We don’t yet know what’s in store for the future of the Alien film franchise (much has been speculated, but nothing is concrete), but one thing we do know is that six official Alien Universe short films are headed our way beginning tomorrow, March 29th. Tomorrow, 20th Century Fox will launch the Alien 40th Anniversary Shorts Series on IGN starting with Alien: Containment, the first of six terrifying new tales set in the franchise’s universe.
Developed by emerging filmmakers who were selected from over 550 entries in a contest held in conjunction with global creative community Tongal, the anniversary initiative focused on finding the biggest fans of the franchise to create new, thrilling stories for the Alien fandom.
The shorts will rollout weekly starting tomorrow, MARCH 29th, at 12PM EST/9AM PST on IGN, and beginning May 3rd, they will be available on the official @AlienAnthology social channels and AlienUniverse.com, along with exclusive behind-the-scenes content.
Here’s the full schedule, along with plot rundowns:
March 29th: ALIEN: Containment –Four survivors find themselves stranded aboard a small escape pod in deep space. Trying to piece together the details around the outbreak that led to their ship’s destruction, they find themselves unsure to trust whether or not one of them might be infected. Written and Directed by Chris Reading
April 5th: ALIEN: Specimen– It’s the night shift in a colony greenhouse, and Julie, a botanist, does her best to contain suspicious soil samples that have triggered her sensitive lab dog. Despite her best efforts the lab unexpectedly goes into full shutdown and she is trapped inside. Little does she know, an alien specimen has escaped the mysterious cargo, and a game of cat and mouse ensues as the creature searches for a host. Directed by Kelsey Taylor
April 12th: ALIEN: Night Shift –When a missing space trucker is discovered hungover and disoriented, his co-worker suggests a nightcap as a remedy. Near closing time, they are reluctantly allowed inside the colony supply depot where the trucker’s condition worsens, leaving a young supply worker alone to take matters into her own hands. Written and Directed by Aidan Brezonick
April 19th: ALIEN: Ore– As a hard-working miner of a planet mining colony, Lorraine longs to make a better life for her daughter and grandchildren. When her shift uncovers the death of a fellow miner under mysterious circumstances, Lorraine is forced to choose between escape or defying management orders and facing her fears to fight for the safety of her family.Written and Directed by the Spear Sisters
April 26th: ALIEN: Harvest – The surviving crew of a damaged deep-space harvester have minutes to reach the emergency evacuation shuttle. A motion sensor is their only navigation tool leading them to safety while a creature in the shadows terrorizes the crew. However, the greatest threat might have been hiding in plain sight all along. Directed by Benjamin Howdeshell
April 26th: ALIEN: Alone – Hope, an abandoned crew member aboard the derelict chemical hauler Otranto, has spent a year trying to keep her ship and herself alive as both slowly fall apart. After discovering hidden cargo, she risks it all to power up the broken ship in search of human life. Written and Directed by Noah Miller
While you wait, watch the new red band teaser for the shorts below!
