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Alien watch order

All the Alien films and the Alien: Earth series, in the order they came out and in story order, with the Predator crossovers marked optional. It is the same order the emberslate app uses for its Alien saga.

Updated · By emberfold labs

The short answer

For a first watch, use release order: Alien (1979), Aliens, Alien³ and Alien Resurrection, then Prometheus, Covenant and Romulus. Alien: Earth and the two Predator crossovers are optional. The nine films take about 17 hours.

Titles
9 films, 1 series
Everything
about 25 hours
Core path
about 14 hours
Films only
about 17 hours

Release order

Alien in release order

The order they came out. The best way in for a first-time viewer.

  1. Alien poster01

    Alien (1979)

    Film · 1h 57mCore

  2. Aliens poster02

    Aliens (1986)

    Film · 2h 17mCore

  3. Alien³ poster03

    Alien³ (1992)

    Film · 1h 54mCore

  4. Alien Resurrection poster04

    Alien Resurrection (1997)

    Film · 1h 49mCore

  5. Prometheus poster05

    Prometheus (2012)

    Film · 2h 4mCore

  6. Alien: Covenant poster06

    Alien: Covenant (2017)

    Film · 2h 2mCore

  7. Alien: Romulus poster07

    Alien: Romulus (2024)

    Film · 1h 59mCore

  8. Alien: Earth poster08

    Alien: Earth (2025)

    Series · 1 season · 8 episodes · about 8hOptional

    TV series. Optional.

  9. AVP: Alien vs. Predator poster09

    AVP: Alien vs. Predator (2004)

    Film · 1h 41mOptional

    Crossover with Predator. Optional.

  10. Aliens vs Predator: Requiem poster10

    Aliens vs Predator: Requiem (2007)

    Film · 1h 34mOptional

    Crossover with Predator. Optional.

Chronological order

Alien in chronological order

The order the events happen in, from the 2089 prequels through to Alien Resurrection in 2381.

  1. AVP: Alien vs. Predator poster01

    AVP: Alien vs. Predator (2004)

    Film · 1h 41mOptional

    Crossover with Predator. Set earlier in the timeline. Optional.

  2. Aliens vs Predator: Requiem poster02

    Aliens vs Predator: Requiem (2007)

    Film · 1h 34mOptional

    Crossover with Predator. Set earlier in the timeline. Optional.

  3. Prometheus poster03

    Prometheus (2012)

    Film · 2h 4mCore

  4. Alien: Covenant poster04

    Alien: Covenant (2017)

    Film · 2h 2mCore

  5. Alien: Earth poster05

    Alien: Earth (2025)

    Series · 1 season · 8 episodes · about 8hOptional

    TV series. Optional.

  6. Alien poster06

    Alien (1979)

    Film · 1h 57mCore

  7. Alien: Romulus poster07

    Alien: Romulus (2024)

    Film · 1h 59mCore

  8. Aliens poster08

    Aliens (1986)

    Film · 2h 17mCore

  9. Alien³ poster09

    Alien³ (1992)

    Film · 1h 54mCore

  10. Alien Resurrection poster10

    Alien Resurrection (1997)

    Film · 1h 49mCore

Release order or chronological order?

Release order is the best way in. It gives you the original four films first, then the newer ones that go back to the origins.

Chronological order starts earlier, with the Predator crossovers and the Prometheus prequels, and ends with Alien Resurrection. It works better as a rewatch, because Prometheus and Covenant explain things the original films leave open.

The optional titles

AVP: Alien vs. Predator and Aliens vs Predator: Requiem are crossovers with the Predator films, and Alien: Earth is a TV series. All three are marked optional, and the main Alien story does not need them. They sit at the end of the release list.

What you can skip

Anything not marked core can wait. The main story does not need it, so watch it whenever you like.

  • Alien: Earth poster

    Alien: Earth (2025)

    TV series. Optional.

  • AVP: Alien vs. Predator poster

    AVP: Alien vs. Predator (2004)

    Crossover with Predator. Optional.

  • Aliens vs Predator: Requiem poster

    Aliens vs Predator: Requiem (2007)

    Crossover with Predator. Optional.

Track it

Track the Alien saga in emberslate

The Sagas tab in the emberslate app has this exact order. Switch between release and chronological order, mark the next step watched, and see how far through you are. It is free on Android.

Get emberslate on Google Play
The Alien saga in the emberslate app: 9 films and 1 show, with Alien from 1979 up next, Mark watched and Skip buttons, and a switch between Release and Chronological order.

Alien watch order questions

What order should I watch the Alien movies in?

Release order: Alien, Aliens, Alien³, Alien Resurrection, Prometheus, Alien: Covenant and Alien: Romulus. Alien: Earth and the Predator crossovers are optional.

Do I need to watch the Alien vs Predator movies?

No. They are crossovers with the Predator films, and the main Alien story does not depend on them.

Where does Alien: Romulus fit?

In release order it comes after Covenant, as the newest film. In story order it sits between Alien and Aliens.

Do I need to watch Prometheus?

It is a prequel that explains the origins of the aliens and leads into Alien: Covenant. Watch it after the original films.

The order and the core, optional and save-for-later marks are the ones the emberslate app uses for this saga. Titles, years and runtimes come from TMDB; series runtimes count aired episodes only and are rounded. First published .