It’s not every day that a storied film franchise makes the leap to television and immediately commands the attention of millions. Yet that’s exactly what happened when Alien: Earth premiered on August 12, 2025, marking a new era for the iconic Alien saga. In its first six days, the series amassed a staggering 9.2 million views worldwide on Hulu and Disney+, according to Variety and Disney, putting it in rare company alongside other major launches like Marvel’s Agatha All Along and The Acolyte from the Star Wars universe. And those numbers don’t even account for FX’s traditional broadcast viewership, which is still being tallied. By any metric, the show’s debut has been a resounding success.
But the story of Alien: Earth is about more than just numbers. It’s a bold creative gamble, helmed by showrunner Noah Hawley—best known for his work on Fargo and Legion—who set out to honor the franchise’s roots while pushing its boundaries. In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Hawley explained his approach: “I tried to figure out what the first two films [Alien and Aliens] made me feel and why. How can I create those feelings in an audience by telling a totally different story? With Alien: Earth, it has to be a great dramatic show. Then the monsters become this bonus that you get, versus just doing monster action and horror.”
This philosophy is evident in both the show’s structure and its storytelling. Set in the year 2120—two years before Ridley Scott’s original 1979 film—the series explores a world governed by five powerful corporations: Prodigy, Weyland-Yutani, Lynch, Dynamic, and Threshold. Humanity, cyborgs, and synthetics coexist in a precarious balance, but when the Prodigy Corporation unlocks the secret to human consciousness transfer and creates the first hybrid robot-human, that balance is shattered. The inciting incident? A catastrophic crash of the deep-space research vessel USCSS Maginot on Earth, which forces protagonist Wendy (played by Sydney Chandler) and a squad of soldiers to confront horrors that threaten the planet’s fate.
Hawley’s intent to weave class struggle into the narrative is a direct nod to the franchise’s DNA. “One of the things that Alien is to me is a movie about class,” he told The Hollywood Reporter. “You start the first movie with space truckers, and then the second movie is [Marine] grunts. [Paul Reiser’s character] is middle management. There’s this sense that class is a real issue as a 1970s thing that came into it. So I wanted to bring that element into this show as well.”
The ensemble cast is a who’s who of rising stars and established talent, including Timothy Olyphant, Alex Lawther, Samuel Blenkin, Babou Ceesay, Adrian Edmondson, David Rysdahl, Essie Davis, Lily Newmark, Adarsh Gourav, Jonathan Ajayi, Erana James, Kit Young, Diêm Camille, Moe Bar-El, and Sandra Yi Sencindiver. Olyphant’s portrayal of a synthetic character has already drawn attention from longtime fans, who are eager to see how the show further develops its complex cast.
From a production standpoint, Alien: Earth is a heavyweight. Noah Hawley serves as both creator and showrunner, with Ridley Scott—whose vision launched the original film—on board as executive producer, joined by David W. Zucker, Joseph Iberti, Dana Gonzales, and Clayton Krueger. The series consists of eight episodes in its inaugural season, with new installments dropping weekly on Tuesdays at 8 p.m. ET/PT on FX and simultaneously streaming on Hulu and Disney+ in the United States. The carefully planned rollout, which began with a two-episode premiere, keeps audiences coming back week after week. As Newsweek points out, episode four is set to debut on August 26, 2025, with subsequent episodes scheduled through the season finale on September 23.
The show’s official synopses hint at a tightly woven, suspenseful arc. Episode one centers on a spaceship crash-landing on Earth, sending Wendy on a desperate search for her brother amid an alien threat. Episode two sees tensions rise between rival corporations and the revelation of a secret. Episode three introduces unexpected cargo and a disturbing experiment, while episode four—titled “Observation”—promises an unexpected connection and a covert plot that puts everyone in danger. Later episodes are slated to escalate the stakes, with outer-space peril, dangerous reckonings, and deadly consequences driven by curiosity and conflict.
Critical reception has been overwhelmingly positive. As reported by Variety and corroborated by Rotten Tomatoes, Alien: Earth boasts a remarkable 96% critic score based on 100 reviews. Audiences have been somewhat more reserved, giving it a still-solid 72%—a sign of the franchise’s passionate and discerning fanbase. The divide between critics and viewers isn’t unusual for such a high-profile property, especially one that dares to blend slow-burn drama with the visceral horror that made the films legendary. If anything, it signals that Hawley’s gamble to focus on character, worldbuilding, and class dynamics—rather than nonstop monster mayhem—is paying off with critics, even as some fans wait for more traditional thrills.
Of course, the show’s impressive streaming numbers are only part of the story. Disney’s decision to publicly share viewership figures for Alien: Earth is notable, as the company rarely releases streaming data for FX titles. The 9.2 million streams milestone, as highlighted by Disney and Variety, puts the series in direct competition with other blockbuster debuts and underscores the appetite for serialized science fiction horror. Nielsen streaming data, expected within the next month, will provide an even clearer picture of how Alien: Earth stacks up against the competition.
For those looking to tune in, access is straightforward but not free. As Newsweek outlines, viewers need a Hulu subscription ($9.99 per month) or the Disney Bundle ($16.99 per month) to stream the series. The show’s global rollout means episodes become available at different times depending on time zone, but in the U.S., the Tuesday 8 p.m. ET/PT slot is the standard. The series also airs on FX’s traditional channel, ensuring that those without streaming subscriptions can still join the conversation.
As of August 20, three episodes have aired, and anticipation is building for the rest of the season. With no word yet on whether a second season will be greenlit, the future of Alien: Earth remains uncertain—but its impact is already undeniable. The blend of corporate intrigue, class struggle, and chilling horror has reinvigorated the franchise, drawing in longtime fans and newcomers alike. As the season unfolds, all eyes are on FX, Hulu, and Disney+ to see if this bold experiment can sustain its momentum—and perhaps even redefine what’s possible for science fiction television.
