Alien and Aliens both hit Netflix on September 1, but not the cuts fans argue about

Forty-seven years ago, Ridley Scott let loose a bit of cosmic horror that promptly redefined what science fiction could look like on screen. Now, after all these years—and an armful of sequels, prequels, spinoffs, and arguments about which cut is "definitive"—the original Alien is finally heading to Netflix, streaming for the first time this September. If you've somehow never been introduced to the film's combination of bleak spacecraft corridors, corporate indifference, and xenomorph-ruined lunch breaks, well, no time like the present.

Ridley Scott’s Alien will stream on Netflix alongside Aliens from 1 September 2026.

The original shock to the system

It’s a good a moment as any to remind you what made 1979’s Alien such a touchstone. The plot’s deceptively simple: the Nostromo is trundling its way back to Earth when the onboard computer 'Mother' detects a distress signal and wakes up the crew for a little unscheduled detour. Among them is Ellen Ripley (Sigourney Weaver, obviously), who ends up being a bit more sensible—and a lot more durable—than the rest once things go south on an abandoned alien vessel. After an ill-advised close encounter with a facehugger, the real fun begins as an unwanted guest makes itself very much at home aboard the ship.

This isn't just about gore or jump scares; Alien turned space into something genuinely menacing. The film introduced a creature so nightmarish, it rendered previous cinematic Martians and bug-eyed beasties instantly out of date. It’s easy to forget, with a mountain of imitators trailing in its wake, just how much Scott’s film changed the game. Critics and fans alike have kept it at or near the pinnacle ever since; the original has a 93% fresh rating from critics and an even higher 94% from audiences on Rotten Tomatoes. Just to put this in context, that’s right up there with Blade Runner: The Final Cut—also directed by Scott, also the subject of endless “which version is better?” debates.

Franchise still not dead

If you’re itching for something new, there’s movement. The 2024 instalment, Alien: Romulus, gave the franchise an overdue shot in the arm with a box office haul north of $350 million. Reception was strong enough that a follow-up felt inevitable. Director Fede Álvarez confirmed in 2025 that the next script was locked, though he made it plain he wouldn’t return for another go in the director’s chair. Since then, the rumour mill’s been in overdrive—some claimed creative spats between Scott (who, as producer, still calls a lot of the shots) and whatever director wanted to take over, leading to talk that the next film might’ve been canned. But just a few weeks back, Steve Asbell, head of 20th Century Studios, reassured genre fans on X (the social network formerly known as Twitter) that another sequel is very much alive, just… evolving. The only unknown now is what shape it will take and who’ll direct it; as usual, Scott’s influence looms large.

• Ripley’s original battle with the xenomorph remains streaming gold, and it now shares billing with James Cameron’s Aliens (1986) on Netflix, both arriving 1 September 2026.

As for which version of Alien is best—original, director’s cut, some mythical hybrid that exists only in fan edits—you’ll have to debate that yourself. For now, Netflix is serving up the classic theatrical editions, which is as good as Halloween viewing gets. After nearly half a century, they’re still the benchmark for anyone trying to prove that 'no one can hear you scream in space' wasn’t just a marketing line.