is reminiscent of a solo Alien movie.
There were tie-ins to the original 1979 classic, making it the most connected to the original movie so far, as we are now midway through the first season of the series.
The title of the episode itself is a callback to the tagline of the original movie: "In space, no one can hear you scream."
Not only that, it became clear to the viewers that Maginot has the same design as the Nostromo in the original movie. Given that the series is set around two years before the 1979 classic, Maginot might be the prototype for Nostromo.
"It’s literally the same thing. We used the original blueprints. Most of the rooms, the bridge, the mess hall, hallways, they’re literally copied from the Nostromo. The cryo-chamber is bigger, though, and the comms room is bigger," showrunner Noah Hawley explained to Deadline.
"The first thing that you need to establish in translating something from film to television is authenticity. And so it has to feel like Alien. We have to show the audience, not only is this Alien, but it’s Ridley Scott’s Alien. It’s James Cameron’s. It’s like that early, retro futurism. So everyone’s very oriented as to what this is. Using the iconic ship was really important."
What to Expect in the Upcoming Episodes of Alien: Earth
Now that we've learned what really happened in Maginot's crash-landing and that Boy Kavalier was behind the sabotage to steal the creatures, the upcoming episodes will deal with the ramifications in the present day.
A lot of fans have pointed out that Boy Kavalier is seemingly inspired by Elon Musk, which Hawley himself has also suggested when he spoke to The Hollywood Reporter.
"It’s a statement, on some level, about the hubris we’re seeing around us by people who think they can go to space, re-invent travel, drill in the earth, and enter politics," the showrunner said.
"They’re doing all of these at the same time when none of them are necessarily being done well. They’re just all being done a lot."
Hawley also explained, "For me, it’s a way to tie everything together, and as the show plays out in the rest of the season, we find that the boy genius is not a terribly thoughtful and calculating guy. He has all these ideas. He chases all of them at the same time. And he has never failed. So he thinks failure is impossible. He’s trying to launch this immortality product, so why would he do this other stuff? He thinks, ‘Oh, I could do everything.'"
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