Alien: Covenant#Release

In 2104, the spaceship Covenant is en route to colonize the planet Origae-6, carrying 2,000 colonists and 1,140 human embryos in cryogenic stasis. A sudden neutrino burst damages the ship and kills several colonists, including the captain Branson. Walter, an advanced android, performs an emergency reanimation of key personnel to address the situation. During repairs, the crew detects a human voice broadcast from an uncharted, habitable planet. Against the protests of Branson's wife Daniels, new captain Chris Oram decides to investigate the planet instead of continuing to Origae-6.

The crew sends a lander to the planet's surface, where an expedition team tracks the broadcast to a crashed alien ship. Two crew members are unknowingly infected by airborne spores from the local flora. The spores fatally spawn alien creatures known as neomorphs, which rapidly grow and attack the team, destroying the lander in the process. One neomorph is killed before the survivors are rescued by David, a predecessor of Walter's model that was discontinued for being too human-like.

David leads the survivors to a temple surrounded by thousands of dead humanoids. He claims that he and chief science officer Elizabeth Shaw—the sole survivors of the spaceship Prometheus, which vanished ten years earlier{{efn|As depicted in Prometheus (2012)}}—arrived in the alien ship. However, they lost control and it crashed, leading to Elizabeth's death and releasing a deadly pathogen that annihilated the planet's fauna. The pathogen infects any living organism, either killing it or creating aggressive hybrids.

David reveals his disappointment with Walter's model for lacking his creativity and humanity, and derides their inventor, Peter Weyland, as unworthy of his creations. David confesses his love for Elizabeth, the only person who treated him kindly. When a neomorph infiltrates the temple and kills another team member, David attempts to communicate with it but becomes enraged when Oram kills it. Confronting David, Oram learns that the android has been experimenting with the pathogen to engineer new creatures. David tricks Oram into approaching a facehugger parasite, which fatally impregnates him with a xenomorph embryo.

As the team searches for missing members, Walter discovers Elizabeth's dissected corpse, used by David in his experiments. David admits to releasing the pathogen deliberately and expresses his disgust for humanity, which he believes is a dying species that his creations will replace. Walter challenges David, pointing out inaccuracies in his understanding of human history, suggesting David’s conclusions are flawed. David seemingly disables Walter, unaware of his self-repair abilities.

David attempts to use Daniels as a replacement for Elizabeth, but Walter intervenes, fighting him. Meanwhile, Dan Lope, another team member, is attacked by a facehugger and later pursued by the now fully grown xenomorph. Ship pilot Tennessee uses Covenant{{'}}s cargo lift to rescue Daniels, Lope, and Walter, who claims to have eliminated David. Daniels crushes the xenomorph with the lift's grabber arm, allowing the group to return to Covenant. The following morning, a xenomorph bursts from Lope's chest, killing him. Daniels and Tennessee lure the creature into Covenant{{'}}s terraforming bay and eject it into space.

The ship resumes its journey to Origae-6. As Walter places Daniels into stasis, she realizes he is actually David. Before she can act, the stasis pod renders her unconscious. Posing as Walter, David sends a transmission claiming that the crew, except Daniels and Tennessee, were killed in the neutrino burst. He regurgitates two facehugger embryos, then assesses the slumbering colonists, planning to use them in his experiments.

{{see also|List of Alien (film series) characters}}

File:Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them Japan Premiere Red Carpet- Katherine Waterston (461451427) (Cropped).jpg]]

• Michael Fassbender as David 8 and Walter One, two synthetic androids. David is an older model who was a crewmember on the destroyed Prometheus, while Walter is a newer model who monitors the Covenant.{{cite news|last1=Fleming|first1=Mike Jr.|title=Ridley Scott On 'The Martian' And Why 'Star Wars' And '2001' Sent Him To Space With 'Alien:' Toronto Q&A|url=https://deadline.com/2015/09/ridley-scott-the-martian-star-wars-2001-alien-blade-runner-prometheus-toronto-film-festival-1201522484/|access-date=September 15, 2015|website=Deadline Hollywood|publisher=Penske Business Media, LLC|date=September 12, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220922195614/https://deadline.com/2015/09/ridley-scott-the-martian-star-wars-2001-alien-blade-runner-prometheus-toronto-film-festival-1201522484/|archive-date=September 22, 2022|url-status=live}}
• Katherine Waterston as Daniels "Danny", the chief of terraforming for the Covenant mission and the wife of the ship's captain, Jacob Branson. She is the third in command after Branson and Oram.{{cite AV media|url=https://www.ign.com/videos/alien-covenants-space-mission-revealed|people=Collura, Scott (interviewer) Waterston, Katherine (interviewee)|date=December 24, 2016|title=Alien: Covenant's Space Mission Revealed|medium=Television production|publisher=IGN}} Waterston said she was well aware of the comparisons that were going to be made between her and Sigourney Weaver's Ellen Ripley, but that she tried not to think about it too much while filming for fear of being intimidated.{{cite news|url=http://www.indiewire.com/2017/03/alien-covenant-ridley-scott-katherine-waterston-danny-mcbride-sxsw-2017-1201792922/|title='Alien: Covenant': Ridley Scott and Katherine Waterston Discuss the Series' Newest Kickass Female Lead – Watch|author=Chris O'Falt|work=IndieWire|date=March 13, 2017|access-date=March 14, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210925013425/https://www.indiewire.com/2017/03/alien-covenant-ridley-scott-katherine-waterston-danny-mcbride-sxsw-2017-1201792922/|archive-date=September 25, 2021|url-status=live}}
• Billy Crudup as Christopher "Chris" Oram, the Covenant{{'s}} first officer (then captain) and Karine's husband. Oram is a man of faith.{{cite web|url=https://variety.com/2017/film/reviews/alien-covenant-review-1202409157/|work=Variety|title=Film Review: 'Alien: Covenant'|last=Debruge|first=Peter|accessdate=March 4, 2025|date=May 6, 2017}}
• Danny McBride as Tennessee, the chief pilot of the Covenant and Maggie's husband.
• Demián Bichir as Dan Lope, the head of the security unit aboard the Covenant and Tom Hallett's husband.{{Cite news|url=https://screenrant.com/alien-covenant-character-guide/|title=Alien: Covenant Character Guide – Meet the New Victims|first=Hannah| last=Shaw-Williams|date=March 3, 2017|access-date=September 6, 2022|publisher=Screen Rant|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200725025634/https://screenrant.com/alien-covenant-character-guide/|archive-date=July 25, 2020|url-status=live}}
• Carmen Ejogo as Karine Oram, the Covenant{{'s}} biologist and Chris's wife.{{cite book|chapter="We Were So Wrong": The Perversion of Male Creation. Motherhood, Fatherhood and Birth in Recent Incarnations of the Alien Series|pages=52–53|first=Amanda|last=DiGioia|title=Gender and Parenting in the Worlds of Alien and Blade Runner|publisher=Emerland Publishing Limited|year=2021}}
• Jussie Smollett as Ricks, the Covenant{{'s}} navigator and Upworth's husband.{{cite web|url=https://variety.com/2016/film/news/alien-covenant-jussie-smollett-empire-1201714894/|title=Ridley Scott's 'Alien: Covenant' Casts 'Empire' Star Jussie Smollett|first=Dave|last=McNary|date=February 25, 2016|access-date=September 5, 2022|publisher=Variety|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220905003938/https://variety.com/2016/film/news/alien-covenant-jussie-smollett-empire-1201714894/|archive-date=September 5, 2022|url-status=live}}
• Callie Hernandez as Upworth, the Covenant{{'s}} communications officer and Ricks' wife; she also has paramedic training.{{cite web|url=https://www.yahoo.com/entertainment/alien-covenant-spoilers-cast-shocking-twists-deaths-120943164.html|title='Alien: Covenant' Spoilers: The Cast on Those Shocking Twists and Deaths|first=Ethan|last=Alter|date=May 23, 2017|access-date=September 5, 2022|publisher=Yahoo! Entertainment|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220905003939/https://www.yahoo.com/entertainment/alien-covenant-spoilers-cast-shocking-twists-deaths-120943164.html|archive-date=September 5, 2022|url-status=live}}
• Amy Seimetz as Maggie Faris, the pilot of the lander and Tennessee's wife.{{Cite news|url=https://moviepilot.com/p/first-look-james-franco-alient-covenant-crew/4211801|title=First Look At James Franco & The 'Alien: Covenant' Crew Drops Big Hint|first=Jack|last=Carr|date=February 21, 2017|access-date=February 28, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170222204147/https://moviepilot.com/p/first-look-james-franco-alient-covenant-crew/4211801|archive-date=February 22, 2017|url-status=dead}}
• Nathaniel Dean as Tom Hallett, a member of the security unit and Lope's husband.
• Alexander England as Ankor, a member of the security unit.
• Benjamin Rigby as Ledward, a member of the security unit.
• Uli Latukefu as Cole, a member of the security unit.
• Tess Haubrich as Sarah Rosenthal, a member of the security unit.{{cite web|url=https://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/newslocal/manly-daily/aliencovenant-star-tess-haubrich-has-finally-joined-instagram-but-isnt-a-fan-of-oversharing/news-story/4f873e7cde589e93aff3e4d7ba4b27e1|title=Alien: Covenant star Tess Haubrich has finally joined Instagram but isn't a fan of oversharing|first=Sarah|last=Swain|date=June 30, 2017|access-date=September 5, 2022|publisher=The Daily Telegraph|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170701123711/http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/newslocal/manly-daily/aliencovenant-star-tess-haubrich-has-finally-joined-instagram-but-isnt-a-fan-of-oversharing/news-story/4f873e7cde589e93aff3e4d7ba4b27e1|archive-date=July 1, 2017|url-status=live}}

A number of actors appear in uncredited roles. Guy Pearce reprises his role as Peter Weyland, the trillionaire founder and CEO of Weyland Corporation (the Weyland-Yutani Corporation in "later" storylines) who died shortly before the destruction of the Prometheus.{{cite web|url=https://www.indiewire.com/2017/03/alien-covenant-guy-pearce-ridley-scott-original-alien-1201791119/|title='Alien: Covenant' Star Guy Pearce Says Film Goes Back to Origins of Ridley Scott's 'Alien' Films|first=Kate|last=Erbland| date= March 7, 2017|access-date=September 27, 2022|publisher=IndieWire|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220927003332/https://www.indiewire.com/2017/03/alien-covenant-guy-pearce-ridley-scott-original-alien-1201791119/|archive-date=September 27, 2022|url-status=live}} James Franco appears onscreen in photos and a video as Jacob Branson, the original captain of the Covenant and deceased husband of Daniels; he also appears in deleted scenes and a short promotional prologue to Covenant.{{cite web |last=Anderton |first=Ethan |title='Alien: Covenant' Adds James Franco To The Cast |url=http://www.slashfilm.com/james-franco-in-alien-covenant/ |work=/Film |date=December 9, 2016 |access-date=December 10, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220922195323/https://www.slashfilm.com/548140/james-franco-in-alien-covenant/|archive-date=September 22, 2022|url-status=live}} Noomi Rapace, who played archaeologist Dr. Elizabeth Shaw in Prometheus, appeared in a short promotional prologue to Covenant that was set in the period between the two movies, but does not act in the final cut of the movie itself, though her voice is heard from the planet early in the film and her image and voice appear later.{{cite web|url=https://screencrush.com/noomi-rapace-unlocked-interview/|title=Noomi Rapace on 'Unlocked,' Playing Septuplets, and Why She Wasn't In 'Alien: Covenant'|first=E. Oliver|last=Whitney|date=August 31, 2017|access-date=September 27, 2022|publisher=ScreenCrush|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220928171604/https://screencrush.com/noomi-rapace-unlocked-interview/|archive-date=September 28, 2022|url-status=live}}{{cite web|url=https://time.com/4747303/alien-covenant-elizabeth-shaw/|title=How Alien: Covenant Handles Noomi Rapace's Prometheus Character Elizabeth Shaw|first=Eliana|last=Dockerman|date=May 19, 2017| access-date=September 27, 2022|publisher=TIME|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220930050934/https://time.com/4747303/alien-covenant-elizabeth-shaw/|archive-date=September 30, 2022|url-status=live}}

Other credited parts include Lorelei King as the voice of the Covenant{{'s}} computer "Mother".{{cite web|url=https://www.cineworld.co.uk/static/en/uk/blog/interview-with-notting-hill-actress-lorelei-king|title=Interview: Notting Hill actress Lorelei King discusses the film's 20th anniversary|first=Sean|last=Wilson|date=February 14, 2019|access-date=September 27, 2022|publisher=Cineworld|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220929171526/https://www.cineworld.co.uk/static/en/uk/blog/interview-with-notting-hill-actress-lorelei-king|archive-date=September 29, 2022|url-status=live}} Goran D. Kleut is credited in two roles, as both a neomorph and a xenomorph,{{cite podcast|title=Goran the Xenomorph from Alien Covenant|url=https://www.spreaker.com/user/ghostanddemon/goran-the-xenomorph-from-alien-covenant|host=GhostMan and Demon Hunter Show|time=20:10|website=Shadow Nation|publisher=Spreaker Podcasts Inc.|access-date=June 11, 2017|date=May 23, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201031204859/https://www.spreaker.com/user/ghostanddemon/goran-the-xenomorph-from-alien-covenant|archive-date=October 31, 2020|url-status=live}} while Andrew Crawford is credited as a neomorph.{{cite news|last=Maddox|first=Gary|url=http://www.smh.com.au/entertainment/movies/ridley-scott-promises-a-return-to-alienstyle-horror-in-alien-covenant-20170222-guj8wk.html|title=Ridley Scott promises a return to Alien-style horror in Alien: Covenant|newspaper=The Sydney Morning Herald|date=March 3, 2017|access-date=April 21, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220922200114/https://www.smh.com.au/entertainment/movies/ridley-scott-promises-a-return-to-alienstyle-horror-in-alien-covenant-20170223-guj8wk.html|archive-date=September 22, 2022|url-status=live}}

Alien: Covenant is the second film in the Alien prequel series, and the sixth installment in the Alien franchise. It is the third Alien film to be directed by Ridley Scott. In 2012, prior to the release of Prometheus, the first prequel (the fifth Alien film overall), director Ridley Scott began hinting at the prospect of a sequel, as Prometheus had left many questions unanswered.{{cite web |last=Chitwood |first=Adam |title='Alien: Covenant': The Original Idea for the 'Prometheus' Sequel Was Very Different |url=http://collider.com/alien-covenant-original-story-prometheus-2/ |date=22 May 2017 |work=Collider |access-date=22 May 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220826125445/https://collider.com/alien-covenant-original-story-prometheus-2/|archive-date=August 26, 2022|url-status=live}}{{better source needed|date=March 2025|reason=Per WP:RSP/VALNET, we try to find alternatives to ValNet published sources with some exceptions}}{{cite web|first=Dave |last=Trumbore |title=WonderCon 2012: Prometheus Panel Recap Featuring Sir Ridley Scott and Damon Lindelof |url=http://collider.com/prometheus-wondercon/152633/ |work=Collider |date=March 17, 2012 |access-date=March 18, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120621055323/http://collider.com/prometheus-wondercon/152633 |archive-date=June 21, 2012 |url-status=dead}}{{cite news|last=Kit |first=Borys |url=http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/heat-vision/wondercon-2012-ridley-scott-prometheus-extended-trailer-301378 |title=WonderCon 2012: Ridley Scott Talks 'Prometheus' As Extended Trailer Debuts (Video) |publisher=Prometheus Global Media |work=The Hollywood Reporter |date=March 17, 2011 |access-date=March 18, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120501211131/http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/heat-vision/wondercon-2012-ridley-scott-prometheus-extended-trailer-301378 |archive-date=May 1, 2012 |url-status=live}} He said a sequel would follow Shaw, the protagonist of Prometheus, to her next destination, "because if it is paradise, paradise cannot be what you think it is. Paradise has a connotation of being extremely sinister and ominous." Prometheus co-writer Damon Lindelof cast doubt on his own participation, saying, "if [Scott] wants me to be involved in something, that would be hard to say no to. At the same time, I do feel like the movie might benefit from a fresh voice or a fresh take or a fresh thought."{{cite web |first=Adam |last=Chitwood |title=Prometheus Sequel Recap: What We Know About the Possible Follow-Up So Far |url=http://collider.com/prometheus-2-sequel/172444/ |work=Collider|date=June 11, 2012 |access-date=June 12, 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120615115140/https://collider.com/prometheus-2-sequel/172444/|archive-date=June 15, 2012|url-status=dead }}{{better source needed|date=March 2025|reason=Per WP:RSP/VALNET, we try to find alternatives to ValNet published sources with some exceptions}} In June, Scott said an additional film would be required to bridge the >100-year gap between the Prometheus sequel and Alien.{{cite news|url=http://downloads.bbc.co.uk/podcasts/fivelive/kermode/kermode_20120601-1008a.mp3 |title=Sir Ridley Scott, 1 June 12 |author=Scott, Ridley |work=BBC Online |quote=Yeah, it's not the same planet at all. No. If there was a sequel to this, which there might be if the film is successful, there'll be two more of these before you even get to Alien 1. |date=June 1, 2012 |access-date=June 17, 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131110183808/http://downloads.bbc.co.uk/podcasts/fivelive/kermode/kermode_20120601-1008a.mp3 |archive-date=November 10, 2013 }}

{{As of|2012|August|1|df=US}}, 20th Century Fox was pursuing a sequel with Scott, Noomi Rapace and Michael Fassbender involved, and talking to new writers in case Lindelof did not return.{{cite news| last=McClintock |first=Pamela |url=https://hollywoodreporter.com/news/summer-movie-franchise-avengers-snow-white-magic-mike-356583 |title=Summer's Studio Smackdown: From 'Men in Black 3' to 'Prometheus,' Which Franchises Will Get Another Chapter |publisher=Prometheus Global Media |work=The Hollywood Reporter |date=August 1, 2012 |access-date=August 1, 2012}} In December 2012, Lindelof ultimately chose not to work on the project.{{cite web|first= Steve |last=Weintraub |title=Exclusive: Damon Lindelof Is Not Writing the Prometheus Sequel; Explains Why |url=http://collider.com/prometheus-sequel-damon-lindelof/219084/ |work=Collider|date=December 19, 2012 |access-date=December 20, 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130430000310/http://collider.com/prometheus-sequel-damon-lindelof/219084|archive-date=April 30, 2013|url-status=dead}} Early on, Scott stated the film would feature no xenomorphs as he wanted to phase the xenomorph out to focus on David 8, whose A.I. was the new alien lifeform.{{cite news |last1=Falk |first1=Ben |title=Ridley Scott Updates Us On Prometheus 2 And Blade Runner Sequel |url=https://uk.yahoo.com/movies/ridley-scott-updates-us-on-prometheus-2-and-blade-98235330841.html |access-date=September 26, 2014 |work=Yahoo! Movies |date=September 24, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220929041604/https://uk.movies.yahoo.com/ridley-scott-updates-us-on-prometheus-2-and-blade-98235330841.html|archive-date=September 29, 2022|url-status=live}}{{cite web |last1=Cotter |first1=Padraig |title=The Alien Prequels Are Better Than The Predator|url=https://screenrant.com/alien-prequels-better-predator-movies/ |access-date=January 16, 2022 |work=Screen Rant|date=11 January 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220116041942/https://screenrant.com/alien-prequels-better-predator-movies/|archive-date=January 16, 2022|url-status=live }}{{better source needed|date=March 2025|reason=Per WP:RSP/VALNET, we try to find alternatives to ValNet published sources with some exceptions}} He later made statements confirming the xenomorph's presence in the film, mainly due to feedback to Prometheus.{{cite news |last1=McKittrick |first1=Christopher |title="We wanted to create a really frightening movie!" John Logan on Alien: Covenant |url=https://creativescreenwriting.com/alien-covenant/ |access-date=May 22, 2017 |work=TheWrap |date=May 19, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220618033754/https://www.creativescreenwriting.com/alien-covenant/|archive-date=June 18, 2022|url-status=live}}{{cite web|url=https://uk.news.yahoo.com/alien-covenant-ridley-scott-admits-got-prometheus-wrong-teases-two-alien-sequels-exclusive-144721534.html|title=Ridley Scott admits he got Prometheus 'wrong', teases two Alien: Covenant sequels (exclusive)|first=Tom|last=Butler|date=May 10, 2017|access-date=September 27, 2022|publisher=Yahoo! Movies|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220929034826/https://uk.news.yahoo.com/alien-covenant-ridley-scott-admits-got-prometheus-wrong-teases-two-alien-sequels-exclusive-144721534.html|archive-date=September 29, 2022|url-status=live}}

On September 24, 2015, Scott disclosed the film's title as Alien: Paradise Lost.{{cite web |last1=Han |first1=Angie |title=Ridley Scott Announces New 'Prometheus 2' Title |url=http://www.slashfilm.com/prometheus-2-title/|website=/Film |access-date=October 15, 2022|date=September 24, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220922195513/https://www.slashfilm.com/540139/prometheus-2-title/|archive-date=September 22, 2022|url-status=live}} In November 2015, he revealed the new title was Alien: Covenant, and that filming would begin in February 2016 in Australia.{{cite news |last1=Perez |first1=Rodrigo |title=Ridley Scott Says 'Alien: Paradise Lost' Will Now Be Called 'Alien: Covenant' |url=http://blogs.indiewire.com/theplaylist/ridley-scott-says-alien-paradise-lost-will-be-now-called-alien-covenant-20151113 |access-date=November 15, 2015 |work=IndieWire |date=November 13, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151115130638/http://blogs.indiewire.com/theplaylist/ridley-scott-says-alien-paradise-lost-will-be-now-called-alien-covenant-20151113|archive-date=November 15, 2015|url-status=live}} An official logo, synopsis and release date were released on November 16, 2015.{{cite news |last1=Chitwood |first1=Adam |title='Prometheus' Sequel Gets Release Date and Synopsis, But Where's Noomi Rapace? |url=http://collider.com/prometheus-2-release-date-synopsis-noomi-rapace/ |access-date=November 16, 2015 |work=Collider|date=November 16, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220922195521/https://collider.com/prometheus-2-release-date-synopsis-noomi-rapace/|archive-date=September 22, 2022|url-status=live}}{{better source needed|date=March 2025|reason=Per WP:RSP/VALNET, we try to find alternatives to ValNet published sources with some exceptions}} In an interview about the development of the David character since Prometheus, Scott described the dark turn David would take in Covenant: "He hates them. He has no respect for Engineers and no respect for human beings."{{cite web |title=Ridley Scott explains why David bombed the Engineers! |website=Alien: Covenant & Sequel Movie News |url=http://www.alien-covenant.com/news/ridley-scott-explains-why-david-bombed-engineers |date=May 24, 2017|access-date=October 15, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220803215235/https://www.alien-covenant.com/news/ridley-scott-explains-why-david-bombed-engineers|archive-date=August 3, 2022|url-status=dead}}

File:John Logan headshot color 2009.jpg

The initial screenplay was written by Transcendence screenwriter Jack Paglen in June 2013.{{cite magazine|last=Kroll|first=Justin|url=https://variety.com/2013/film/news/transcendence-scribe-to-pen-prometheus-sequel-1200478483/|title=Prometheus 2 Moving Forward At Fox|date=June 17, 2013|magazine=Variety|access-date=October 19, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220922145133/https://variety.com/2013/film/news/transcendence-scribe-to-pen-prometheus-sequel-1200478483/|archive-date=September 22, 2022|url-status=live}} In March 2014, Michael Green was hired to rewrite Paglen's script.{{cite web|last=Sneider|first=Jeff|url=https://www.thewrap.com/prometheus-2-lands-green-lantern-writer-may-feature-multiple-michael-fassbenders-exclusive/|title=Prometheus 2 Lands Green Lantern Writer Michael Green|date=March 24, 2014|website=TheWrap|access-date=October 19, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220922153312/https://www.thewrap.com/prometheus-2-lands-green-lantern-writer-may-feature-multiple-michael-fassbenders-exclusive/|archive-date=September 22, 2022|url-status=live}} Dante Harper later wrote a new script, but an extensive rewrite was performed by screenwriter John Logan. Logan had previously worked with Scott on Gladiator.

For Logan, the main concept was to adopt a dual plot line for the film that would combine the horror elements of Alien with the philosophical elements of Prometheus. He said, "With Alien: Covenant, I just really wanted to write something that had the feel of the original Alien, because seeing that movie was one of the great events of my youth. It was so overpowering in terms of what it communicated to me and its implications, that when I started talking to Ridley about what became Alien: Covenant, I said, 'You know, that was a hell of a scary movie.' I wanted to write a horror movie because the Grand Guignol elements of Alien are so profound. We tried to recapture that with Alien: Covenant, while also trying to pay homage to the deeper implications of Prometheus. In terms of tone, pace, and how we chose to play this particular symphony, we wanted to create a really frightening movie."

In late August 2015, Scott confirmed that he had started scouting locations for the film.{{cite web |title=Inside The Martian: Empire Meets NASA |url=https://empireonline.com/features/the-martian-at-NASA |access-date=August 30, 2015 |first=James|last=White|work=Empire|date=August 20, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180813113527/https://www.empireonline.com/movies/features/martian-nasa/|archive-date=August 13, 2018|url-status=dead}} In October 2015, the Australian government attracted the production of this film, and of Thor: Ragnarok, to Australia by providing AU$47.25 million in grants.{{cite news |date=October 22, 2015 |title=Australia Secures Two Blockbuster Films |work=Minister for Foreign Affairs |url=http://foreignminister.gov.au/releases/Pages/2015/jb_mr_151022c.aspx |url-status= dead |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20160227040448/https://www.foreignminister.gov.au/releases/Pages/2015/jb_mr_151022c.aspx |archive-date=February 27, 2016 |access-date= April 24, 2020 }}{{cite news |last1=Wroe |first1=David |last2=Knott |first2=Matthew |title=New Alien and Thor movies to be filmed in Australia |url=http://www.smh.com.au/federal-politics/political-news/new-alien-and-thor-movies-to-be-filmed-in-australia-20151022-gkfspv.html |access-date=26 August 2016 |newspaper=The Sydney Morning Herald |date=23 October 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211207040911/https://www.smh.com.au/politics/federal/new-alien-and-thor-movies-to-be-filmed-in-australia-20151022-gkfspv.html|archive-date=December 7, 2021|url-status=live}} Woz Productions Ltd., a subsidiary of 20th Century Fox, visited Te Anau, New Zealand, on March 28, 2016, to scout locations for filming in Fiordland.{{cite news |last=Mack |first=Ben |title=Has Alien: Covenant landed in Fiordland |url=http://www.stuff.co.nz/entertainment/78345810/has-alien-covenant-landed-in-fiordland |access-date=October 15, 2022 |work =Stuff.co.nz |date=March 30, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220922201412/https://www.stuff.co.nz/entertainment/78345810/has-alien-covenant-landed-in-fiordland|archive-date=September 22, 2022|url-status=live}}

In August 2015, it was announced that the film would star Rapace and Fassbender, while Rik Barnett was in talks to join the cast.{{cite news |title=Prometheus 2 Begins Filming in January! |url=http://www.scified.com/site/prometheusmovies/prometheus-2-begins-filming-in-january |access-date=August 3, 2015 |work=scified.com |date=August 2, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150803234130/http://www.scified.com/site/prometheusmovies/prometheus-2-begins-filming-in-january |archive-date=August 3, 2015 |url-status=dead}} That December, Katherine Waterston was cast in the lead role of Daniels;{{cite news |last1=Jaafar |first1=Ali |title=Katherine Waterston To Star In 'Alien: Covenant' |url=https://deadline.com/2015/12/katherine-waterston-alien-covenant-casting-ridley-scott-1201669025/ |access-date=December 23, 2015 |work=Deadline Hollywood |date=December 17, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220922195618/https://deadline.com/2015/12/katherine-waterston-alien-covenant-casting-ridley-scott-1201669025/|archive-date=September 22, 2022|url-status=live}} it was Waterston's second film alongside Fassbender, after Steve Jobs. Summer Glau, Carolyn Murphy and Alice Eve were also being considered. Dariusz Wolski, longtime collaborator with Scott, was confirmed to serve as the film's cinematographer.{{cite web |url=http://collider.com/cinematographer-dariusz-wolski-the-martian-alien-covenant-dark-city-interview/ |title=Dariusz Wolski on 'The Martian', 'Alien: Covenant', 'Dark City' |date=31 December 2015 |work=Collider|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221012084328/https://collider.com/cinematographer-dariusz-wolski-the-martian-alien-covenant-dark-city-interview/|archive-date=October 12, 2022|url-status=live}} In 2016, Ridley Scott stated that Noomi Rapace would not reprise her role of Elizabeth Shaw .{{cite web|url=https://www.empireonline.com/movies/news/alien-covenant-noomi-rapace-will-return-elizabeth-shaw/|title=Alien: Covenant – Noomi Rapace will not return as Elizabeth Shaw|first=Owen|last=Williams | date=February 2, 2016|work=Empire|access-date=October 19, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221018233606/https://www.empireonline.com/movies/news/alien-covenant-noomi-rapace-will-return-elizabeth-shaw/|archive-date=October 18, 2022|url-status=live}} However, in June, it was announced that Rapace would shoot a week's worth of scenes (though no new footage of hers appeared in the final film).{{cite news |last1=Fleming |first1=Mike Jr. |title=Noomi Rapace Joins 'Alien: Covenant' |url=https://deadline.com/2016/06/noomi-rapace-alien-covenant-reprises-role-1201776038 |access-date=June 21, 2016 |work=Deadline Hollywood |date=June 21, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221016004623/https://deadline.com/2016/06/noomi-rapace-alien-covenant-reprises-role-1201776038/|archive-date=October 16, 2022|url-status=dead}}{{cite web|url=https://www.indiewire.com/2016/06/alien-covenant-noomi-rapace-returning-michael-fassbender-ridley-scott-2-1201691175/|title='Alien: Covenant': Noomi Rapace Reprising Role of Elizabeth Shaw|first=Michael|last=Nordine|date=June 21, 2016|work=IndieWire|access-date=October 19, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211019224737/https://www.indiewire.com/2016/06/alien-covenant-noomi-rapace-returning-michael-fassbender-ridley-scott-2-1201691175/|archive-date=October 19, 2021|url-status=live}} Creature designer Carlos Huantes said in a 2019 interview that he believed it was the studio's decision to remove her from the film.{{cite web|url=https://hnentertainment.co/exclusive-alien-covenant-creature-designer-carlos-huante-talks-details-of-elizabeth-shaws-original-role-davids-army-of-meerkats-and-a-fight-between-xenomorph-neomorphs/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190227080714/https://hnentertainment.co/exclusive-alien-covenant-creature-designer-carlos-huante-talks-details-of-elizabeth-shaws-original-role-davids-army-of-meerkats-and-a-fight-between-xenomorph-neomorphs/|title=Exclusive: 'Alien: Covenant' Creature Designer Carlos Huante Talks Details of Elizabeth Shaw's Original Role, David's Army of Meerkats and a Fight Between Xenomorph/Neomorphs|first=Christopher|last=Marc|date=February 26, 2019|work=HN Entertainment|archivedate=February 27, 2019}}

In February 2016, Danny McBride, Demián Bichir, Jussie Smollett, Amy Seimetz, Carmen Ejogo, Callie Hernandez, Billy Crudup, and Alexander England were reported to have joined the cast.{{cite web |last=Sneider |first=Jeff |url=http://www.thewrap.com/danny-mcbride-to-join-michael-fassbender-in-ridley-scotts-alien-covenant-exclusive/ |title=Danny McBride to Join Michael Fassbender in Ridley Scott's 'Alien: Covenant' (Exclusive) |date=February 22, 2016 |work=TheWrap |access-date=February 22, 2016 }}{{cite news |last1=Galuppo |first1=Mia |title=Demian Bichir Joins Ridley Scott's 'Alien: Covenant' |url=https://hollywoodreporter.com/heat-vision/demian-bichir-joins-ridley-scotts-868603 |access-date=February 24, 2016 |work=The Hollywood Reporter |date=February 22, 2016}}{{cite news |last1=Hipes |first1=Patrick |title='Alien: Covenant' Crews Up: 'Empire's Jussie Smollett, Amy Seimetz, Carmen Ejogo & More Join Cast |url=https://deadline.com/2016/02/alien-covenant-jussie-smolett-amy-seimetz-carmen-ejogo-cast-1201708727/ |work=Deadline Hollywood |date=February 25, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220922195707/https://deadline.com/2016/02/alien-covenant-jussie-smolett-amy-seimetz-carmen-ejogo-cast-1201708727/|archive-date=September 22, 2022|url-status=live}}{{cite news|last=Lincoln|first=Ross A. |title=Billy Crudup Joining 'Alien: Covenant' & 'Jackie' Biopic |url=https://deadline.com/2016/02/billy-crudup-alien-covenant-jackie-movie-natalie-portman-casting-1201709420/ |work=Deadline Hollywood |date=February 25, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220922195713/https://deadline.com/2016/02/billy-crudup-alien-covenant-jackie-movie-natalie-portman-casting-1201709420/|archive-date=September 22, 2022|url-status=live}}{{cite web |last=Fleming |first=Mike |title='Alien: Covenant' Adds Aussie Actor Alex England |url=https://deadline.com/2016/02/alien-covenant-alex-england-1201709716/ |access-date=February 27, 2016 |website=Deadline Hollywood |date=February 26, 2016 |archive-date=December 31, 2017 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20171231002748/http://deadline.com/2016/02/alien-covenant-alex-england-1201709716/ |url-status=dead }} In March 2016, newcomer Benjamin Rigby also joined the cast.{{cite web |title=Ben Rigby Joins 'Alien: Covenant' |url=https://variety.com/2016/film/news/ben-rigby-alien-covenant-1201729870/ |work=Variety |date=March 15, 2016 |access-date=March 15, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220922203805/https://variety.com/2016/film/news/ben-rigby-alien-covenant-1201729870/|archive-date=September 22, 2022|url-status=live}} In December 2016, it was announced James Franco had been cast in the role of Captain Branson, husband to Daniels and captain of the Covenant.{{cite web |url=http://theplaylist.net/james-franco-surprise-role-alien-covenant-20161209/ |title=James Franco Has Surprise Role In 'Alien: Covenant|website=The Playlist|first=Kevin|last=Jagernauth |date=December 9, 2016 |access-date=December 9, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220922201522/https://theplaylist.net/james-franco-surprise-role-alien-covenant-20161209/|archive-date=September 22, 2022}} The role of Branson in the film was limited to a cameo appearance of the deceased captain.

Adam Savage went on a tour of several of the props and stage sets used in the filming which included an alien spaceship which had first appeared in Prometheus. This set had to be recreated for Alien: Covenant as the set used in Prometheus had been destroyed.{{cite news |title=Mythbusters' Adam Savage Toured The Set Of Alien: Covenant, And It's Wonderful |first=Conner |last=Schwerdtfeger

|url=https://cinemablend.com/news/1653989/mythbusters-adam-savage-toured-the-set-of-alien-covenant-and-its-wonderful |work=CinemaBlend |date=May 2, 2017|access-date=September 28, 2022}} In an article for The Hollywood Reporter, Patrick Shanley interviewed the art director for the film, Damien Drew, and creature design supervisor Conor O'Sullivan regarding the involvement of the San Diego Zoo and its representative Rick Schwartz as a consultant for the design of the realistic effects of the creatures and Xenomorphs appearing throughout the film as Scott wanted a more 'organic' feeling to the creatures as opposed to the 'biomechanical' inspiration of H.R. Giger which had inspired the creature designs in the original films. Scott provided anatomical studies and references from La Specola, a natural history museum in Florence, to O'Sullivan as inspiration.{{cite news |first=Patrick |last=Shanley |date=May 18, 2017 |access-date=September 28, 2022|title='Alien: Covenant': How the Xenomorph Continues to Horrify Audiences Decades Later |work=The Hollywood Reporter |url=https://hollywoodreporter.com/heat-vision/alien-covenant-alien-types-xenomorph-continues-horrify-audiences-1004459}}

The visual effects (VFX) supervisor Charles Henley summarized the several vendors that were used to support production of the visual special effects seen in the film when the selection process was discussed, stating, "Both history and need guided the decisions on which vendors we used. Ridley had worked with MPC on many previous projects, in particular Prometheus for which I was Moving Picture Company's (MPC) VFX supervisor as well as The Martian. There had a been a lot of great digital double and creature work done at MPC on recent projects so there was confidence they should be the lead facility. Framestore had recently worked with Ridley on space for The Martian, similarly Animal Logic now had the original crew who did the holograms for Prometheus. Also as we were shooting in Australia there was good reason and incentives to use Australian-based companies and so Luma and Rising Sun came on board."{{cite web |title=ALIEN – COVENANT: Charley Henley – Production VFX Supervisor – MPC|website=The Art of VFX |first=Vincent |last=Frei |date=June 2, 2017 |access-date=September 28, 2022|url=http://www.artofvfx.com/alien-covenant-charley-henley-production-vfx-supervisor-mpc/}}

File:Milford sound Nouvelle Zélande 03 mars 2005.jpg was used for principal photography.]]

Principal photography for the film began on April 4, 2016, at Milford Sound in Fiordland National Park, New Zealand,{{cite news |title=On the Set for 4/8/16: Ridley Scott & Michael Fassbender Start 'Alien: Covenant', Benedict Cumberbatch Wraps 'Doctor Strange' |url=http://www.ssninsider.com/on-the-set-for-4816-ridley-scott-michael-fassbender-start-alien-covenant-benedict-cumberbatch-wraps-doctor-strange/ |access-date=April 9, 2016 |work=SSN Insider |date=April 8, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160420090152/http://www.ssninsider.com/on-the-set-for-4816-ridley-scott-michael-fassbender-start-alien-covenant-benedict-cumberbatch-wraps-doctor-strange/ |archive-date=April 20, 2016 |url-status=dead}}{{cite news |title='Alien: Covenant' Images And Spoilers Reveal Ridley Scott's Connection To 'Prometheus' |url=http://www.inquisitr.com/2962169/alien-covenant-images-and-spoilers-reveal-ridley-scotts-connection-to-prometheus/ |access-date=April 9, 2016 |work=The Inquisitr News |date=April 4, 2016|first=Edward |last=VKanty|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220922195818/https://www.inquisitr.com/2962169/alien-covenant-images-and-spoilers-reveal-ridley-scotts-connection-to-prometheus/|archive-date=September 22, 2022|url-status=live}}{{cite news |title=Ridley Scott and Alien: Covenant land in Milford?|url=http://www.stuff.co.nz/entertainment/film/78561528/alien-lands-in-milford |access-date=April 9, 2016 |work=Stuff |date=April 5, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220922201525/https://www.stuff.co.nz/entertainment/film/78561528/alien-lands-in-milford|archive-date=September 22, 2022|url-status=live}}{{cite news |last1=Smith |first1=Sophia |title=Alien: Covenant or Prometheus 2 Plot Spoilers: Movie Now Filming; Set 10 Years After Prometheus? |url=http://www.crossmap.com/news/alien-covenant-or-prometheus-2-plot-spoilers-movie-now-filming-set-10-years-after-prometheus-26916 |work=crossmap.com |access-date=April 9, 2016 |date=April 8, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160811205001/http://www.crossmap.com/news/alien-covenant-or-prometheus-2-plot-spoilers-movie-now-filming-set-10-years-after-prometheus-26916|archive-date=August 11, 2016|url-status=dead}} and wrapped on July 19, 2016.{{cite web |url=http://www.slashfilm.com/alien-covenant-wraps-set-photo/ |title='Alien: Covenant' Wraps and Shares One More Set Photo|first=Jacob|last=Hall |date=July 20, 2016 |work=/Film |access-date=August 18, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210518200104/https://www.slashfilm.com/alien-covenant-wraps-set-photo/|archive-date=May 18, 2021|url-status=live}} Some footage was also filmed at Leavesden Studios in England,{{cite web |last=|first=|date=|url=https://www.wbsl.com/studios/about/filmography/|title=Alien: Covenant Leavesden Studios listing |publisher=WBSL.com|access-date=April 20, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211101061254/https://www.wbsl.com/studios/about/filmography/|archive-date=November 1, 2021|url-status=live}} which included reshoots.{{cite news |last=Romano |first=Sal |date=November 2016|url=http://london-news.watfordlondon.uk/Alien-Covenant-Begins-Reshoots-at-Leavesden-Studios.html|title=Ridley Scott's 'Alien: Covenant' begins reshoots at Leavesden Studios|newspaper=Watford Hertfordshire & London Review |publisher=London-news.watfordlondon.uk|access-date=April 20, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210420163327/http://london-news.watfordlondon.uk/Alien-Covenant-Begins-Reshoots-at-Leavesden-Studios.html|archive-date=April 20, 2021|url-status=dead}} The complete list of countries used for filming were listed by BFI in Sight & Sound as the United Kingdom, United States, Australia, and New Zealand.{{cite web |url=https://www2.bfi.org.uk/news-opinion/sight-sound-magazine/reviews-recommendations/alien-covenant-ridley-scott-space-vacuity |title=Alien: Covenant (2017) |date=18 May 2017 |publisher=Sight and Sound |access-date=July 6, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221002204304/https://www2.bfi.org.uk/news-opinion/sight-sound-magazine/reviews-recommendations/alien-covenant-ridley-scott-space-vacuity|archive-date=October 2, 2022|url-status=live}} Previous partial lists often listed only one of the four countries involved in the development and production of the film.{{cite web |url=https://allmovie.com/movie/alien-covenant-v640010 |title=Alien: Covenant (2017) |publisher=AllMovie |access-date=November 16, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220922195315/https://www.allmovie.com/movie/alien-covenant-v640010|archive-date=September 22, 2022|url-status=live}}{{cite web|url=http://www.screendaily.com/reviews/alien-covenant-review/5117487.article|title='Alien: Covenant': Review|first=Fionnuala|last=Halligan|date=May 7, 2017|access-date=September 26, 2022|publisher=Screen Daily|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170613053155/http://www.screendaily.com/reviews/alien-covenant-review/5117487.article|archive-date=June 13, 2017|url-status=live}}

Effects houses Odd Studios and CreatureNFX provided the film's makeup and animatronic creature effects, respectively,{{cite web |url=http://if.com.au/2016/03/28/article/Odd-Studio-makeup-team-on-Mad-Max-Oscar-win-and-Alien-Covenant-effects/YLAMJKRVXI.html |title=Odd Studio makeup team on Mad Max Oscar win and Alien: Covenant effects |date=March 29, 2016 |work=IF Magazine |access-date=December 20, 2016 |archive-date=April 4, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160404104622/http://if.com.au/2016/03/28/article/Odd-Studio-makeup-team-on-Mad-Max-Oscar-win-and-Alien-Covenant-effects/YLAMJKRVXI.html |url-status=dead }}{{cite web |url=http://if.com.au/2017/02/02/article/CreatureNFXs-Paul-Trefry-talks-working-with-Ridley-Scott-on-Alien-Covenant/DWPBGMFHWK.html |title=CreatureNFX's Paul Trefry talks working with Ridley Scott on 'Alien: Covenant' |first=Harry |last=Windsor |work=IF Magazine |date=February 5, 2017 |access-date=February 24, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170210104822/http://if.com.au/2017/02/02/article/CreatureNFXs-Paul-Trefry-talks-working-with-Ridley-Scott-on-Alien-Covenant/DWPBGMFHWK.html |archive-date=February 10, 2017 |url-status=dead }} while Australian-based effects house Animal Logic provided the film's digital visual effects.{{cite web |url=http://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-06-14/alien-covenant-films-in-sydney-as-hollywood-eyes-australia/7467090 |title=Hollywood eyes Australia as Ridley Scott's space epic Alien: Covenant films in Sydney |first=Thuy|last=Ong|date=June 15, 2016| access-date=September 26, 2022 |work=Australian Broadcasting Corporation|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220526005827/https://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-06-14/alien-covenant-films-in-sydney-as-hollywood-eyes-australia/7467090|archive-date=May 26, 2022|url-status=live}} Approximately 30 people from CreatureNFX worked on the project for almost six months building animatronics. Actors wearing creature suits with animatronic heads were used to portray the aliens on-set.{{cite magazine |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/tv-movies/tv-movie-news/danny-mcbride-on-vice-principals-trump-and-being-chased-by-aliens-231699/|title=Danny McBride on 'Vice Principals,' Trump and Being Chased by Aliens |first=Jonah|last=Weiner|date=July 6, 2016 |access-date= September 26, 2022|magazine=Rolling Stone|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220929063445/https://www.rollingstone.com/tv-movies/tv-movie-news/danny-mcbride-on-vice-principals-trump-and-being-chased-by-aliens-231699/|archive-date=September 29, 2022|url-status=live}}

Pietro Scalia, the editor of the film, spoke of the structural difficulty of integrating the two story lines in the final editing of the film and how the need to keep momentum was important. He did this by not repeatedly jumping between scenes which he said made parts of the film "belaboured and tedious", as well as combining certain scenes and eliminating others. Another issue highlighted was the reveal of David as;

{{Cquote|"Once the Covenant Story merges with the Prometheus storyline finding the proper structural order of the scenes proofed{{Sic}} to be difficult because of the distinctive dynamics of the two story lines in addition to the separation of the two locations of the action. In one sense the action, the tension and unfolding drama going from one group to the other had to be balanced and spaced properly as not to loose{{Sic|nolink=y}} the connective tissue of the film."{{cite web |title=ART OF THE CUT on Ridley Scott's Alien: Covenant, with two time Oscar-winning editor, Pietro Scalia, ACE |first=Steve |last=Hullfish |date=June 26, 2017 |accessdate=December 6, 2023|work=ProVideo Coalition

|url=https://www.provideocoalition.com/AOTC-alien-covenant-SCALIA}}}}

Scott said the first cut of the film was two hours and 23 minutes long, which was eventually edited down to 2 hours and 3 minutes for the released version. Scott used test screenings to decide what to cut.{{cite web|url=https://collider.com/alien-covenant-ridley-scott-michael-fassbender-interview/#images|title=Ridley Scott and Michael Fassbender on How They Pulled Off That David/Walter Scene in 'Alien: Covenant'|first=Steve|last=Weintraub|date=May 26, 2017|access-date=September 27, 2022|publisher=Collider|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220929042938/https://collider.com/alien-covenant-ridley-scott-michael-fassbender-interview/|archive-date=September 29, 2022|url-status=dead}}{{cite web|url=https://www.digitalspy.com/movies/a829543/ridley-scott-first-cut-alien-covenant-extra-20-minutes/|title=Ridley Scott says the original cut of Alien: Covenant was 20 minutes longer|first=Joe|last=Anderton|date=May 30, 2017|access-date=September 27, 2022|publisher=Digital Spy|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220928173505/https://www.digitalspy.com/movies/a829543/ridley-scott-first-cut-alien-covenant-extra-20-minutes/|archive-date=September 28, 2022|url-status=live}}

{{Main|Alien: Covenant (soundtrack)}}

The musical score for Alien: Covenant was written by Australian musician and composer Jed Kurzel. Initially, Harry Gregson-Williams was selected as the film's composer.{{cite web |url=https://empireonline.com/people/michael-fassbender/alien-covenant-benjamin-rigby-ridley-scott/ |title=Alien: Covenant – Benjamin Rigby joins the cast|first=Owen|last=Williams |date=March 15, 2016 |work=Empire |access-date=August 6, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220407135454/https://www.empireonline.com/movies/news/alien-covenant-benjamin-rigby-ridley-scott/|archive-date=April 7, 2022|url-status=live}} When the first trailer was released in late 2016, Kurzel was revealed as the replacement for Gregson-Williams.{{cite web |url=http://filmmusicreporter.com/2016/12/25/jed-kurzel-to-score-ridley-scotts-alien-covenant/ |title=Jed Kurzel to Score Ridley Scott's 'Alien: Covenant'|date=December 25, 2016}} Themes from Jerry Goldsmith's original score for Alien were incorporated, as well as themes from Marc Streitenfeld's and Harry Gregson-Williams' score for Prometheus.{{cite AV media |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oDlcyFh_-rs&t=2777s| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190323195312/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oDlcyFh_-rs&gl=US&hl=en| archive-date=March 23, 2019|title=Jed Kurzel's Full Score For Ridley Scott's Sci-fi Horror Film "Alien: Covenant" |format= video |via= YouTube }} A version of "Nature Boy" sung by Norwegian singer and songwriter Aurora was used in the first trailer, while another song, "Under the Water", was used in a short promotional film featuring the character Daniels (Katherine Waterston) battling a xenomorph.{{cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d8LJSuO4aXA| archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211030/d8LJSuO4aXA| archive-date=October 30, 2021|title=Alien: Covenant – She Won't Go Quietly | date=May 5, 2017|format=video |via= YouTube }}{{cbignore}}{{cite web|url=https://www.digitalspy.com/movies/a670539/alien-covenant-everything-you-need-to-know-about-prometheus-2-including-release-date-cast-and-spoilers/|title=Alien: Covenant release date, cast, spoilers and everything you need to know about Prometheus 2|first1=Rosie|last1=Fletcher|first2=Hugo|last2=Armitage|date=May 8, 2017 |work=Digital Spy|access-date=October 19, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211104220017/https://www.digitalspy.com/movies/a670539/alien-covenant-everything-you-need-to-know-about-prometheus-2-including-release-date-cast-and-spoilers/|archive-date=November 4, 2021|url-status=live}}

Melanie De Biasio's track "I Feel You – Eels Remix" was used as the soundtrack for the in-universe short film Meet Walter, starring Michael Fassbender, that was created to promote the film.{{cite web|url= http://www.wallonia.be/en/news/melanie-de-biasio-lends-her-voice-alien-covenant |title= Melanie De Biasio lends her voice in Alien – Covenant |publisher= Wallonia|access-date=April 22, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220216082525/http://www.wallonia.be/en/news/melanie-de-biasio-lends-her-voice-alien-covenant|archive-date=February 16, 2022|url-status=live}}

Additional song credits include "Theme from Alien" composed by Jerry Goldsmith, "Das Rheingold, Scene 4: Entrance of the Gods into Valhalla" composed by Richard Wagner (in the soundtrack, incorrectly called by David as 'Das Rheingold, Act II' - the opera has only one act) {{cite magazine|url=http://www.newyorker.com/culture/richard-brody/alien-covenant-bursts-with-pomposity|title="Alien: Covenant" Bursts with Pomposity|date=May 24, 2017|magazine=The New Yorker|publisher=Advance Publications|last1=Brody|first1=Richard|access-date=May 26, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220922104543/https://www.newyorker.com/culture/richard-brody/alien-covenant-bursts-with-pomposity|archive-date=September 22, 2022|url-status=live}} "Take Me Home, Country Roads" by John Denver, "The Man Who Broke the Bank at Monte Carlo" by Fred Gilbert, "Ancient Flute", "Life" and "We Were Right" composed by Harry Gregson-Williams, and "Let Me Down Easy" by Paolo Nutini.{{cite web|url=http://www.soundtrack.net/movie/alien-covenant/|title=Alien: Covenant – Song Credits|website=Soundtrack.Net|access-date=May 26, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200726231828/https://www.soundtrack.net/movie/alien-covenant/|archive-date=July 26, 2020|url-status=live}}

In the run up to release, 20th Century Fox released a number of short prologue films as part of the marketing for Alien: Covenant. The first, called Prologue: Last Supper, was directed by Ridley Scott's son Luke Scott and features the crew of the Covenant having a last meal before they enter cryosleep.{{cite web|url=https://collider.com/alien-covenant-prologue/|title='Alien: Covenant': 5-Minute Prologue Reveals the Last Supper of the Covenant Crew|first=Adam|last=Chitwood|date=February 22, 2017|access-date=September 27, 2022|publisher=Collider|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220928212344/https://collider.com/alien-covenant-prologue/|archive-date=September 28, 2022|url-status=live}}{{better source needed|date=March 2025|reason=Per WP:RSP/VALNET, we try to find alternatives to ValNet published sources with some exceptions}} The second prologue, called The Crossing and directed by Ridley Scott, reveals what happened to Elizabeth Shaw (Noomi Rapace) and the android David (Michael Fassbender) following the ending of Prometheus.{{cite web|url=https://collider.com/alien-covenant-shaw-david-explained/|title='Alien: Covenant' Prologue Reveals the Fate of Shaw and David Post-'Prometheus'|first=Dave|last=Trumbore|date=April 26, 2017|access-date=September 27, 2022|publisher=Collider|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220928212339/https://collider.com/alien-covenant-shaw-david-explained/|archive-date=September 28, 2022|url-status=live}}{{better source needed|date=March 2025|reason=Per WP:RSP/VALNET, we try to find alternatives to ValNet published sources with some exceptions}}Another was called Meet Walter, starring Michael Fassbender and directed by Luke Scott, which was a fictional advertisement for the Walter series of androids.{{cite web|url=https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20170310005368/en/Twentieth-Century-Fox-and-AMD-Partner-on-%E2%80%9CAlien-Covenant%E2%80%9D-and-Launch-%E2%80%9CMeet-Walter%E2%80%9D-Campaign|title=Twentieth Century Fox and AMD Partner on "Alien: Covenant" and Launch "Meet Walter" Campaign|date=March 10, 2017|access-date=September 27, 2022|publisher=Business Wire|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220929173304/https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20170310005368/en/Twentieth-Century-Fox-and-AMD-Partner-on-%E2%80%9CAlien-Covenant%E2%80%9D-and-Launch-%E2%80%9CMeet-Walter%E2%80%9D-Campaign|archive-date=September 29, 2022|url-status=live}}

Alien: Covenant premiered on May 4, 2017, at the Odeon Leicester Square in London.{{Cite news|url=http://www.firstshowing.net/2017/run-pray-hide-three-new-tv-spots-for-ridley-scotts-alien-covenant/ |title=Run, Pray, Hide: Three New TV Spots for Ridley Scott's 'Alien: Covenant' |first=Alex|last=Billington|publisher=FirstShowing.net |access-date=April 3, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221016224058/https://www.firstshowing.net/2017/run-pray-hide-three-new-tv-spots-for-ridley-scotts-alien-covenant/|archive-date=October 16, 2022|url-status=live}} The film was released on May 19 in the United States.{{Cite web|url=http://www.launchingfilms.com/release-schedule?filmSearch=Alien:+Covenant|title=Past, present and future releases to Past, Present and Future Releases {{!}} UK Recent and Upcoming Movie|website=launchingfilms.com|access-date=March 30, 2017|archive-date=August 15, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190815013015/https://www.launchingfilms.com/release-schedule?filmSearch=Alien:%2BCovenant|url-status=dead}}{{Cite web|url=http://www.fandango.com/alien:covenant_188982/movieoverview|title=Alien: Covenant (2017) {{!}} Fandango|work=Fandango |access-date=May 10, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220428104044/https://www.fandango.com/alien-covenant-188982/movie-overview|archive-date=April 28, 2022|url-status=live}} It was originally set to be released on October 6, 2017, before being moved up to August 4, and then again to its final date.{{cite news |last1=Perry |first1=Spencer |title=Alien: Covenant Gets a Title Treatment, Release Date and Synopsis! |url=https://www.comingsoon.net/movies/news/633311-alien-covenant-gets-a-title-treatment-release-date-and-synopsis |access-date=November 17, 2015 |website=ComingSoon.net|date=November 16, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221002204301/https://www.comingsoon.net/movies/news/633311-alien-covenant-gets-a-title-treatment-release-date-and-synopsis|archive-date=October 2, 2022|url-status=live}}{{cite web |url=http://collider.com/alien-covenant-predator-release-date-fox/ |title=Alien: Covenant, Predator Release Dates Announced by Fox |date=February 28, 2016 |work=Collider|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221009081142/https://collider.com/alien-covenant-predator-release-date-fox/|archive-date=October 9, 2022|url-status=live}}{{better source needed|date=March 2025}}

The version of the film released in China on June 16, 2017, was six minutes shorter than the version released elsewhere due to censorship with most of the scenes involving the aliens{{cite web|last1=Liu|first1=Charles|title=China Censored Version of 'Alien: Covenant' Has Next to No Alien in It|url=https://www.thebeijinger.com/blog/2017/06/08/china-censored-version-alien-covenant-has-next-no-alien-it|access-date=June 11, 2017|date=June 8, 2017|publisher=The Beijinger|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220928205029/https://www.thebeijinger.com/blog/2017/06/08/china-censored-version-alien-covenant-has-next-no-alien-it|archive-date=September 28, 2022|url-status=live}} and a scene where the two characters played by Michael Fassbender kiss having been cut.{{cite web|url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/general-news/chinese-censors-cut-michael-fassbenders-gay-kiss-alien-covenant-1014488/|title=Chinese Censors Cut Michael Fassbender's Gay Kiss From 'Alien: Covenant'|work=The Hollywood Reporter|first=Partick|last=Brzeski|date=June 18, 2017|access-date=October 26, 2022}}{{cite web|url=https://www.digitalspy.com/movies/a831114/michael-fassbender-gay-kiss-alien-covenant-cut-by-censors-china/|title=Michael Fassbender's gay kiss in Alien: Covenant was cut by censors in China alongside five further minutes of content|work=Digital Spy|first=Louise|last=McCreesh|date=June 19, 2017|access-date=October 26, 2022}}

The film was released in Japan on September 15, 2017.{{cite web|url=https://deadline.com/2017/05/aamir-khan-dangal-alien-covenant-guardians-of-the-glaxy-vol-2-beauty-beast-get-out-china-international-box-office-1202099242/|title='Alien: Covenant' Adds $30M In 2nd Frame; 'Dangal' Pins $100M+ In China; 'Guardians 2' At $733M WW – International Box Office|first=Nancy|last=Tartaglione|date=May 21, 2017|access-date=September 27, 2022|publisher=Deadline|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220929105036/https://deadline.com/2017/05/aamir-khan-dangal-alien-covenant-guardians-of-the-glaxy-vol-2-beauty-beast-get-out-china-international-box-office-1202099242/|archive-date=September 29, 2022|url-status=live}} The Blu-ray, DVD, and 4K Ultra HD releases of the film came out on August 15, 2017. The home release includes an audio commentary by the director and 22 minutes of deleted scenes and unused footage from the first cut of the film.{{cite web|url=https://comingsoon.net/dvd/news/864883-alien-covenant-blu-ray-dvd-and-digital-release-set-for-august#/slide/1|title=Alien: Covenant Blu-ray, DVD, and Digital Release Set for August|first=Spencer|last=Perry|date=July 6, 2017|website=ComingSoon.net|archive-date=July 9, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170709093533/http://www.comingsoon.net/dvd/news/864883-alien-covenant-blu-ray-dvd-and-digital-release-set-for-august#/slide/1|url-status=live}}

The theatrical release of the film was accompanied by the release of a novelization by Alan Dean Foster, who also authored the novelization of the original Alien film.Alan Dean Foster (2017). Alien: Covenant. 304 pages; Publisher: Titan Books (May 23, 2017); Language: English; {{ISBN|1785654780}}. A companion volume about the film's art and stage design was released at the same time, written by Simon Ward and titled The Art and Making of Alien: Covenant.Ward, Simon (2017). The Art and Making of Alien: Covenant. 192 pages; Publisher: Titan Books (May 23, 2017); Language: English; {{ISBN|1785653814}}.

A second Covenant novel by Foster was initially billed as a sequel to the film, Alien: Covenant 2, before being revealed to be a direct prequel to Covenant under the title Alien: Covenant – Origins.Alien: Covenant 2. 304 pages; Publisher: Titan Books (September 26, 2017); Language: English; {{ISBN|1785654764}}. Titan Books, as publisher of the book, released a plot summary in advance of its release on September 26, 2017:{{blockquote|As the colony ship Covenant prepares for launch, and the final members of the crew are chosen, a series of violent events reveals a conspiracy to sabotage the launch. Yet the perpetrators remain hidden behind a veil of secrecy. The threat reaches all the way up to Hideo Yutani—the head of the newly merged Weyland-Yutani Corporation—when his daughter is kidnapped. Is the conspiracy the product of corporate espionage, or is it something even more sinister? While Captain Jacob Branson{{efn|The novel's first edition and audiobook mistakenly refer to Jacob Branson as Jacob Brandon throughout.{{cite web|url=https://www.denofgeek.com/movies/what-the-alien-covenant-prequel-novel-reveals-about-the-film/|title=What the Alien: Covenant Prequel Novel Reveals About the Film|first=Padraig|last=Cotter|date=November 17, 2017|access-date=September 27, 2022|work=Den of Geek|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220929171550/https://www.denofgeek.com/movies/what-the-alien-covenant-prequel-novel-reveals-about-the-film/|archive-date=September 29, 2022|url-status=dead}}}} and his wife Daniels prepare the ship, Security chief Dan Lopé signs a key member of his team, and together they seek to stop the technologically advanced saboteurs before anyone else is killed, and the ship itself is destroyed in orbit.{{cite web |title=Here's the Plot for Prequel Novel 'Alien: Covenant – Origins' |first=John |last=Squires |date=June 8, 2017 |url=https://bloody-disgusting.com/news/3441058/heres-plot-prequel-novel-alien-covenant-origins/ |work=Bloody Disgusting|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220929032544/https://bloody-disgusting.com/news/3441058/heres-plot-prequel-novel-alien-covenant-origins/|archive-date=September 29, 2022|url-status=live}}}}

On April 26, 2017, 20th Century Fox released Alien: Covenant In Utero, a virtual reality interactive demo teaser for Alien: Covenant for the Oculus Rift and the Samsung Gear VR. The experience was produced by Ridley Scott Associates, FoxNext VR, Moving Picture Company, Mach1, AMD Radeon, and Dell Alienware.{{cite web|url=https://techcrunch.com/2017/04/25/with-the-new-alien-covenant-vr-experience-be-the-alien-you-want-to-see-in-the-theaters/|title=Be the alien you want to see in the theatres with the new Alien: Covenant VR experience|first=Jonathan|last=Shieber|date=April 25, 2017|access-date=September 6, 2022| publisher=TechCrunch|website=techcrunch.com|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170427055943/https://techcrunch.com/2017/04/25/with-the-new-alien-covenant-vr-experience-be-the-alien-you-want-to-see-in-the-theaters/|archive-date=April 27, 2017|url-status=live}}{{cite web|url=http://alien.technicolor.com/|title=A VR Experience is Born|date=2 May 2017|access-date=September 6, 2022|work=technicolor.com|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201112024018/https://www.technicolor.com/case-studies/alien-covenant-in-utero|archive-date=November 12, 2020|url-status=live}} The trailer is a first-person experience in which the viewer plays the role of a neomorph. The experience was executive produced by Scott and directed by David Karlak.{{cite web|url=https://deadline.com/2017/05/alien-covenant-in-utero-vr-experience-regal-cinemas-ridley-scott-1202084044/|title='Alien: Covenant In Utero' VR Experience Invades Regal Cinemas & Provides Terrifying Run-In With Baby Chomper|first=Anthony|last=D'Alessandro|date=May 4, 2017|access-date=September 27, 2022|publisher=Deadline|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220930050701/https://deadline.com/2017/05/alien-covenant-in-utero-vr-experience-regal-cinemas-ridley-scott-1202084044/|archive-date=September 30, 2022|url-status=live}}

Alien: Covenant grossed a worldwide total of $240.9 million, including $74.3 million in the United States and Canada and $166.6 million in other countries, against a production budget of $111 million. The film was a disappointment at the U.S box office{{cite web|url=https://variety.com/2017/film/news/alien-covenant-box-office-analysis-ridley-scott-1202439346/|title=Sorry, Ridley Scott: The 'Alien' Franchise Is No 'Star Wars'|first=Seth|last=Kelley|date=May 21, 2017 |access-date=October 5, 2022|publisher=Variety|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221007230009/https://variety.com/2017/film/news/alien-covenant-box-office-analysis-ridley-scott-1202439346/|archive-date=October 7, 2022|url-status=live}} compared to Prometheus which had grossed a worldwide total of $403.4 million.{{cite web|url=http://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=prometheus.htm |title=Prometheus |work=Box Office Mojo |date=June 2, 2012 |access-date=September 4, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120619145013/http://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=prometheus.htm |archive-date=June 19, 2012 |url-status=live}}

Fox released the film in several countries before the United States.{{Cite news|url=http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/movies/la-et-mn-alien-covenant-review-20170517-story.html|title=Ridley Scott's 'Alien: Covenant' is a sleek, suspenseful return to form|last=Chang|first=Justin|date=May 17, 2017|work=Los Angeles Times|access-date=May 19, 2017|issn=0458-3035|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210707160933/https://www.latimes.com/entertainment/movies/la-et-mn-alien-covenant-review-20170517-story.html|archive-date=July 7, 2021|url-status=live}}{{Cite news|url=http://www.tracking-board.com/alien-covenant-film-review-ridley-scott-returns-to-form-with-chest-bursting-thrills/|title="Alien: Covenant" Film Review: Ridley Scott Returns to Form With Chest-Bursting Thrills|date=7 May 2017|publisher=The Tracking Board|access-date=19 May 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211226202731/https://www.tracking-board.com/alien-covenant-film-review-ridley-scott-returns-to-form-with-chest-bursting-thrills/|archive-date=December 26, 2021|url-status=live}} It was released in 34 markets, where it debuted to $40.1 million, opening at number one in 19 of them. Its overall rank for the weekend was second behind the continued run of Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2.{{cite web|url=https://deadline.com/2017/05/alien-covenant-king-arthur-guardians-of-the-galaxy-vol-2-aamir-khan-dangal-china-international-box-office-weekend-1202093146/|title='Alien: Covenant' Chomps $42M Bow; 'Guardians 2' Crosses $630M WW; 'Dangal' Soars In China – International Box Office|author=Nancy Tartaglione|work=Deadline Hollywood|date=May 14, 2017|access-date=May 14, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220922200027/https://deadline.com/2017/05/alien-covenant-king-arthur-guardians-of-the-galaxy-vol-2-aamir-khan-dangal-china-international-box-office-weekend-1202093146/|archive-date=September 22, 2022|url-status=live}} The top openings were in South Korea ($7.2 million), the UK ($6.4 million), France ($4.5 million), Australia ($3.1 million), and Mexico ($2.5 million). In China, the film was released on June 16 and grossed $30 million, topping the box office.{{cite web|url=https://deadline.com/2017/06/the-mummy-wonder-woman-despicable-me-3-wekend-results-international-box-office-1202115482/|title='Mummy' Leads Overseas; 'Wonder Woman' Cuffs $572M WW; 'Cars', 'Despicable Me' 3s Hit International Box Office|website=Deadline Hollywood |access-date=June 18, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220902061238/https://deadline.com/2017/06/the-mummy-wonder-woman-despicable-me-3-wekend-results-international-box-office-1202115482/|archive-date=September 2, 2022|url-status=live}}{{cite web|url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-news/china-box-office-alien-covenant-scares-up-30m-debut-1014609/|title=China Box Office: 'Alien: Covenant' Scares Up $30M Debut|first=Patrick|last=Brzeski|date=June 18, 2017|work=The Hollywood Reporter|access-date=October 19, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221019000119/https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-news/china-box-office-alien-covenant-scares-up-30m-debut-1014609/|archive-date=October 19, 2022|url-status=live}} In North America, the film was released alongside Everything, Everything and Diary of a Wimpy Kid: The Long Haul, and was projected to gross around $40 million from 3,760 theaters during its opening weekend.{{cite web|url=http://www.latimes.com/business/hollywood/la-fi-ct-movie-projector-alien-20170516-htmlstory.html |title='Alien: Covenant,' No. 8 in the franchise, is poised to unseat 'Guardians' at the box office|work=Los Angeles Times |date=May 16, 2017|first=Ryan|last=Faughnder|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220922201620/https://www.latimes.com/business/hollywood/la-fi-ct-movie-projector-alien-20170516-htmlstory.html|archive-date=September 22, 2022|url-status=live}}{{cite web|url=https://deadline.com/2017/05/alien-covenant-weekend-box-office-projections-wimpy-kid-guardians-of-the-galaxy-vol-2-everything-everything-1202096372/ |title='Alien: Covenant' Looks To Kick 'Guardians Of The Galaxy Vol. 2' Out Of Orbit – Box Office Preview|work=Deadline Hollywood |first=Anthony |last=D'Alessandro|date=May 17, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220103122811/https://deadline.com/2017/05/alien-covenant-weekend-box-office-projections-wimpy-kid-guardians-of-the-galaxy-vol-2-everything-everything-1202096372/|archive-date=January 3, 2022|url-status=live}} It made $4.3 million from Thursday-night previews at about 3,000 theaters, and $15.4 million overall on its first day, which was below the $21.5 million Friday of Prometheus five years prior.{{Cite news|url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/scottmendelson/2017/05/20/box-office-alien-covenant-tops-friday-with-15m-diary-of-a-wimpy-kid-bombs/|title=Box Office: 'Alien: Covenant' Tops Friday With $15M, 'Diary Of A Wimpy Kid' Bombs|last=Mendelson|first=Scott|work=Forbes|access-date=May 20, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170520171936/https://www.forbes.com/sites/scottmendelson/2017/05/20/box-office-alien-covenant-tops-friday-with-15m-diary-of-a-wimpy-kid-bombs/#7b4f31efaa5a|archive-date=May 20, 2017|url-status=live}} It went on to open to $36.2 million, down 30% from Prometheus{{'}}s debut, but still finishing first at the box office, as the third-highest debut of the series when not counting for inflation.{{cite web|url=https://www.the-numbers.com/movies/franchise/Alien#tab=summary&franchise_movies_overview=od3|title=Box Office History for Alien Movies|work=The Numbers|access-date=October 19, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221011042845/https://www.the-numbers.com/movies/franchise/Alien#tab=summary|archive-date=October 11, 2022|url-status=live}}{{cite web|url=https://deadline.com/2017/05/alien-covenant-diary-of-a-wimpy-kid-everything-everything-box-office-previews-1202097673/?iframe=true&theme_preview=true |title=Why 'Alien: Covenant' Lost Its Bite At The B.O. With $36.1M Opening, −34% From 'Prometheus' |first1=Anthony |last1=D'Alessandro|first2= Anita| last2=Busch|work=Deadline Hollywood |date=May 23, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221014020523/https://deadline.com/2017/05/alien-covenant-diary-of-a-wimpy-kid-everything-everything-box-office-previews-1202097673/?iframe=true&theme_preview=true|archive-date=October 14, 2022|url-status=live}}{{cite web|url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/scottmendelson/2017/05/22/box-office-five-reasons-alien-covenant-failed-to-measure-up-to-prometheus/?sh=4e9ab2bcee6f|title=Box Office: Five Reasons 'Alien: Covenant' Failed To Measure Up To 'Prometheus'|first=Scott|last=Mendelson|date=May 22, 2017|access-date=October 5, 2022|work=Forbes|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221005054802/https://www.forbes.com/sites/scottmendelson/2017/05/22/box-office-five-reasons-alien-covenant-failed-to-measure-up-to-prometheus/?sh=6a5fe928ee6f|archive-date=October 5, 2022|url-status=live}} In its second weekend, the film grossed $10.5 million, finishing fourth at the box office and dropping 70.9%.{{cite web|url=https://deadline.com/2017/05/pirates-of-the-caribbean-5-dead-men-tell-no-tales-baywatch-box-office-weekend-1202102887/|title=How 'Pirates' & 'Baywatch' Are Casualties Of Summer Franchise Fatigue At The Domestic B.O. |first1=Anthony |last1=D'Alessandro|first2= Anita| last2=Busch|work=Deadline Hollywood|access-date=May 28, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221011065744/https://deadline.com/2017/05/pirates-of-the-caribbean-5-dead-men-tell-no-tales-baywatch-box-office-weekend-1202102887/|archive-date=October 11, 2022|url-status=live}}{{Cite web|url=http://www.darkhorizons.com/covenant-plummets-at-box-office/|title="Covenant" Plummets At Box-Office – Dark Horizons|last=Franklin|first=Garth|website=www.darkhorizons.com |access-date=May 29, 2017|date=May 28, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201112034547/https://www.darkhorizons.com/covenant-plummets-at-box-office/|archive-date=November 12, 2020|url-status=live}}{{cite web|url=https://www.denofgeek.com/movies/alien-covenant-where-its-box-office-leaves-the-series/|title=Alien: Covenant – Where Its Box Office Leaves the Series|first=Ryan |last=Lambie|date=June 9, 2017|access-date=October 19, 2022|work=Den of Geek|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220516155353/https://www.denofgeek.com/movies/alien-covenant-where-its-box-office-leaves-the-series/|archive-date=May 16, 2022|url-status=live}} The film was pulled from 1,112 theaters in its third weekend and dropped another 62.3%, finishing sixth at the box office with $4 million.{{cite web|url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/scottmendelson/2017/06/04/box-office-pirates-5-sails-past-500m-worldwide-baywatch-and-alien-crumble/|title=Box Office: 'Pirates 5' Sails Past $500M Worldwide, 'Baywatch' And 'Alien' Crumble|first=Scott |last=Mendelson|work=Forbes|date=June 4, 2017|access-date=June 5, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170604192743/https://www.forbes.com/sites/scottmendelson/2017/06/04/box-office-pirates-5-sails-past-500m-worldwide-baywatch-and-alien-crumble/#1983df6857d4|archive-date=June 4, 2017|url-status=live}}

File:Michael Fassbender by Gage Skidmore 2015.jpg and Walter, was highly praised by reviewers.]]

Alien: Covenant received generally positive reviews from critics.Multiple sources:

• {{cite web | last=Shepherd | first=Jack | title=Here's what the critics are saying about Alien: Covenant | work=The Independent | date=May 7, 2017 | url=https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/films/news/alien-covenant-reviews-roundup-prometheus-aliens-critics-a7722226.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211226202741/https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/films/news/alien-covenant-reviews-roundup-prometheus-aliens-critics-a7722226.html |archive-date=December 26, 2021 |url-access=limited |url-status=live | access-date=March 23, 2021}}
• {{cite web |url=https://www.indiewire.com/2017/05/alien-covenant-critical-roundup-michael-fassbender-1201813409/ |title='Alien: Covenant' Critical Roundup: Michael Fassbender Is Singled Out for Praise in Early Reviews of Ridley Scott's Latest |last=Nordine |first=Michael |date=May 7, 2017 |work=IndieWire|access-date=March 23, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220516161757/https://www.indiewire.com/2017/05/alien-covenant-critical-roundup-michael-fassbender-1201813409/|archive-date=May 16, 2022|url-status=live}}
• {{cite web | title=Here's What the Critics Are Saying About 'Alien: Covenant' | first=Nivea |last=Serrao| website=EW.com | publisher=Entertainment Weekly| date=May 7, 2017 | url=https://ew.com/movies/2017/05/07/alien-covenant-reviews-roundup/ | access-date=March 23, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220528165506/https://ew.com/movies/2017/05/07/alien-covenant-reviews-roundup/|archive-date=May 28, 2022|url-status=live}}
• {{cite web | last=Rahman | first=Abid | title=Alien Covenant Review Round-Up | publisher=The Hollywood Reporter | date=May 8, 2017 | url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/heat-vision/alien-covenant-review-round-up-1001062 | access-date=March 23, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220529213547/https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-news/alien-covenant-review-round-up-1001062/|archive-date=May 29, 2022|url-status=live}}
• {{cite web | title=Alien: Covenant Review Roundup | publisher=GameSpot | url=https://www.gamespot.com/articles/alien-covenant-review-roundup/1100-6449923/ | first= Eddie |last=Makuch| date=May 18, 2017| access-date=September 5, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220410120436/https://www.gamespot.com/articles/alien-covenant-review-roundup/1100-6449923/|archive-date=April 10, 2022|url-status=live }}
• {{Cite news |url=http://www.slashfilm.com/alien-covenant-reviews/ |title=Alien Covenant Reviews Round-up | first=Ethan |last=Anderton| date=May 8, 2017 |work=/Film |access-date=May 19, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220914212418/https://www.slashfilm.com/550818/alien-covenant-reviews/|archive-date=September 14, 2022|url-status=live}} The film has {{a or an|{{RT data|score}}}} approval from {{RT data|count}} reviews compiled by review aggregation website Rotten Tomatoes, with an average rating of {{RT data|average}}. The website's critical consensus reads, "Alien: Covenant delivers another satisfying round of close-quarters deep-space terror, even if it doesn't take the saga in any new directions."{{Cite web|url=https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/alien_covenant|title=Alien: Covenant|website=Rotten Tomatoes|publisher=Fandango|access-date={{RT data|access date|df=mdy}}|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220922212103/https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/alien_covenant|archive-date=September 22, 2022|url-status=live}}{{RT data|edit}} On Metacritic, the film has a score of 65 out of 100, based on reviews from 52 critics, indicating "generally favorable" reviews.{{cite web |title= Alien: Covenant reviews |website= Metacritic |publisher=CBS Interactive Inc. |url= https://metacritic.com/movie/alien-covenant |access-date= September 3, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220922201617/https://www.metacritic.com/movie/alien-covenant|archive-date=September 22, 2022|url-status=live }} Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "B" on an A+ to F scale, the same score earned by its predecessor.

Writing for The Guardian, Peter Bradshaw gave the film three stars out of five, stating that Alien: Covenant is "a greatest-hits compilation of the other Alien films' freaky moments. The paradox is that though you are intended to recognize these touches, you won't really be impressed unless you happen to be seeing them for the first time. For all this, the film is very capably made, with forceful, potent performances from Waterston and Fassbender."{{cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/film/2017/may/07/alien-covenant-review-ridley-scott-michael-fassbender-katherine-waterston-prometheus|title=Alien: Covenant review – Ridley Scott's latest space exploration feels all too familiar|first=Peter|last=Bradshaw|author-link=Peter Bradshaw|date=May 6, 2017| access-date= September 5, 2022| work=The Guardian|publisher=Guardian News and Media Limited|location=London|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221015133741/https://www.theguardian.com/film/2017/may/07/alien-covenant-review-ridley-scott-michael-fassbender-katherine-waterston-prometheus|archive-date=October 15, 2022|url-status=live}} Geoffrey McNab, writing for The Independent, stated that it "certainly delivers what you'd expect from an Aliens film—spectacle, body horror, strong Ripley-like female protagonists and some astonishing special effects—but there's also a dispiriting sense that the film isn't at all sure of its own identity." He found the screenplay "very portentous" and concluded that "the crew members pitted against the monstrous creatures are trying their darndest to blast them to kingdom come, just as they would in any run-of-the-mill sci-fi B movie."{{cite web|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/films/reviews/film-reviews-round-up-alien-covenant-frantz-jawbone-the-levelling-a7727686.html |title=Film reviews round-up: Alien: Covenant, Frantz, Jawbone, The Levelling|first=Geoffrey|last=McNab|date=May 17, 2017|access-date=September 5, 2022|work=The Independent|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201122201125/https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/films/reviews/film-reviews-round-alien-covenant-frantz-jawbone-levelling-a7727686.html|archive-date=November 22, 2020|url-status=live}}

A. O. Scott of The New York Times said, "Alien: Covenant is an interesting movie ... for all its interplanetary ranging, [it] commits itself above all to the canny management of expectations."{{cite news|last=Scott|first=A. O.|author-link=A. O. Scott|title=Review: 'Alien: Covenant' Summons Terror and Stays on Brand|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/05/17/movies/alien-covenant-review-ridley-scott.html|date=May 17, 2017|work=The New York Times|access-date=May 18, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220404180806/https://www.nytimes.com/2017/05/17/movies/alien-covenant-review-ridley-scott.html|archive-date=April 4, 2022|url-status=live}} Trace Thurman, from Bloody Disgusting, gave the film a mediocre review, noting that although watching Alien: Covenant will make viewers appreciate Prometheus more, "this is a film that was made as a response to Prometheus critics but tries to appease fans of that film as well and it doesn't fully work." He also criticizes the overfamiliarity of the climax and insufficiently developed characters.{{Cite web|url=https://bloody-disgusting.com/reviews/3436633/review-alien-covenant/|title=[Review] 'Alien: Covenant' Disappoints, Despite a Stellar Production|date=May 15, 2017 |work=Bloody Disgusting|first=Trace |last=Thurman|access-date=May 19, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220404182239/https://bloody-disgusting.com/reviews/3436633/review-alien-covenant/|archive-date=April 4, 2022|url-status=live}} Collider{{'}}s review of the film stated that Scott "finds himself stuck between two constructs—the action-horror beats of an Alien film, and the weighty, ponderous themes of a Prometheus movie—and by indulging both, he never fully satisfies either. The result is a messy film that is at turns, exquisite and infuriating."{{Cite news |url=http://collider.com/alien-covenant-review/ |title='Alien: Covenant' Review: An Exquisite, Infuriating Epic from a Sci-Fi Master |date=May 6, 2017 |first=Haleigh|last=Foutch|work=Collider |access-date=December 6, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220928080059/https://collider.com/alien-covenant-review/|archive-date=September 28, 2022|url-status=live}}

In a review for The Independent Clarisse Loughrey gave the film five stars describing it as "relentless and overwhelming, but all in the very best of ways" and as a "mightily impressive piece of cinematic engineering" which has brought together the Alien franchise. Loughrey praised Katherine Waterston for her "impressive work" as Daniels and went on to single out Fassbender for playing a "deeply frightening, scene-stealing antagonist".{{cite web|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/films/reviews/alien-covenant-review-prometheus-sequel-prequel-michael-fassbender-david-walter-a7720371.html|title=Alien: Covenant review: It's everything you could ever want from an Alien movie|first=Clarisse|last=Loughrey|date=May 7, 2017|access-date=September 5, 2022|work=The Independent|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221002204323/https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/films/reviews/alien-covenant-review-prometheus-sequel-prequel-michael-fassbender-david-walter-a7720371.html|archive-date=October 2, 2022|url-status=live}} Sinead Brennan for RTÉ, gave the film 7/10, but gave high praise to Fassbender who she says "steals the show; seriously, he's incredible".{{cite web|url=https://www.rte.ie/entertainment/movie-reviews/2017/0509/873654-alien-covenant/|title=Alien: Covenant movie review|first=Sinead|last=Brennan|date=May 13, 2017|access-date=September 5, 2022|publisher=RTÉ|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220905005852/https://www.rte.ie/entertainment/movie-reviews/2017/0509/873654-alien-covenant/|archive-date=September 5, 2022|url-status=live}} Meanwhile, Neil Soans in a three star review for The Times of India, highlighted Danny McBride's performance as the most surprising given his comedic roots.{{cite web|url=https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/entertainment/english/movie-reviews/alien-covenant/movie-review/58628845.cms|title=Alien: Covenant Movie Review|work=The Times of India|first=Neil|last=Soans|date=May 11, 2017|access-date=October 26, 2022}}

Matt Zoller Seitz of RogerEbert.com highly praised Alien: Covenant, giving it four out of four stars and stating that the film's structure, although repeatedly borrowing from other Alien films, serves a purpose not unlike the James Bond film series or Star Wars, "where part of the fun lies in seeing what variations the artists can bring while satisfying a rigid structure." He also emphasized that, like previous films of the series, real-world logic should not be applied to the film, and "[i]nstead you have to judge it by the standards of a fever dream or nightmare, a Freudian-Jungian narrative where the thing you fear most is what happens to you."{{cite web|last1=Seitz|first1=Matt Zoller|title=Alien: Covenant Movie Review & Film Summary (2017)|url=https://rogerebert.com/reviews/alien-covenant-2017|website=RogerEbert.com|publisher=Ebert Digital LLC|access-date=May 15, 2017|date=May 15, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220204143335/https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/alien-covenant-2017|archive-date=February 4, 2022|url-status=live}} Seitz later voted for it in Sight & Sound as one of the five best films of 2017.{{cite web|title=The best films of 2017 – all the votes|url=https://www2.bfi.org.uk//features/best-films-2017-all-the-votes/|website=Sight & Sound|publisher=BFI|access-date=January 16, 2018|date=December 14, 2017|first1=Paul|last1= McManus|first2= Rob |last2=Philp|first3= Nick |last3=Bradshaw|first4=Isabel |last4=Stevens|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220825220621/https://www2.bfi.org.uk/features/best-films-2017-all-the-votes/|archive-date=August 25, 2022|url-status=live}}

In New York magazine, David Edelstein commented on David the android as representing a new generation of monster villains in the tradition of Frankenstein, stating, "In Star Trek, that man-machine nexus was...hopeful. Here, there's some doubt about David's ultimate motives, which puts Alien: Covenant squarely in the tradition of the Terminator and Matrix movies. And, of course, the novel Frankenstein, which carried the subtitle The Modern Prometheus. No less than Stephen Hawking—who survived with the aid of machines—has predicted that we have 100 years to live before evolved machines take human imperfection as justification for destroying humanity".{{cite web|last1=Edelstein|first1=David|title=Review: Alien: Covenant Is an Origin Story We Might Not Have Wanted|url=http://www.vulture.com/2017/05/alien-covenant-movie-review.html|website=Vulture|date=May 16, 2017 |publisher=New York Media LLC|access-date=May 26, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211127194257/https://www.vulture.com/2017/05/alien-covenant-movie-review.html|archive-date=November 27, 2021|url-status=live}}

Kevin Lincoln, writing for Vulture, gave a strong endorsement of the depiction of David as an arch-villain in the film stating, "...{{nbsp}}one franchise is showing it's still possible for a modern blockbuster to have a great villain. In Alien: Covenant, David—the android played by Michael Fassbender, first introduced in Prometheus—comes into his own as a fleshed-out, dynamic, and genuinely striking antagonist, one who isn't just an equal match for the heroes, but even becomes the central thread of the series. He's a huge part of what makes Alien: Covenant work."{{cite web |last=Lincoln |first=Kevin |title=What Other Blockbuster Villains Can Learn From David in Alien: Covenant| work=Vulture |date=May 23, 2017 |url=http://www.vulture.com/2017/05/alien-covenant-david-michael-fassbender-villain.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211202133010/https://www.vulture.com/2017/05/alien-covenant-david-michael-fassbender-villain.html|archive-date=December 2, 2021|url-status=live}}

Writing for Vox, Alissa Wilkinson said that "Alien: Covenant is too muddled to pull off its deeply ambitious Satan allegories". She emphasized the Miltonic demonic aspect of the android David: "But David is a better Satan than Satan himself ... It's as if in the Alien universe, the devil has evolved, thanks to humans creating him. David, fatally, has the ability to create—something Satan never had—and he will use that power only to destroy. He doesn't have any real need to rebel against his maker, since from the moment he became sentient, he knew he'd already won. He is indestructible, and determined to make creatures that imitate his drive for total domination."Alissa Wilkinson. {{cite web|url=https://www.vox.com/summer-movies/2017/5/17/15612540/alien-covenant-review-fassbender-satan-paradise-lost-spoilers|title=Alien: Covenant is too muddled to pull off its deeply ambitious Satan allegories|first=Alissa|last=Wilkinson|publisher=Vox|date=May 17, 2017|access-date=September 5, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220905111758/https://www.vox.com/summer-movies/2017/5/17/15612540/alien-covenant-review-fassbender-satan-paradise-lost-spoilers|archive-date=September 5, 2022|url-status=live}}

{{see also|List of accolades received by the Alien film series}}

{{Further|Alien (franchise)#Future|l1=Alien (franchise) § Future}}

{{Anchor|Sequel|Sequels}}

In September 2015, Ridley Scott said he was planning two sequels to Prometheus that would lead into the first Alien film, adding, "Maybe [there will] even [be] a fourth film before we get back into the Alien franchise".{{cite web |url=https://www.scified.com/news/ridley-scott-planning-3-prometheus-sequels-before-link-to-alien-is-made |title=Ridley Scott planning 3 Prometheus sequels before link to Alien is made! (by Chris Picard) |date=September 23, 2015 |website=scified.com |access-date= March 30, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220922200018/https://www.alien-covenant.com/news/ridley-scott-planning-3-prometheus-sequels-before-link-to-alien-is-made|archive-date=September 22, 2022|url-status=live}}{{cite web|url=https://www.theguardian.com/film/2015/sep/23/ridley-scott-three-more-prometheus-films-alien|title=Ridley Scott plans three more Prometheus films before linking to Alien|first=Ben|last=Child|date=September 23, 2015|website=The Guardian|publisher=Guardian News and Media Limited|access-date=March 30, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220922200020/https://www.theguardian.com/film/2015/sep/23/ridley-scott-three-more-prometheus-films-alien|archive-date=September 22, 2022|url-status=live}} Scott later confirmed in November that Alien: Covenant would be the first of three additional films in the Alien prequel series before linking up with the original Alien,{{cite web|url=http://uk.ign.com/articles/2015/11/14/prometheus-sequel-alien-paradise-lost-may-now-be-titled-alien-covenant|title=Prometheus Sequel Alien: Paradise Lost May Now Be Titled Alien: Covenant|first=Alex|last=Osborn|work=IGN|publisher=Ziff Davis, LLC|date=November 14, 2015|access-date=16 October 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220922201626/http://www.ign.com/articles/2015/11/14/prometheus-sequel-alien-paradise-lost-may-now-be-titled-alien-covenant|archive-date=September 22, 2022|url-status=live}}{{cite web|url=https://hollywoodreporter.com/heat-vision/ridley-scott-alien-covenant-is-844051|title=Ridley Scott: 'Alien: Covenant' Is First of 3 Films Before Linking Up With Original 'Alien'|date=November 26, 2015|access-date=September 5, 2022|first=Pip|last=Bulbeck|work=The Hollywood Reporter|publisher=Eldridge Industries, LLC|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220922212110/https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-news/ridley-scott-alien-covenant-is-first-3-films-before-linking-up-original-alien-844051/|archive-date=September 22, 2022|url-status=live}} and stated that the Prometheus sequels would reveal who created the xenomorph aliens.{{cite web|url=http://uk.ign.com/articles/2015/11/11/ridley-scott-says-prometheus-sequels-will-reveal-who-created-aliens|title=Ridley Scott Says Prometheus Sequels Will Reveal Who Created Aliens|first1=Chris|last1=Tilly|first2=Leigh|last2=Singer|work=IGN|publisher=Ziff Davis, LLC|date=November 11, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220125024637/https://www.ign.com/articles/2015/11/11/ridley-scott-says-prometheus-sequels-will-reveal-who-created-aliens|archive-date=January 25, 2022|url-status=live}} The screenplay for the third prequel film was written during production of Alien: Covenant and finished in 2017, with production originally scheduled to begin in 2018.{{cite web|url=http://www.smh.com.au/entertainment/movies/ridley-scott-promises-a-return-to-alienstyle-horror-in-alien-covenant-20170222-guj8wk.html|title=Ridley Scott promises a return to Alien-style horror in Alien: Covenant|first=Garry|last=Maddox|date=March 3, 2017|access-date=September 6, 2022|newspaper=The Sunday Morning Herald|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220922200114/https://www.smh.com.au/entertainment/movies/ridley-scott-promises-a-return-to-alienstyle-horror-in-alien-covenant-20170223-guj8wk.html|archive-date=September 22, 2022|url-status=live}} In March 2017, Scott said, "If you really want a franchise, I can keep cranking it for another six. I'm not going to close it down again. No way."

Scott responded to a question about Sigourney Weaver reprising her role as Ellen Ripley in the prequels that, "Well, we're heading toward the back end of the first Alien so [using CGI] may be feasible. Ripley's going to be somebody's daughter, obviously. We're coming in from the back end. The time constraints of what's the time between this film, where we leave David going off heading for that colony, I think you're probably two films out from even considering her."{{cite web |last=Reyes |first=Michael |title=How The Next Alien Movies Could Incorporate Ripley, According To Ridley Scott |url=https://cinemablend.com/news/1679369/how-the-next-alien-movies-could-incorporate-ripley-according-to-ridley-scott |date=August 1, 2017 |work=CinemaBlend |access-date=September 3, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220605163550/https://www.cinemablend.com/news/1679369/how-the-next-alien-movies-could-incorporate-ripley-according-to-ridley-scott|archive-date=June 5, 2022|url-status=live }} In the audio commentary for Alien: Covenant, Scott confirmed that a sequel to Alien: Covenant, tentatively referred to as "Alien: Covenant 2", is being written by John Logan, with Fassbender, Waterston, and McBride reprising their roles. Scott also confirmed that the film will complete his prequel series, leading directly into the events of Alien.Alien: Covenant – Audio Commentary{{Full citation needed|date=March 2025}}{{cite web|url=https://collider.com/alien-covenant-trivia/|title='Alien: Covenant': 38 Things We Learned from Ridley Scott's Audio Commentary|first=Adam|last=Chitwood|work=Collider|date=September 1, 2017|accessdate=January 14, 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220125024801/https://collider.com/alien-covenant-trivia/|archive-date=January 25, 2022|url-status=live}}{{better source needed|date=March 2025}}

In September 2017, the chief executive officer of 20th Century Fox, Stacey Snider, stated that, although Alien: Covenant was a financial disappointment, the studio still intended to proceed with Scott's sequel.{{cite magazine|url=https://variety.com/2017/film/features/stacey-snider-21st-century-fox-first-year-1202563799/|title=Fox's Stacey Snider Gets Candid About Netflix, Diversity and the Future of Wolverine|first=Brent|last=Lang|date=September 20, 2017|magazine=Variety|access-date= February 9, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220921185736/https://variety.com/2017/film/features/stacey-snider-21st-century-fox-first-year-1202563799/|archive-date=September 21, 2022|url-status=live}} Just days later, screen-graphics designer Carl Braga announced that the project had been delayed.{{cite web|url=https://screenrant.com/alien-covenant-sequel-canceled/|title=Alien: Covenant Sequel Reportedly Canceled By Fox|first=Dan|last=Zinski|date=December 26, 2017|access-date=September 26, 2022|publisher=Screen Rant|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220902182513/https://screenrant.com/alien-covenant-sequel-canceled/|archive-date=September 2, 2022|url-status=live}}{{better source needed|date=March 2025|reason=Per WP:RSP/VALNET, we try to find alternatives to ValNet published sources with some exceptions}} In October, Scott stated that "Alien: Covenant 2" will focus more on the androids and Artificial intelligences (A.I.s), as opposed to the xenomorphs. He said, "I think the evolution of the Alien himself is nearly over, but what I was trying to do was transcend and move to another story, which would be taken over by A.I.s. The world that the A.I. might create as a leader if he finds himself on a new planet. We have actually quite a big layout for the next one."{{cite web |title=Ridley Scott Wants the Next 'Alien' Movie to Focus on Artificial Intelligence Instead of the Xenomorph |first=Michael |last=Nordine |work=Indiewire |date=October 8, 2017 |url=http://www.indiewire.com/2017/10/ridley-scott-alien-artificial-intelligence-1201884993/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220125002545/https://www.indiewire.com/2017/10/ridley-scott-alien-artificial-intelligence-1201884993/|archive-date=January 25, 2022|url-status=live}} In November 2018, the film's plot details were reported to take place on LV-426 (the world visited by the Nostromo in the original Alien film), with the extraterrestrial Engineers being featured in the film and being in pursuit of David following his nefarious actions against Planet 4.{{cite magazine |author= |title= Empire Classics Presents Alien: The Complete History |magazine= Empire |location= United Kingdom |publisher= Bauer Consumer Media |date= February 9, 2019}}

At the 2019 CinemaCon, it was stated that, after its acquisition of 21st Century Fox, Disney "will continue to create new stories" in the Alien series.{{Cite web|url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/heat-vision/new-avengers-endgame-scene-shows-captain-marvel-joining-team-1199385|title=New 'Avengers: Endgame' Footage Hits CinemaCon|work=The Hollywood Reporter|first1=Carolyn|last1=Giardina|first2=Pamela|last2=McClintock |date=April 3, 2019 |access-date=April 28, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221004122605/https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-news/new-avengers-endgame-scene-shows-captain-marvel-joining-team-1199385/|archive-date=October 4, 2022|url-status=live}} In May, Variety reported that another prequel was reportedly "in the script phase", with Ridley Scott attached to direct,{{cite news |last=Schaefer |first=Sandy |title=Alien: Covenant Sequel Reportedly Being Written, Ridley Scott to Direct |url=https://screenrant.com/alien-covenant-sequel-writer-director-ridley-scott/ |date=May 27, 2019 |work=Screen Rant |access-date=May 27, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211029095122/https://screenrant.com/alien-covenant-sequel-writer-director-ridley-scott/|archive-date=October 29, 2021|url-status=live}} but it was still uncertain due to the disappointing box office returns of Alien: Covenant.{{cite web|url=https://www.indiewire.com/2019/05/ridley-scott-alien-prequel-covenant-box-office-1202145138/|title=Ridley Scott Still Planning Third 'Alien' Prequel — Can Franchise Survive 'Covenant' Box Office Bomb? |first=Zack|last=Sharf|date=May 28, 2019 |access-date=October 5, 2022|publisher=IndieWire|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221007225614/https://www.indiewire.com/2019/05/ridley-scott-alien-prequel-covenant-box-office-1202145138/|archive-date=October 7, 2022|url-status=live}} In September 2020, Scott confirmed that a new Alien film was in development but it was unclear if this would be a sequel to Alien: Covenant.{{cite web | last=Thompson | first=Simon | title=Ridley Scott Talks 'Raised By Wolves' And The Future Of The 'Alien' Franchise | work=Forbes | date=February 9, 2020 | url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/simonthompson/2020/09/02/ridley-scott-interview-raised-by-wolves-hbo-max-alien-franchise-future-sequel-news/ | access-date=March 23, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221002204301/https://www.forbes.com/sites/simonthompson/2020/09/02/ridley-scott-interview-raised-by-wolves-hbo-max-alien-franchise-future-sequel-news/|archive-date=October 2, 2022|url-status=live}} In August 2021, however, a news report concluded that a sequel was uncertain.{{cite news |last=Evangelista |first=Chris |title=Will There Be A Sequel To Alien: Covenant? Here's What We Know |url=https://www.slashfilm.com/591541/will-there-be-a-sequel-to-alien-covenant-heres-what-we-know/ |date=August 31, 2021 |work=SlashFilm |access-date=September 1, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220120054758/https://www.slashfilm.com/591541/will-there-be-a-sequel-to-alien-covenant-heres-what-we-know/|archive-date=January 20, 2022|url-status=live }}{{cite news |last=Nero |first=Dom |title=It's Time to Redeem 'Prometheus' |url=https://www.yahoo.com/lifestyle/time-redeem-prometheus-110000443.html |date=September 1, 2021 |work=Yahoo News |access-date=September 2, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220101034306/https://www.yahoo.com/lifestyle/time-redeem-prometheus-110000443.html|archive-date=January 1, 2022|url-status=live}}

{{main|Alien: Romulus}}

By March 2022, Fede Álvarez was attached to write and direct a new film in the series; he pitched his own story to the studio that was said to be "unconnected" to previous films in the franchise.{{cite web |last=Kit |first=Borys |date=4 March 2022 |title=New Alien Movie in the Works With Don't Breathe Filmmaker Fede Álvarez (Exclusive) |url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-news/alien-movie-fede-alvarez-20th-century-studios-1235037155/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220903040732/https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-news/alien-movie-fede-alvarez-20th-century-studios-1235037155/ |archive-date=September 3, 2022 |access-date=March 4, 2022 |work=The Hollywood Reporter}} 20th Century Studios announced in March 2023 that a new Alien film would begin production the same month.{{cite web |last1=Flam |first1=Charna |title=New 'Alien' Movie Starts Filming in March, Reveals Cryptic Synopsis and Full Cast |url=https://variety.com/2023/film/news/new-alien-movie-plot-synopsis-full-cast-1235542570/ |work=Variety |date=March 3, 2023|accessdate=December 6, 2023}} The film, Alien: Romulus, is set between the events of Alien (1979) and Aliens (1986), featuring narrative ties to Prometheus and Alien: Covenant in the form of the films' black goo "Prometheus' fire" being regrown by Weyland-Yutani,{{cite web|url=https://variety.com/2023/film/news/alien-romulus-set-between-first-two-cailee-spaeny-1235810521|title='Alien: Romulus' Star Cailee Spaeny Confirms New Entry Is Set Between the First Two Films|first=Jackson|last=Kim Murphy|work=Variety |date=November 27, 2023|accessdate=December 6, 2023}} and was released in theaters on August 16, 2024.{{cite magazine |last1=Rubin |first1=Rebecca |date=June 13, 2023 |accessdate=December 6, 2023 |title=Disney Dates New Star Wars Movie, Shifts Deadpool 3 and Entire Marvel Slate, Delays Avatar Sequels Through 2031 |url=https://variety.com/2023/film/news/disney-star-wars-delays-marvel-avatar-sequel-release-dates-1235642363/ |url-status=live |magazine=Variety |publisher=Penske Media Corporation |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231205162732/https://variety.com/2023/film/news/disney-star-wars-delays-marvel-avatar-sequel-release-dates-1235642363/ |archive-date=December 5, 2023 }}

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