Nothing has terrified mankind nearly as much as the Alien movies, although space itself is frightening enough. Since 1979, when Ridley Scott came up with the first Xenomorph, the benchmark against which all other sci-fi horrors have been measured has been the Alien movies: terrifyingly narrow hallways, body horror, and tension of such a nature that you will probably not dare turn off the light.
And now that Alien: Romulus is breathing new life into the franchise, it’s time to take a step back and wonder: what movies are really the scariest? Least to most frightening, here’s the rundown.
9. Alien: Resurrection (1997)
The fourth installment of the core series gets campy. Two hundred years after Alien 3, Ripley comes back through cloning and fills her life with quirky supporting actors and mythical hybrid beasts. Though Sigourney Weaver remains in charge of every frame, the frights are drowned out by the excess of action and black humor. It’s beautifully ridiculous, but it provokes more eye-rolling than goosebumps.
8. Alien vs. Predator (2004)
It was a horror fan’s bad dream on paper: two of horror’s finest monsters going at each other. In reality? A PG-13 action movie that left out the gore and tension that scared both franchises to death. Yes, there are quite impressive fight scenes, but the scare factor is watered down, turning this crossover into something more of a spectacle than a fright-fest.
7. Aliens vs. Predator: Requiem (2007)
If the first AVP was too gentle, this one swings in the opposite direction entirely. All about going for an R-rating full of gore and a great amount of very unpleasant imagery. Shame that, because the action is dark and unlit, much of it is a blur. Plenty of bloodletting, but not a great deal of real tension—it’s all splatter and no prolonged horror.
6. Prometheus (2012)
Ridley Scott’s return was more introspective, replacing jump frights with existential horror. With breathtaking visuals and universe-sized concepts about the origins of humanity, Prometheus is less about non-stop fear and more about torturous suspense. When the body horror does materialize, it’s horrific—but much of the movie depends on mood and atmosphere instead of outright fear.
5. Alien: Covenant (2017)
Committing to returning the franchise to horror, Covenant reinvests in the classic Xenomorph as well as introduces the feral Neomorphs. It’s gory, more panicked, and full of survival-horror tension. While it doesn’t quite reach the nerve-grinding brilliance of the 1979 original, it’s a good, frightening installment that’s like a gory homecoming.
4. Aliens (1986)
James Cameron’s comeback is iconic—albeit as much because of its action as because of its horror. Packed with pulse rifles, pyrotechnics, and Ripley at the peak of heroic form, it’s as much about adrenaline as about terror. But the suspense is there, and the hive action is pulse-poundingly exhilarating. It’s ride-or-die thrills, though less frightening.
3. Alien: Romulus (2024)
The latest installment combines vintage terror with modern spectacle. Directed and written by Fede Álvarez, it strands a group of young colonists on a space station, where the vintage horrors lie in wait. With splatter-body horror, unrelenting tension, and homages to Scott’s initial and Cameron’s second, it’s a love letter to the audience that’s not afraid to let the frights fly.
2. Alien 3 (1992)
David Fincher’s dark directorial debut may have divided fans, but it can’t be denied its unflinching darkness. Stranded on a penal planet with a new monster, Ripley faces despair full-on. The dark atmosphere of the film, high body count, and merciless violence make it one of the scariest entries in the franchise. It may not be a people-pleaser, but it’s inescapably haunting.
1. Alien (1979)
The original remains intact. Due to its claustrophobic environment, intense pace, and H.R. Giger’s legendary creature design, Scott’s Alien redefined horror in space. The chestburster sequence is one of cinema’s most shocking moments, and the feeling of horror never releases. Decades later, it is the scariest Alien film and also one of the greatest horror movies of all time.
The Alien franchise has had its share of peaks and troughs, but whichever way it turns towards action, philosophy, or outright horror, it has always played on our fear of the unknown. At its strongest, the franchise doesn’t simply frighten—it haunts, long after the credits have rolled.