So, Alien: Earth turned out not to be that great (despite being popular). Fortunately, you’ve still got the best Alien movies to watch. The franchise pioneered space horror and made the xenomorph a cultural icon. While it took a weird turn when it was adapted for TV, you can ignore all that and pretend like it never left the silver screen. Below, you can see the entries that gave us some of the best sci-fi screams of all time.

What are the best Alien movies as of 2025?

The Alien franchise was doomed from the start since it’s almost impossible to beat the original movie. Aliens came close, but since then, it’s been a roller coaster of quality. Fortunately, you can skip some of the worst entries without missing much. Check out the best Alien movies according to us and let us know what you think.

Alien (1979)

Simply put, Alien is a horror masterpiece. Every element of the movie falls into place, but that doesn’t give enough credit to Ridley Scott’s expert craftsmanship. From production design (Michael Seymour)  to soundtrack, acting, script, and visuals, Alien was a milestone in both the sci-fi and horror genres. It was also one of the first feminist horror films to deal with gender politics. In a genre that often relegates women to secondary or sacrificial roles, Ripley’s (Sigourney Weaver) presence redefined what a female lead in horror and science fiction could be. The film also features some of the best cinematography by Director of Photography legend Derek Vanlint. I highly recommend reading an interview with Valiant in the American Society of Cinematographers magazine.

There’s also a deeper conversation worth unpacking: the film as a possible allegory for sexual assault. This time, it’s Kane (John Hurt) who suffers the “facehugger” assault and later gives a violent, fatal birth to the Alien. Screenwriter Dan O’Bannon openly discussed how he wanted to create sexual anxiety and fear in male audiences, an angle of horror that had been largely untapped. In doing so, the film also works as a pushback against the genre’s long history of women being disproportionately subjected to predatory monsters. Between the craftsmanship and what the film was doing, there’s no way to deny this film was a landmark of cinematic achievement.

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Aliens (1986)

Sometimes considered even superior to the first film, the 1986 sequel picks up fifty-seven years after the events of Alien. While much can be said about the studio’s decision not to bring Ridley Scott back, James Cameron takes the reins and delivers a sequel that feels both true to the original and uniquely his own. The production design of Alien arguably remains unmatched, but Aliens raises the stakes by injecting explosive action. This also earns merit thanks to its higher rewatchability factor. Sigourney Weaver returns in top form, earning an Academy Award nomination for her performance, which is a rarity for the sci-fi/horror genre.

If you haven’t seen this one, you might be thinking that the shift from slow-burn horror to action-thriller would dilute the franchise’s DNA. In less capable hands, that might have been the case. We’ve all seen examples where a new director warps what was already working. But thanks to James Cameron being James Camera, Aliens manages the transition seamlessly. He expands the lore, introduces the terrifying Xenomorph hive and queen, and deepens the sense of world-building without ever losing the tension. We’d call this one of the best sequels in any franchise, right up there with The Dark Knight, The Godfather Part II, and The Empire Strikes Back.

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Prometheus (2012)

Ridley Scott is back with this prequel that takes us to the end of the 21st century. Being set earlier, we don’t get the multi-talented Ms. Ripley, but we do get an all-star cast: Michael Fassbender, Idris Elba, Guy Pearce, Charlize Theron, and Noomi Rapace as our lead. The script from Jon Spaihts and Damon Lindelof gives us an android who feels like a bigger threat than the aliens. Overall, the movie is pretty solid, but the first half works far better. The second half becomes a drag of mediocrity thanks to the increasingly stupid decisions from the crew.

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Alien: Covenant (2017)

This darker follow-up to Prometheus, directed by Ridley Scott, picks up ten years after the events of the previous film. A crew aboard a spaceship detects mysterious signals from a distant planet and sets out to investigate. On landing, they think they’ve found a planet far more hospitable for colonization. Still, they soon meet our familiar android friend — using that term very loosely here – David (Michael Fassbender), the only survivor of the Prometheus mission. While the plot occasionally gets a little wonky, the CGI xenomorphs elevate the film’s horror component. There are some genuinely terrifying sequences, plus a bloodbath of a finale, that go a long way toward making the movie a satisfying continuation of the franchise.

But it’s not all carnage; there’s enough philosophical discourse within the film to keep it from being just a sci-fi action movie. 

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Aliens: Romulus (2024)

The most recent film in the franchise, Romulus, was directed by Fede Álvarez. Set in 2142, the story takes place between the original Alien and its sequel, following a group of young colonists who come across a derelict spaceship. As they scavenge, they soon realize they’re not the only ones who are hungry. This movie has some of the most horrifying imagery we’ve seen in a while. While the film relies heavily on action and a few jump scares, the real success is in the absolutely disgusting human-xenomorph hybrid creation. If you have a fear of holes, avoid looking at their backs.

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How we picked the best Alien movies

We narrowed down the best Alien films by considering each film’s quality, script strength, character development, overall vision, cinematography, and design, and which movies feel “better.” Devoted fans still champion Alien 3 as one of the best Alien movies, deserving of a spot on this list. Still, there are too many issues — most stemming from the well-documented director-studio conflicts. David Fincher is a filmmaking legend, but Alien 3 was his first feature, which also points to the studio’s lack of trust in a guy who we come to know as a moviemaking genius. But whatever the reason for the movie’s shortcomings, it remains a frustrating middle entry that had so much potential but got bogged down along the way.