Alien: Earth introduces new creatures as terrifying as the Xenomorph, but the show's creator didn't want to squeeze in 'a vending machine of alien life' for the sake of it

• Alien: Earth includes four new dangerous lifeforms alongside the Xenormorph
• Series creator Noah Hawley didn't want to overpopulate it with dangerous aliens
• There needed to be a valid reason for their introduction, Hawley added

Alien: Earth creator Noah Hawley has explained why he restricted himself to only introducing four new terrifying alien lifeforms in his latest TV project.

Speaking to TechRadar, the Fargo and Legion showrunner said he didn't want to go overboard and add in a zoo's worth of dangerous extraterrestrials for the series' humans and artificial beings to deal with.

Since its inception, the Alien franchise has been dominated by a single bioweapon: the Xenomorph. Other life-threatening alien species have appeared in the Ridley Scott-created universe, including crossover films with another classic '80s creature in the Predator, aka the alien race known as the Yautja. Nonetheless, the Xenomorphs, in conjunction with the earlier stages of their lifecycle in the egg-like Ovomorphs and parasitic Facehuggers, have been the main credible threat in the franchise's near-50 year history.

Until now, anyway. The Alien universe's inaugural TV series, which debuts on Hulu (US) and Disney+ (internationally) later this month, will aim to give established fans and newcomers sleepless nights with its new contingent of lethal organisms. Alien: Earth's official trailer already teased two of those horrifying creatures, but how they – and the other two species that are yet to be unveiled – seek out and attack their prey is rightly being kept under wraps for now. Hey, Hawley and company have got to save some surprises for the sci-fi horror show's release.

Fascinating and frightening as these monsters appear to be, I have wondered if Alien: Earth's creative team initially planned to include more species in the eight-part series and, if so, why this quartet was chosen over other potential candidates. What better way to find out, then, than going directly to the source and asking Hawley himself?

"No," Hawley told me when I asked if he conceived any more creatures than those that made the cut. "They're all introduced as part of the storytelling, so there needed to be a specific reason to include them.

"It wasn't that there was a big vending machine of alien life that I was going to add in," Hawley continued. "The design process was sort of form following function. Really, the idea was to come up with these creatures' behaviors that are as disquieting as what Ridley [Scott] created with the different phases of the Xenomorphs' lifecycle. So, it was always about trying to top the squeamishness of the movies. From there, we started a designing them with [special effects and prop company] Weta Workshop that led to the creatures you see in the show."

Alien: Earth will hatch with a two-episode premiere on August 12 in the US and make its debut internationally on August 13. Before it launches, read my Alien: Earth review to see what I thought of its first six episodes.

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