Alien: Earth Creator Noah Hawley Teases FX Series: Humans Are Trapped Between 'Parasitic Past and the AI Future'

Alien: Earth doesn't only introduce alien life forms — the upcoming FX series is set to feature technological innovations new to the Alien franchise. In the show's distant future, five corporations govern the Earth: Prodigy, Weyland-Yutani, Lynch, Dynamic, and Threshold. And Prodigy has made a breakthrough in the race toward immortality by creating "hybrids," described as "humanoid robots infused with human consciousness." 

At a press screening in May, Alien: Earth creator Noah Hawley discussed the series' exploration of technology and AI. "One of the reasons that Alien was so exciting to me to adapt was that it's not just a monster movie," he said. "That moment where Ian Holm reveals himself to be an android, you realize that that humanity is trapped between this parasitic, primordial past and the AI future, and they're both trying to kill us."

In other words, Alien: Earth is not only a horror series because of the extraterrestrial creatures. "Technology is certainly at the forefront, both in its innovation and also how it's allowing us to create unreality that's shaping our reality," Hawley said.

The showrunner also discussed the joy of expanding the world created by the films. "The amazing thing about the Alien franchise as a gift to a storyteller is that there's remarkably little mythology to it," he said. "All we really know is that there's a company called Weyland-Yutani and and most of the stories happen within that context. But we don't know how the Earth or universe is governed. One of the things that was always really fascinating to me is, that first movie it's like Samuel Beckett: We're going to a place — we don't know where. To do a thing — we don't know what. For people — we don't know who. There's this existential quality to this story that was really appealing to me." 

That mystery allowed for the Alien: Earth team to fill in some of the gaps. The series takes place in 2120, just two years before the events of the original Alien film, set in 2122.

ALSO READ: Everything to know about FX's Alien: Earth TV series

"I was able to look at the Earth and go, 100 years from now, how is it run? How have we organized ourselves?" Hawley continued. "We know it'll be hotter, we know it'll be wetter. It certainly seems like we're in a race for a global monopoly. And there's usually a last step, which is a few players left all competing."

The showrunner said he drew inspiration from history to create the dynamic between the five corporations governing the Earth in this fictional future. "[In] 1900, you had Tesla and Edison and Westinghouse, they were all trying to control electricity," Hawley explained. "And so I thought, [what] if we make it that moment technologically, of what's next for humanity?"

Prodigy appears to have a slight edge in answering that question, since it's behind the creation of the hybrids. The trailers introduce the show's protagonist, Wendy (Sydney Chandler), who has the brain of a child in the robotic body of an adult. "An Alien movie is about, basically, will one human survive? But this show is about, will humanity survive, and who's more human than a child?" Hawley said. "They're bad liars, they don't know how to pretend they're not scared. Because the franchise is filled with such terrible people — Sigourney [Weaver's character] says, 'I don't know which species is worse. At least they don't f--- each other over for a percentage' — Is humanity even worth saving? And to that end, I thought, let the children navigate the discovery both of what these creatures are, and then also what it means to be a grown-up."

Alien: Earth premieres Tuesday, Aug. 12 at 8/7c on FX and Hulu with two episodes, followed by a new episode each Tuesday at 8/7c.