Alien Movies Ranked: Best to Worst
In my Alien movies ranked list, Alien (1979) is the best film in the series, ahead of Aliens, Alien: Romulus, Alien 3, Prometheus and Alien: Covenant, with Alien Resurrection last. The list covers the five main films and the two Ridley Scott prequels, and it leaves out the Predator crossovers on purpose, for reasons given below.
Key Takeaways
- Alien (1979) ranks first and Aliens second, and the gap between them is small enough that a reader who prefers action could reverse the pair.
- The ranking covers seven films: the five main films plus Prometheus and Alien: Covenant. The two Predator crossovers and the Alien: Earth series are not ranked.
- Alien (1979) is the scariest film in the series, because it traps seven crew members on one ship with a threat they cannot escape.
- Alien: Romulus is the highest placed film of the modern era, in third place, ahead of Alien 3 and both Scott prequels.
- Box office does not set the order: Prometheus earned the most of the seven at $403 million worldwide, and it sits fifth.
Hot Takes
- Priya Nair (opinion): Alien (1979) beats Aliens, but only just, and I would not argue hard with anyone who flips them.
- Priya Nair (opinion): Alien: Romulus is the best Alien film since 1986, and it earns third place over Alien 3 on how well it uses its young cast.
- Priya Nair (opinion): Alien Resurrection is the most interesting failure in the series, and last place does not mean it is the least watchable.
Opinion, by Priya Nair.
- 1
Alien
Ridley Scott's film traps seven crew members and a cat called Jones on a working ship, and that sense of a place where people do a job is what makes the threat believable. It cost $11 million, earned $110 million worldwide according to Box Office Mojo, and won the Oscar for Best Visual Effects. Every later film in the series is answering it, and in my opinion none has matched how little it needs to frighten you.
- 2
Aliens
James Cameron's 1986 sequel changes genre to a war film, and it works because Ripley has a clear reason to go back to LV-426. Burke, the company man, and a team of Colonial Marines give it the best ensemble in the series, with Carrie Henn as Newt and Lance Henriksen as Bishop. It cost $17 million and earned $183 million worldwide, the largest gross of the four original era films. I put it second by a small margin.
- 3
Alien: Romulus
Fede Álvarez's 2024 film returns to the shape of the first one, with young miners boarding a derelict station for cryosleep pods, and it sits chronologically between Alien (1979) and Aliens. Cailee Spaeny as Rain and David Jonsson as her android brother Andy give it an emotional center that the prequels lack. It cost $80 million and earned $351 million worldwide, and in my opinion it is the best film since 1986.
- 4
Alien³
David Fincher's 1992 film strands Ripley on Fiorina 161, a foundry world of prisoners, and takes away Newt and Hicks before the story begins in earnest. That is a harsh choice and it divides fans, but the setting, Charles Dance as the prison doctor Clemens and Elliot Goldenthal's score give it a mood no other entry has. It cost $50 million and earned $160 million worldwide, and I rank it above the prequels for its atmosphere.
- 5
Prometheus
Ridley Scott's 2012 prequel opens in 2089 with Elizabeth Shaw and Charlie Holloway following a star map to the moon LV-223, and its first act is the most ambitious in the series. Michael Fassbender's David is the best thing in it. It cost $130 million and earned $403 million worldwide, the highest of the seven, but its questions about the Engineers outrun its answers, which is why it sits fifth.
- 6
Alien: Covenant
Ridley Scott's 2017 film shifts back toward creature horror, and it was shot on sets built in Australia as well as on location at Milford Sound. Michael Fassbender plays both David and Walter, and Katherine Waterston's Daniels is a capable lead. In my opinion the crew's decision to investigate a transmission instead of resuming the trip to Origae-6 is hard to believe, which holds it below Prometheus. It cost $97 million and earned $241 million worldwide.
- 7
Alien Resurrection
Jean-Pierre Jeunet's 1997 film clones Ripley 200 years after her death, and has Winona Ryder's Call, Ron Perlman's Johner and Dominique Pinon's Vriess, who whistles the Popeye theme, as the mercenary crew. Jeunet has said he had almost total freedom, and the result has the strongest visual personality of the later films. It also has the tone furthest from the other four main films, and that is why I place it last. It cost $75 million and earned $161 million worldwide.
How I Ranked the Alien Movies Best to Worst
Alien movies ranked here means seven films: the five main films (Alien (1979), Aliens, Alien 3, Alien Resurrection and Alien: Romulus) plus the two prequels, Prometheus and Alien: Covenant. I ordered them by two questions: how well does the film frighten, and how much do I care about the people it puts in danger? Budgets and grosses give context, but they did not move any film up or down. I do not quote critic or audience scores, so every placement below is my own opinion.
Two films are left out on purpose. AVP: Alien vs. Predator (2004), directed by Paul W. S. Anderson, and Aliens vs. Predator: Requiem (2007), directed by Colin Strause and Greg Strause, are crossovers with the Predator as a shared lead, and their pages sit in the Predator franchise. Alien: Earth is a television series, so it is covered on the Alien movies hub and in the Alien timeline. If you want the films in story order instead of my order, Alien movies in order gives both release and chronological lists.
The Order, Best to Worst
- Alien (1979), directed by Ridley Scott
- Aliens (1986), directed by James Cameron
- Alien: Romulus (2024), directed by Fede Álvarez
- Alien 3 (1992), directed by David Fincher
- Prometheus (2012), directed by Ridley Scott
- Alien: Covenant (2017), directed by Ridley Scott
- Alien Resurrection (1997), directed by Jean-Pierre Jeunet
The question that splits fans down the middle is which film deserves the top spot, and it is where I start.
Which Alien Movie Is Better, Alien or Aliens?
In my opinion Alien (1979) is the better film, with Aliens close behind, and the two are not really competing at the same job. Scott made a workplace horror film in which seven crew members and a cat called Jones are woken early by the ship's computer, Mother, and sent toward a signal on a nearby moon. Cameron made a war film in which Ellen Ripley, found after 57 years in hypersleep, agrees to return to LV-426 with a team of Colonial Marines, on the condition that the creatures are destroyed. I give the first film the edge because its fear has no escape route, while the second gives its characters a squad and a plan. If your taste runs to action, reverse my first two places and you will not be wrong.
Which Alien Movie Is the Scariest?
Alien (1979) is the scariest, in my view, because everything frightening about it comes from isolation. The Nostromo is a commercial towing ship on its way home, the crew is small, and nobody is coming to help. Alien: Romulus comes second on that measure, since its young miners board a derelict station to steal cryosleep pods and have no one to call either, and Alien 3 is the bleakest in tone, with Ripley stranded on the foundry world Fiorina 161 among violent prisoners. Aliens is tense but it is the most action driven of the four, so I would call it thrilling before I would call it scary.
Which Alien Movies Are Bad?
I do not think any of the seven is bad, but the bottom three are the ones I would recommend last. Alien: Covenant (2017) returns to creature horror, yet its plot leans on a crew that chooses to investigate a human voice transmission on an unexpectedly habitable planet rather than resume the trip to Origae-6, and I find that hard to believe. Prometheus asks large questions about the Engineers and then answers few of them. Alien Resurrection is last because its tone sits furthest from the other main films, even though Jeunet, by his own account reported by TheWrap, had almost total freedom, and the result has more visual personality than either prequel. Placing a film last is a comment on fit with the series, never on the people who made it.
What Are the Top 5 Alien Movies?
My top five are Alien (1979), Aliens, Alien: Romulus, Alien 3 and Prometheus, in that order. Sigourney Weaver plays Ripley in four of the seven films (Alien, Aliens, Alien 3 and Alien Resurrection), and three of those four sit in my top four places, which says something about how much the series depends on her. Romulus manages without Ripley by building a new lead in Rain, played by Cailee Spaeny, and by pairing her with her android brother Andy, which connects it to the series habit of using androids as moral tests. For the creature itself, see the xenomorph page, and for the lead see Ellen Ripley.
Does Money Match the Order?
Box office and my order disagree, and that is fine. Prometheus earned $403 million worldwide on a $130 million budget, the largest gross of the seven, and Alien: Romulus took in $351 million on $80 million. Alien (1979) earned $110 million on $11 million, and Aliens earned $183 million on $17 million, so both original films returned roughly ten times their budgets. Those are the figures from Box Office Mojo and The Numbers, and they are unadjusted for inflation, so they are a poor guide to which film is best. The full table is on the Alien box office page.
What Comes After the Ranking?
The ranking will change when a new film arrives. On October 23, 2026 TheWrap reported that 20th Century Studios has a new Alien film in early development, with Ridley Scott producing, Aaron Guzikowski writing and no director or release date attached. Whether a direct sequel to Romulus is still active has not been confirmed in any source I could read in full, so the Alien Romulus 2 page tracks it as a status, not a date. Until then, if you have time for only three films, watch Alien (1979), Aliens and Alien: Romulus in that order, and check where to watch Alien to see which service has them in your country.
FAQs
What is considered the best Alien movie?
In my ranking the best Alien movie is Alien (1979), directed by Ridley Scott. Aliens (1986), directed by James Cameron, is a close second in my list. I do not use critic or audience scores, so this is my opinion and not a poll result.
What is the most liked Alien movie?
I do not rank by critic or audience scores, so I cannot name a most liked film by that measure. By money, Prometheus earned the most of the seven films at $403 million worldwide, followed by Alien: Romulus at $351 million, according to Box Office Mojo and The Numbers. Among the four original era films, Aliens earned the most at $183 million.
Which Alien movie is the scariest?
In my opinion the scariest is Alien (1979), because seven crew members on one ship have nowhere to run. Alien: Romulus is my second choice for scares, and Alien 3 is the bleakest. Aliens is the most action driven of the original films.
Which Alien movies are bad?
I do not consider any of the seven ranked films bad. The three I place lowest are Prometheus, Alien: Covenant and Alien Resurrection, because the first two leave questions open or strain belief and the third has the tone furthest from the rest of the series. The two Predator crossovers are not ranked here.
What are the top 5 Alien movies?
My top five are Alien (1979), Aliens, Alien: Romulus, Alien 3 and Prometheus. Alien: Covenant and Alien Resurrection complete the seven films I rank.
Which Alien movie is better, 1 or 2?
I rate Alien (1979) slightly above Aliens, because its horror has no escape route, while Aliens is a war film with Colonial Marines and a clear mission. If you prefer action to dread, Aliens is the better pick for you.