Summary
Alien: Romulus' title might not be clear at first, but there is a deeper meaning behind the newAlienmovie’s name.Throughout theAlienseries, the titles of each new outing have grown more inventive.AlienandAlienswere pretty self-explanatory, andAlien 3didn’t require much interpretation. 1997’sAlien: Resurrectionreferred to the fact that the franchise’s original heroine Ellen Ripley was revived via cloning after she died inAlien 3, while 2012’sPrometheuswas named after the mythic Titan who gifted humanity with fire. This aligned metaphorically with David’s role in the movie.
David and his creator, Weyland Yutani CEO Peter Weyland, gifted (or arguably cursed) humanity with the Xenomorph thanks to their ill-fated mission. The meaning ofAlien: Covenant’s title was initially less obvious, but the movie itself revealed that this was the name of the ship that carried the cast to their doom. The meaning of2024’sAlien: Romulusleaned more ambiguous upon the original announcement. But, details about the movie and human mythology reveal the truth behind whatAlien: Romulus' title means.
Why Alien: Romulus Is Rated R: How Scary & Violent The Movie Is
Alien: Romulus is the latest entry in the classic sci-fi/horror series, and the violence in the film easily justifies the R-rating it recieved.
“Romulus” Is The Name Of A Science Lab In Alien: Romulus
The Lab’s Name Is Confirmed
The fact that the lab’s steel door is emblazoned with “Authorised Personnel Only” means its contents are all the more mysterious.
The in-universe explanation forAlien: Romulus' title is tied to the location where the movie’s story takes place. The movie brings a new cast of characters aboard the Renaissance space station as they look to find a way to find new lives. This brings them acrosstwo labs aboard the space station named Romulus and Remus. It is from the first module thatAlien: Romulusgets its title. The movie is directly connecting its name to the lab aboard the Weyland-Yutani space station filled with alien experiments.
SinceAlien: Romulustakes placebetweenAlienandAliens, the purpose of the Romulus Lab aboard the Renaissance space station is tied to Weyland-Yutani’s continued interest in investigating the nature of Xenomorphs. The lab, although widely abandoned by the timeAlien: Romulus' cast of charactersgets to it, is incredibly dangerous thanks to the alien nature of what it contains. That is why the steel door to get in is emblazoned with"Authorized Personnel Only.“The Romulus Lab, and presumably the Remus lab too, were not for just anyone to wander into.
How Alien’s Romulus Lab Connects To Roman Mythology
Romulus Was The Survivor Of Rome’s Romulus and Remus Myth
Much likePrometheus,Alien: Romulusborrows its name from classical mythology. The story of Romulus and Remus is a mythical tale of Rome’s founder Romulus and his ill-fated brother Remus, who were raised by a wolf. Sons of the god Mars, Romulus, and Remus returned to their birthplace to restore their grandfather Numitor to his throne. When they succeeded, the duo set out to establish a city of their own. An argument ensued and, although the details of the death differ depending on the retelling,Remus was killed while Romulus survivedto establish Rome.
By using both Romulus and Remus as names of labs aboard the Renaissance space station,Alien: Romulusis unmistakably drawing inspiration from this piece of Roman mythology. That does not mean that the movie is about two siblings who get in a fight and one dies to create an empire. However, the idea of two siblings searching for a new home and encountering trouble along the way is very much connected to the themes and story at play inAlien: Romulus.
Alien: Romulus' Title Reveals The Movie’s Real Message Is About Siblings
Rain and Andy’s Relationship May Mirror The Story of Romulus and Remus
According to interviews with both Alvarez and Rain’s actor Cailee Spaeny, Rain and Andy’s relationship is central to the story ofAlien: Romulus.
The influence of the Romulus and Remus story from Roman mythology makes the double meaning ofAlien: Romulus' title clear when it comes to identifying the key focus of the movie.The film is built around Rain (Cailee Spaeny) and Andy (David Jonsson), who have a sibling-style relationship, even though Andy is an android and Rain is human. This was confirmed pre-release through interviews with Fede Álvarez and other cast members, as the importance of the relationship between Rain and Andy forAlien: Romulus' story crystallized.
The focus on siblings is nothing new for Fede Álvarez’s movies either.Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2022, an earlier franchise reboot that he had a story credit on, also focused on a pair of siblings and their troubled relationship before introducing Leatherface to proceedings. Before that, Alvarez’sEvil Deadreboot from 2013 centered on a brother whose attempt to help his sister cure a drug addiction in a remote cabin went horribly awry.Alvarez clearly has a knack for exploring sibling relationships in horror movies, soAlien: Romulusreturning to this well-worn trope makes sense.
How Alien: Romulus' Title Compares To Other Alien Movies
Some Trends Continue
Alien: Romulus' title holds similarities to several past entries in the franchise, specifically Ridley Scott’s prequels. It marks the third straightAlienmovie wherethe subtitle is exactly the same as a major ship or location in the film.Prometheuswas named after the Weyland Corp ship that transported Elizabeth Shaw, David, and others to LV-223. Meanwhile,Alien: Covenantcarried the same name as the colony ship meant to take Daniels and thousands of others to Origae-6.Alien: Romulusborrowing its name from the lab aboard the space station keeps that trend alive.
But,Alien: Romulusalso joins the list ofAlienmovies that have more than one meaning to their titles. Just asPrometheusdrew from Greek mythologyand the god of fire to symbolize the introduction of the Engineers and tease David’s interest in creating life,Romuluspulls from Roman mythology when it comes to Rain and Andy’s sibling relationship. These details might not be obvious to anyone who is not overly familiar with the various mythologies, but it helps add extra layers toAlien: Romulusbefore or after seeing it.
