5 Vicious Alien Horror Movies To Watch After ‘Alien: Earth’
Alien: Earth had landed on FX, and I cannot wait to see the Xenomorphs throw hands on familiar land. This got me thinking about some of my other favorite aliens who landed on this planet and immediately chose violence. We have seen a ton of friendly extraterrestrials like in E.T., Mac and Me, and The Man Who Fell to Earth. Even my beloved Doctor Who has worked hard to be the most helpful alien for over 60 years. While there’s nothing wrong with interspecies friendships, it’s not as fun as a grudge match stretching across time and space.
That’s why I am here to highlight five times that creatures from other planets came to beat humanity’s ass. I found myself leaning in for these inspiring hostile takeovers. I love that they flew to this floating rock to be a problem. This is why they are some of the best vicious aliens in the streaming streets this summer.
Attack the Block (dir. Joe Cornish)
Where You Can Watch: Hulu and Pluto TV
South London troublemakers must protect their neighborhood from an alien invasion. This movie had my attention as soon as I saw John Boyega and Jodie Whittaker in the cast. However, I was surprised by how fun it was and how ruthless these aliens are. Was this group of teens cutting up before the aliens tried to take over? Technically, yes. Did so many members of the gang deserve to die in heartbreaking ways? No. However, it was a surprising turn of events, and those deaths raised the stakes even higher. When the fight makes its way into an apartment building, these aliens do more damage than I could have ever dreamed. That’s why Attack the Block is mandatory summer viewing and one of my favorite sci-fi action movies of its era.
The Faculty (dir. Robert Rodriguez)
Where You Can Watch: Pluto TV
A bullied teen discovers that his high school is being taken over by aliens with sinister intentions. We love to see aliens land and start snatching bodies because that is nightmare fuel. I know various versions of this story have been told hundreds of times. However, this version kicks off in a high school and is set in the ’90s. So, it is an important film for my generation. It was also about time an intelligent species finally figured out the best plan should start with the youth because “Fuck them kids”. More importantly, the cast includes Josh Hartnett, Shawn Hatosy, Usher, Jordana Brewster, Clea DuVall, and Elijah Wood. Do not even get me started on the adult cast because that is another hundred names of actors I am obsessed with. This subgenre has never been more fun than The Faculty.
Invasion of the Body Snatchers (dir. Philip Kaufman)
Where You Can Watch: Max
Aliens invade San Francisco and take the forms of their victims. Again, this story is almost as old as the genre. This 1978 remake of 1956’s beloved Invasion of the Body Snatchers found new ways to be terrifying as it cranked up the justified paranoia. Which is why I love them both, but I rewatch this one a few times a year. Along for this hostile alien takeover are Brooke Adams, Jeff Goldblum, and the late Donald Sutherland. These aliens did not come to play. They refused to even show mercy to any of the future Silver Foxes of America. This movie goes hard, and the final scene has become powerfully iconic. Between this version and The Thing, it is no wonder we all have trust issues nowadays.
Prey (dir. Dan Trachtenberg)
Where You Can Watch: Hulu
A skilled Comanche Nation warrior goes head-to-head with the first Predator to land on Earth. No shade to Arnold Schwarzenegger and the boys, but watching them wrestle a giant alien into submission was not really my thing. So, I tapped out of this franchise pretty early and almost missed Prey. This is the only installment I truly love because it is not just muscles versus aliens in a smackdown. Sure, Naru (Amber Midthunder) is tough and a skilled fighter. However, she is also smart and ready to outmatch her opponent on multiple levels. The stakes are also high as the Predator runs through all of the supposedly better male warriors like water before Naru shuts him down. This movie is so good that the new animated film, Predator: Killer of Killers, is still struggling to get out of its shadow.
Species (dir. Roger Donaldson)
Where You Can Watch: MGM+, Pluto TV, Sling TV, and Tubi
A group of scientists must find a killer alien-human hybrid murdering men on her quest to mate. This movie could have easily been another throwaway movie about a blonde alien who wants to bone. However, watching this alien exterminate men who do not serve her purpose, or try to hurt her, alerted us that this is a different beast. This being is in survival mode and trying to procreate. Anyone who gets in her way is fair game. That’s why she is one of the most dangerous aliens on this list. This ’90s moment stars Natasha Henstridge, Ben Kingsley, Forest Whitaker, Marg Helgenberger, and Alfred Molina. Also along for the ride are a young Michelle Williams (Dawson’s Creek, not Destiny’s Child) and the late Michael Madsen. If you are a lover of ’90s aliens who choose violence, then you might enjoy this one.
I know John Carpenter’s The Thing is on VOD, so it is not streaming for free. However, if you are going to rent an alien movie, it needs to be that one. I love that this creature flew to this floating rock to be a problem. That is why it is one of the most cherished vicious aliens in the genre. Like the others on the list, it was tired of our shit and decided to tap in and take over.
The first two episodes of Alien: Earth is streaming now on Hulu and Disney+.
Find me waiting for our new alien overlords on Bluesky.
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