‘Alien: Earth’ Release Schedule, Explained

For the first time in the franchise’s 46-year history, the Alien universe is extending its sharpened teeth to television this August. In another franchise first, Alien: Earth marks the first time a Xenomorphic onslaught has occurred on the planet humans call home, advancing the extraterrestrial threats’ cosmic reign of terror. It’s an intriguing prospect for hardcore horror fans and Alien enthusiasts worldwide, which is why it’s worth highlighting the slightly different release schedule for various regions.

With roughly one week until its debut, it’s time to direct hardcore fans and potential viewers about how, when, and where Alien: Earth can be seen this August and September. Eight episodes are slated for Season 1, with proven showrunner Noah Hawley (Fargo, Legion) writing each and directing the pilot, “Neverland.” Here’s everything to know about Alien: Earth‘s release schedule.

How & When To Stream ‘Alien: Earth’

Beginning August 12, 2025, the first two episodes of Alien: Earth will air on both FX and Hulu. The six remaining episodes will debut on FX on Tuesdays at 7/8c p.m., and will be available to stream on Hulu the next day. The pilot, “Neverland,” was written and directed by Noah Hawley. Episode 2, “Mr. October,” was written by Hawley and directed by Fargo and Legion alum Dana Gonzalez.

Following the first two episodes on August 12, 2025, FX will release one new episode per week every Tuesday at 8/7c. With eight total episodes slated for Season 1, Alien: Earth will run from August 12th to September 23rd.

It’s worth noting that there’s a slight difference in the U.S. and UK release schedules for Alien: Earth. The show premieres on August 12th in the U.S. and on August 13th in the UK and Europe. Afterward, new episodes will be released every Tuesday/Wednesday as outlined above.

‘Alien: Earth’ Is a Prequel to the Original ‘Alien’

Created by Noah Hawley, Alien: Earth is a sci-fi horror series that serves as a prequel to Ridley Scott’s iconic 1979 original movie, Alien. Set two years before the events depicted in the original, Alien: Earth tracks a spaceship called Maginot that crash-lands on Earth in the year 2120.

The plot revolves around Wendy (Sydney Chandler), the first human-AI hybrid on Earth, who is seeking her missing brother, CJ (Alex Lawther), a pure human being. During her search with a motley crew of military tacticians, Wendy is rudely met by a swarm of Xenomorphs, the iconic extraterrestrial aggressors known for their hulking stature, oblong heads, protruding metal teeth, acidic blood, chest bursters, and face-huggers.

The Alien franchise has always explored the complex relationship between humans and AI, with each movie including a robot within the crew, often without the human characters’ knowledge. In the past, Ash, Bishop, Call, and David were advanced AI bots that had hidden agendas and ulterior motives. As such, fans can expect more of the same when Alien: Earth arrives this August.

Who Stars in ‘Alien: Earth’?

Apart from Chandler and Lawther, Alien: Earth boasts a superb international ensemble. The main characters include Kirsh (Timothy Olyphant), a pure-synthetic being who serves as Wendy’s mentor and teacher, and Boy Kavalier (Samuel Blenkin), the greedy human CEO of the Prodigy Corporation, which funds the space-traveling mission.

Human characters in the series include Dame Silvia (Essie Davis), Yutani (Sandra Yi Sencindiver), Siberian (Diem Camille), Arthur (David Rysdahl), and Morrow (Babou Ceesay). Emphasizing the difference between organic and inorganic characters, the main synthetics include Slightly (Adarsh Gourav), Tootles (Kit Young), Smee (Jonathan Ajayi), Nibs (Lily Newmark), and Curly (Erana James).

For those who recognize the name Yutani, the character will connect to the series as the last surviving member of the Yutani-Weyland Corporation, the corrupt outfit from the first film that ordered the capture of the Xenomorph for scientific research, despite the human costs.

How ‘Alien: Earth’s Timeline Fits Within the Franchise

Conceived as an Earthly origin story, Alien: Earth occurs two years before the events of Alien. According to Hawley, this means the story will largely ignore what transpired in Prometheus and Alien: Covenant, both of which were also set before the events of Ridley Scott’s original. That means neither Ellen Ripley (Sigourney Weaver) nor David (Michael Fassbender) will be part of the story.

As for the overarching chronology, Alien: Earth is set in 2120, 27 years after Prometheus (set in 2093), and 16 years after Alien: Covenant (set in 2104). That means Alien: Earth also takes place 17 years before the video game Alien: Isolation (set in 2137), 22 years before Alien: Romulus (set in 2142), 59 years before James Cameron’s Aliens and David Fincher’s Alien 3 (set in 2179), and 259 years before the events in Alien: Resurrection (set in 2379).

With the franchise spanning from 2093 to 2379, the creators have plenty of evolutionary horror to explore ahead. Hawley has also stated that if Alien: Earth is successful, he plans to continue the timeline until it eventually converges with Ridley Scott’s landmark original film.

Alien: Earth premieres the first two episodes on FX and Hulu on August 12, 2025, at 7/8c p.m. After that, new episodes will air on FX every Tuesday and on Hulu every Wednesday. The show will run from August 12th to September 23rd.