Quality over quantity: Noah Hawley’s approach to his ALIEN series

Alien creator and showrunner Noah Hawley confirmed that his next series will last multiple seasons and shares some insights into creating the series and telling a story that leads to a planned ending.

There is a lot of curiosity and excitement around this Alien series and I have been excited to see how this story will develop. That story “takes place before Ripley. It’s the first story set on Earth in the Alien series.” It was also revealed that it will be set towards “the end of the century we’re in, so 70-odd years from now.” It will also be the first Alien story set on Earth.

During a recent interview with Collider, Hawley talked about creating the series and building the story. He said he was informed by FX fairly early on that they wanted more seasons, meaning he was able to plan out a complete story with a definitive ending that the show will build towards.

Hawley spoke about endings, saying, “I think endings are what give a story meaning, and so you should never start a story without having an idea of ​​where it’s going because that way you can really put that meaning into it.”

He continued, “With Legion, I had what felt like a three-act structure and I didn’t know if it was going to be three seasons or five seasons, or whatever it was, but I kind of knew what was going to happen.” there was the beginning, the middle and the end. And here, equally, I knew that their desire was for a recurring series, not a limited series, and I had an idea that excited me, that I could see it escalate from one year to the next.”

The director also spoke about the presentation of the series, saying, “That’s where we ended up pitching them not having a Bible or presenting them step by step, but saying, ‘Big picture: this is the first movement, this is the second movement'”. , and eventually we’ll go here.'”

He then explained that he is taking a “quality, not quantity” approach to managing his Alien story, saying, “Obviously, they trust me after all these years, and the writing was on the page for the first year. So, when you’re successful, you tell the story and you tell it until the story is done. I’m very good at FX, not wanting you to milk something that looks finished.”

I like that this is the kind of series that won’t wear out, it’s welcome. When the story ends, it ends.

The project will also blend “the timeless horror of the first Alien film with the non-stop action of the second, it will be a frightening thrill ride that will make people fall back on their seats.”

Hawley previously spoke about the project, saying: “It’s about how we’re caught between the primordial past and the artificial intelligence of our future, where both [are] trying to kill us. It is set on future Earth. Right now I describe it as Edison versus Westinghouse versus Tesla. Someone will monopolize the electricity. We just don’t know which one it is.”

He continued, “It’s a story also set on Earth. Alien stories are always trapped… Trapped in a prison, trapped in a spaceship. I thought it would be interesting to open it up a little bit so that the stakes were “What happens if you can’t contain it?” they are more immediate.”

The show is also the protagonist Sydney Chandler, Alex Lawther (The end of the fucking world) in the role of the male protagonist, a soldier named CJ, with Samuel Blenkin (Black mirror) as another main character called Boy Kavalier, a CEO. Other cast members include Essie Davis (Miss Fisher’s Murder Mysteries) in the role of Lady Silvia, Timothy OlyphantAND Adarsh ​​Gourav (The White Tiger) as Slightly.

The series is currently in production.