Where to Watch Every ALIEN Movie On ALIEN Day

Alien is the masterful classic by director Ridley Scott, which started the franchise, and we encourage you to watch it if you haven't already. Even though the film is 45 years old, it retains its cold power to shock and scare the audience.

Because this year marks the film's 45th anniversary, you have more than one option to watch Alien, and one of them is particularly cool. Starting today, you can watch Alien in theatres for about a week. What makes this screening even more special is that before the movie starts, you will be able to watch an exclusive discussion between director Ridley Scott and Fede Álvarez, director of the upcoming Alien: Romulus.

You can get tickets for the theatrical re-release here.

If you need further incentive, the film was written by genre legend Dan O'Bannon (Dead and Buried, The Return of the Living Dead, Lifeforce, and Total Recall) and stars an incredible cast, including Tom Skerritt, Sigourney Weaver, Veronica Cartwright, Harry Dean Stanton, John Hurt, Ian Holm, and Yaphet Kotto as the crew of the Nostromo. 

Alien is now streaming on Hulu. Check out some Alien behind-the-scenes goodies from the Fango vault.

James Cameron's rip-roaring action horror movie sequel to Alien is Aliens.  In choosing Cameron and throwing the rule book of sequels out the window, we got a film that expands upon the mythos of the first film and adds a larger body count without sacrificing the dread of the first movie.

Who are you going to call when you've got a Xenomorph problem? If your answer is the Space Marines, you'd better make sure they get back up from Ellen Ripley and Newt. Aliens continues the series' excellent casting; the film stars a cadre of character actors who give iconic performances: Sigourney Weaver, Michael Biehn, Paul Reiser, Lance Henriksen, Carrie Henn, Bill Paxton, William Hope, Al Matthews, Jenette Goldstein, and Mark Rolston. 

Aliens is now streaming on Max and Starz.

Following the tradition set by Aliens, the director of Alien 3 was chosen because of his reputation as a bold visual stylist who would take the film in a new direction. Written by David Giler, Walter Hill, and Larry Ferguson, the film starts in the aftermath of Aliens, as Ripley returns from LV-426 and crash-lands on the maximum-security prison Fiorina 161, where she discovers that she has unwittingly brought along an unwelcome visitor.

While the film was not received well at the time, Fincher has gained a reputation as a renowned film director in the decades since Alien 3's release, so it would be unwise to dismiss the film without watching it yourself. Downbeat and grimy, it honors the tradition of the franchise by taking its own path.

This third sequel stars yet another amazing cast with Sigourney Weaver, Charles S. Dutton, Charles Dance, Lance Henriksen, and Pete Postlethwaite.  

Alien 3 is now streaming on Hulu and Starz. Read how the Alien 3 novelization makes slightly more sense than the final cut.

Yet another branching of the franchise with another uniquely talented director is Alien Resurrection. Directed by Jean-Pierre Jeunet, the French auteur responsible for Delicatessen and The City of Lost Children, the film convinced the producers that Jeunet was the right director for Alien Resurrection.

The film takes a large time jump into the future in which, two centuries after her death, a powerful human/alien hybrid clone of Ellen Ripley aids a crew of space pirates in stopping the aliens from reaching Earth. It stars Sigourney Weaver as a very different version of Ripley known as Ripley 8, Winona Ryder, Ron Perlman, Dan Hedaya, J. E. Freeman, Brad Dourif, and Michael Wincott.

Alien Resurrection is now streaming on Hulu and Starz. 

Prometheus is Ridley Scott's triumphant return to the franchise. It is a prequel set at the end of the 21st century that explores the origins of the Xenomorphs and how they first became entangled in humans' lives. It also explores creation myths, the lies that sentient beings tell to themselves to justify their actions, and the fear of death.

It was written by Jon Spaihts and Damon Lindelof and starred a remarkable cast, including Noomi Rapace, Michael Fassbender, Guy Pearce, Idris Elba, Logan Marshall-Green, and Charlize Theron. Scott uses a different style from the cold, deep space fright of Alien and makes Prometheus more earthlike and warm in its imagery but inhuman and strange in its story. 

Prometheus is now streaming on Hulu and Tubi.

As the sequel to Prometheus, Alien: Covenant is again directed by Ridley Scott and expands upon the mythology of the prequels. Written by John Logan (Penny Dreadful, Gladiator) and Dante Harper, it tells the story of a colony ship crew bound for a remote planet who discover an uncharted paradise with a threat beyond their imagination and must attempt a harrowing escape.

The brilliance of the casting in this series continues in the prequels, as Alien: Covenant stars Michael Fassbender, Katherine Waterston, Billy Crudup, Danny McBride, Demián Bichir, Carmen Ejogo, and Amy Seimetz. 

Alien: Covenant is now streaming on TNT and TBS.

As a bonus, and because these two films are part of the Alien canon and franchise, may we present Alien vs. Predator as a part of your Alien marathon? The film is a crossover and is a lot of gory fun, especially if you have ever wondered who would win if there was a war between Xenomorphs and Yajuta, aka Predators.

Alien vs. Predator, or AVP, also sets the action on Earth, which is an extra twist.  As the film's tagline states, whoever wins, we lose. The film was written and directed by Paul W.S. Anderson, who is most famous for Event Horizon and the Resident Evil franchise. It stars Sanaa Lathan, Raoul Bova, Lance Henriksen, and Ewen Bremner. 

Alien vs. Predator is now streaming on Hulu and Starz.

Aliens vs. Predator: Requiem was directed by The Brothers Strause, and there is something gleefully nasty about the movie, in a good way.  It is the sequel to Alien vs Predator and continues the story as warring Alien and Predator races descend on a rural Colorado town, where unsuspecting residents must band together for any chance of survival. It actually crosses the kid barrier, and even a small cute child isn't safe from the Xenomorphs, which gives the movie a charm of its own. 

The film stars Steven Pasquale, Reiko Aylesworth, John Ortiz, Johnny Lewis, and Ariel Gade and gets down to business, horror business, almost from the first frame. 

Aliens vs. Predator: Requiem is now streaming on Hulu and Starz.