The Alien: Earth timeline can feel like a chest‑burster of continuity. This timeline guide maps the films and the franchise’s first TV series by in‑universe “Alien years,” clarifying where each entry lands relative to Ridley Scott’s 1979 classic.
How Alien: Earth Anchors the Timeline
Creator Noah Hawley set out to present the Xenomorphs “within a larger ecosystem” and, for the first time, put them on Earth. The series is set in Alien year 2120, two years before the Nostromo incident of Alien. It features rival corporations — including Weyland‑Yutani — grappling for control after a spaceship crash‑lands on Earth carrying valuable (and dangerous) cargo. As Hawley noted, “We haven’t literally calendared it out,” calling Earth a “grey area” and a “gift… with very little mythology.”
The Canonical Sequence (By Alien Year)
- 2093 — Prometheus (2012): A prequel that poses origin questions rather than tidy answers.
- 2104 — Alien: Covenant (2017): The prequel arc continues 11 years later, with the android David at its chilling core.
- 2120 — Alien: Earth (2025): Earth‑set, corporation‑driven conflict sparked by a crash‑landed ship’s deadly cargo.
- 2122 — Alien (1979): The Nostromo encounter that defined sci‑fi horror’s template.
- 2142 — Alien: Romulus (2024): Slotted between Alien and Aliens while Ripley remains in hypersleep.
- 2179 — Aliens (1986): Decades later, the threat escalates alongside human drama, with Sigourney Weaver earning a rare genre acting Oscar nomination.
- 2179 — Alien 3 (1992): Picks up immediately after Aliens with a prison‑planet crash and grim consequences.
- 2381 — Alien: Resurrection (1997): Far‑future clone‑era Ripley; even the Xenomorphs take to the water.
Release & Where to Watch
Alien: Earth premiered on August 12, 2025, on FX and streams on Hulu in the U.S.
Notes on Canon
For clarity, the guide omits the Alien vs. Predator crossovers. It also observes that Hawley didn’t lean on the prequels’ or far‑future entries’ lore when building the series, even though the new show sits just before the events of the original film.
How to Watch in Order
If you want the cleanest narrative arc, follow the Alien‑year chronology above. It starts with the prequels, drops into Alien: Earth in 2120, hits the Nostromo’s ordeal in 2122, then leaps forward to Romulus, Aliens, Alien 3, and the far‑future Resurrection. Remember that this ordering is about story time, not release time, which is why a 2024 film like Romulus sits between movies from 1979 and 1986.
Why This Timeline Matters
Because the saga spans centuries, watching in Alien‑year order spotlights how corporate power, synthetic life, and human hubris evolve around a constant, terrifying biology. Positioning Alien: Earth in 2120 keeps it close to the Nostromo while leaving room for new mysteries on our home planet. It also shows how the franchise can expand without rewriting its touchstones — a careful balance between fresh threats and familiar dread.
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