From Ridley Scott's Alien to the sci-fi franchise's prequel series beginning with Prometheus, here's how to watch the Alien movies in order.
The Alien movies in order represent a long and complicated timeline that has managed to keep audiences entertained for over 40 years. Created by Dan O'Bannon and Ronald Shusett, Alien is a horror-in-space tale, inspired by the works of artist H.R. Giger and the sci-fi films of earlier eras. Ridley Scott was the first director to set the tone and style for the series, and he helped bring O'Bannon and Shusett's vision to life in a way that launched a global franchise, spawning multiple films, books, games, merchandise, and more. The titular "alien" of the series, known as the Xenomorph, has since become a staple of the sci-fi horror genre.
The first sequel, Aliens, took the franchise in an action-packed direction under director James Cameron, and that trend would continue through Alien 3 and Alien: Resurrection in the '90s. After battling their interstellar rivals in two Alien vs. Predator films, the franchise explored the Xenomorph's origins in the divisive film Prometheus, with Ridley Scott returning to direct. Alien: Covenant returned the series to its roots in a film that was similar to the first Alien movie, but it was met with little fanfare. While not much is known about it, Fede Álvarez's new Alien movie aims to reboot the franchise and continue its legacy for a new generation.
Alien Movies In Release Order
- Alien (1979)
- Aliens (1986)
- Alien 3 (1992)
- Alien: Resurrection (1997)
- AVP: Alien Vs. Predator (2004)
- Alien vs. Predator: Requiem (2007)
- Prometheus (2012)
- Alien: Covenant (2017)
The release order for the Alien movies is broken into three quadrants that are relatively easy to follow. The first four films, Alien, Aliens, Alien 3, and Alien: Resurrection follows a straight-line narrative that centers on Ellen Ripley (Sigourney Weaver) within the world of the Xenomorphs. The following two entries in the series are the Alien vs. Predator films, AVP and AVP: Requiem, which breaks away from the story of the first Alien movie, taking place in the present day, many decades before Ripley. The last section of the Alien movies in release order is the two prequel films, Prometheus and Alien: Covenant, which explore the origins of the Xenomorph.
Alien Movies In Chronological Order
- AVP: Alien Vs. Predator (2004)
- Alien vs. Predator: Requiem (2007)
- Prometheus (2012)
- Alien: Covenant (2017)
- Alien (1979)
- Aliens (1986)
- Alien 3 (1992)
- Alien: Resurrection (1997)
For those wanting to watch the Alien films in chronological order, the roster is a bit tricky, as the films shuffle around quite a bit. Oddly enough, the AVP films are the earliest when taking the Alien movies in order, as they take place well before the events of Prometheus or even Alien. Starting off at the dawn of human civilization, AVP explains how Predators used Earth as a hunting ground for Xenomorphs, with its sequel leading all the way up to the present day (21st Century).
Prometheus takes place roughly 80 years after AVP: Requiem, explaining the origin of the Xenomorphs and the Engineers who created them. Alien: Covenant continues the origin story, taking place in 2104, leading to the first Alien movie. Alien takes place two decades after Alien: Covenant and begins the journey of Ellen Ripley, the main protagonist of the series. Ripley is in stasis for 57 years between Alien and Aliens, taking the franchise to the year 2179, which is also when Alien 3 takes place. The last film chronologically, Alien Resurrection, takes place in 2318, roughly 200 years after Alien 3 when Ripley is brought back as a clone.
