First, let’s get this out of the way: if there’s a movie about space, I’ll be there opening night. Let alone, a revisit to the legendary Alien series which became a piece of iconic horror cannon in 1979 with Sigourney Weaver’s performance? I’m all in.
Alien: Romulus is one of those movies that taps into a battle tested IP which an older, nostalgic demographic will love, while introducing younger audiences to an all-new, modern take on a galactic good vs. evil battle millions of miles away from Earth.
To date, Alien: Romulus has grossed $129MM worldwide on an $80MM budget. Let’s take a look at a few of the key marketing tactics deployed to drive awareness and ticket sales for this installment.
Facehuggers Publicity Stunt in Times Square and at Comic Con
Ever since Barbie hit theaters or that viral Smile marketing campaign at an MLB game, movies must have a viral publicity stunt that skyrockets through the prip Socialress, social media, and everyday life.
Just when you think you’ve seen it all, Alien: Romulus came to play.
On August 5th (a week and a half before Alien: Romulus hit theaters), the marketing team launched an integrated PR stunt involving Facehuggers on pedestrians in New York City and in San Diego at Comic Con.
Some were sitting on the ground, twitching as a Facehugger grabbed their face. Others were seen hanging out of a taxi with one on display (while the taxi had an advertisement for the movie above).
This stunt worked for a variety of reasons. By focusing on the Facehuggers, the stunt was deeply woven into Alien’s brand.
Those who were familiar with the franchise would get it immediately, while those who haven’t seen one Alien movie, would be intrigued from the novelty of it. What is that? What is going on? Mystery and intrigue of something out of the ordinary can elevate a PR stunt and create widely-sharable content.
With TikTokers sharing it and major publications like Barstool Sports and Discovering Film posting about it, the stunt kicked off the final leg of the Alien: Romulus marketing vehicle.
Key Components of a Successful Movie PR Stunt:
Authenticity: As mentioned above, the best PR stunts are true to brand. In other words, what can you do that will shock and wow people walking by in a way no other brand can? How is your movie different from all the others produced before it? Where can your brand stand out?
Content: Second, you need to have a high-quality film and video crew at the stunt. No exceptions. Turning around high-res imagery and b-roll is essential to ensuring that this stunt expands the map and is picked up beyond the local environment that it lives in.
Distribution: Work across all forms of media—press, social media, influencers, content creators, theaters, and more. Line up an exclusive with a popular media outfit. Invite a gaggle of press to the stunt to report on it. Host 15-20 creators and ensure they have what they need to make content. Distribute b-roll, select photos, and a 0:30 spot to key outlets and channels. Engage with these posts from the movie’s official channels, and invite the public in to participate as well.
Alien: Romulus’ stunt checks all three of those boxes, making it a useful launch tactic into the campaign’s final ramp up before the movie’s release.
I’ve got a bone to pick with movie social media strategies that might be a hot take: I’m not sure new movies need an account on every platform.
I get why they always have one, but sometimes it seems foolish that there is a random X account with 1,432 followers for a movie that is coming up. Is that juice worth the squeeze?
Well, movie marketers should decide what exclusive content they will be providing on social and assess which channel is best to engage their audience with that content.
The Alien: Romulus approach is great because they had the @AlienAnthology accounts to build from. That is, an account for the franchise itself, rather than a new account for each movie. This neutralizes the problem many new movies have: how to build an audience quick on an account with the movie debuting only a few months away.
Alien: Romulus’ social content was typical of what you’d expect, following most of the same patterns as all major movies. The campaign kicked off with the poster and initial teaser trailer, followed by an extended trailer, content from live panels and interviews, and then clips leading up to the movie’s premiere.
Date | Content | Category | Days Until Premiere |
|---|---|---|---|
Mar 20 | Tease | 149 | |
Jun 4 | Awareness Push | 73 | |
July 11 | Tickets On Sale | 36 | |
July 18 | 29 |
I would have liked to see a little more. After all, the content is so ripe for engagement. Almost everyone is fascinated with space and the intrigue of alien life-form. Why not capitalize on it in more engaging ways?
Some ideas include:
First Look of Alien: Romulus: There are so many visually-stunning scenes. Releasing a few drops of select photos from the movie each month from March-August would provide a pop in interest.
VR Tour of the Ship: Give me an inside look at the quiet corridors of the ship with the screech of the aliens in the background.
More Teases: A special message from the commander. A static image of some of the results of research tests that were performed on the ship. A GIF of the blinking red light in the freezer room containing the Facehuggers. Immerse me with a slow-burn of content that isn’t directly revealing anything too plot-heavy.
Supplemental Content: More of a backstory of the Remus vs Romulus storyline. A 2-minute video highlighting past moments in all Alien movies. More content with the cast talking about their survival skills, scariest parts of the movie, or who would be most likely to survive in space.
That said, the content published was polished and portrayed the movie in a great light without giving too much away.
Productize the Facehugger
At the Comic Con panel, each audience member was supplied with a Facehugger. In addition, it seems like these were sent to select influencers (or contest winners) with a voucher to see Alien: Romulus in IMAX. Love it!
But, what’s the next step? Let’s get these to the masses.
A simple Google search shows that you have two options: one cheap one from Temu or a dramatic, oversized prop for $70.
Let’s productize these and sell a limited amount the month before—both as add-ons at the movie theater (limited edition?!) and through an e-commerce site in the months leading up to launch. The time has come for studios to expand into e-commerce as a marketing extension to drive awareness, hype, and ultimately ticket sales for their movies.
We saw what happened when people started dressing up as Minions prior to the release of the Minions movie. Consumers started participating in the Minions marketing effort, creating FOMO for others who did not want to be left behind. They wanted to participate too, so they made their costumes and went to the movie. This drew a new audience to the Minions movie who might have never planned to go and ultimately got people up off their couches and into the theater.
Let’s equip the fans with a singular, memorable wearable prop that is a cost-effective must-have for future moviegoers that drives excitement and enhances the user-generated content being shared. This may not be a huge revenue stream, but it should be treated as a marketing tactic that doesn’t lose money, and instead, superchargers ambassadors all around the world to make content and drive excitement for the film.
The Re-Release of Alien
The release of Alien: Romulus aligned with the 45th anniversary of Alien (1979). Thus, it was only fitting that Alien (1979) returned to select theaters on April 26th for what became a tentpole event called “Alien Day.”
This generated more awareness for the next installment coming out in August, while re-acclimating fans (and new viewers) to the 1979 classic that they knew and love. In a way, it served as a primer for what was to come, re-introduced Alien into the cultural conversation, and whet the appetites for Alien: Romulus.
Reebok, Little Golden Book & Other Alien Brand Integrations
In addition to the PR Stunt, a brand collaboration has become a staple for movie marketing efforts. Brand integrations are when an established brand releases a product that leverages the films IP.
Reebok brought back the Reebok Alien Stompers, or better recognized as the iconic shoes Sigourney Weaver’s character wore in 1986’s Aliens. This brand integration drove a lot of press and impressions on social media while creating a little buzz before the summer campaign began. Reebok did periodic drops of the new product to create scarcity and drive excitement and sales.
That brand integration made sense and was a direct alignment with the franchise and IP. Sometimes, however, it makes sense to go with an opposite brand that isn’t wholeheartedly aligned to shock and wow your audience while driving more press and engagement. Enter the Little Golden Book.
In early 2024, the Little Golden Book series released, “A is for Alien,” a children’s book that leveraged the Alien franchise’s IP. While it seems like an odd mix for an R-rated movie to serve as a topic for a children’s book, the product generated press hits from Entertainment Weekly, Fangoria, and so many others. The book was released on July 9th, about a month prior to the movie despite being announced at the start of the year.
Brand integrations take time (and money) to line up, so many of these have to be well-thought-out many months in advance.
However, there is value to these integrations as the marketing and PR teams of those brands will release their firepower to drive awareness for not only these new products, but the movie’s release as well. This continues to keep Alien: Romulus in the news during the multi-month marketing campaign when trailers or other content may not be readily available.
Mission Accomplished
With Alien: Romulus’ success in theaters, this integrated marketing campaign played an integral role in driving consumers to buy tickets.
Overall, I’d give it a B+. They hit a lot of the right notes, but there are just so many missed opportunities on social and in July when a countdown to Alien: Romulus could have commanded the attention of the nation with unqiue content and more Facehuggers around every turn.
