One of the most iconic creatures in horror history, the Xenomorph, has haunted space stations all over the galaxy ever since the first Alien film came out in 1979. In the many decades since, the Xenomorph has had quite a few more outings, including 3 direct sequels, the spin-off series of Alien vs. Predator, and the Prometheus line of prequel stories, no to mention dozens of games, books, comics, and more trying to capitalize on the brand.
Ever since Disney purchased Fox, the future of its many iconic properties has been in some doubt, especially given the company's family-friendly image, which often makes it shy about promoting explicit horror and R-Rated films. Now that Disney Plus has its own special adult section though, many fans are clamoring for access to classic horror films like Alien on the streaming platform.
It would seem that Disney has bigger plans than just making the series available, however. According to The Digital Fix, the company is planning to remaster all the Alien sequels in 4K to polish them up for the Disney Plus release, as well as an upcoming 4K collection of all the films. Until now, the only film of the first 4 that has had a proper 4K treatment is the original film, Alien, leaving Aliens, David Fincher's Alien 3, and Aliens: Resurrection unable to take advantage of the ultra-hi definition resolution.
While it hasn't been confirmed, it seems likely that these new versions of the sequels will also have special features, as expected of most film re-releases. Fans will want to see the director's cuts of both Aliens and Aliens 3, but hopefully, other special features will be included such as deleted scenes, concept art, and possibly even commentary from some of the original creators. Still, nothing has been confirmed, but some more details will hopefully come out soon.
As of right now, the plan seems to be for these remastered versions to be released on Disney Plus first, and then there will eventually be some kind of Alien collection box set for those who prefer physical media at some point in 2022. It is unclear whether any of the sequels will be sold separately, so fans who only want one film, in particular, may have to swallow the cost of the whole set regardless of which movies they prefer.
It's good to see a classic franchise like Alien getting some work put in to preserve its films in the highest quality possible. Not to mention that putting them on streaming will make them much more available for fans and newcomers who are looking for a quick way to revisit some iconic movies. Hopefully, the process goes smoothly and the films are added to Disney Plus sooner rather than later.
Alien is now available on Disney Plus in Canada and Europe.
Source: The Digital Fix