Alien movie reboot hides an Alien: Isolation Easter egg

We know that in space, no one can hear you scream. Still, we imagine you'll be able to hear horror fans screaming from Earth about an Easter egg found in the upcoming Alien movie reboot. While we've been having nightmares about Xenomorphs since 1979, Fede Álvarez hopes to find a new way to reinvent the series.

Following Ridley Scott's original, James Cameron's (arguably superior) sequel, and a string of others, Scott took the reins once again for Prometheus and Alien: Covenant as prequels to Ellen Ripley's time aboard the Nostromo. Scott's plans for another six post-Covenant were canned, leaving Evil Dead (2013)'s Álvarez to start again.

Alien reboot has an Alien: Isolation Easter egg

Details about Álvarez's reboot are thin on the ground, however, The Hollywood Reporter tells us it will focus on a much younger cast of doomed humans being hunted by Xenos. The director recently celebrated his first day of filming by sharing a shot from the film rumoured to be called Alien: Romulus. 

Even though it's a fairly standard clapperboard shot, others noticed how a familiar-looking phone station appears in the back of the shot - honouring Creative Assembly's Alien: Isolation video game from 2014. For those unfamiliar, these phones were used as save stations throughout the survival horror. 

One fan cheered, "Alien Isolation vibes all over it and more with that emergency phone on the corner," while another added, "Beyond Excited for a Fede Alvarez directed Alien film which LOOKS to be based in the Amanda Ripley Alien Isolation Era."

Loving the idea that the next Alien could at least be inspired by bits of Isolation, someone else concluded, "Since the Fede Alvarez Alien movie is being influenced by the look and feel of Isolation I'm praying we get to see the working joes done in live action, f*****g love those guys so much."

Is Álvarez's movie a live-action Alien: Isolation?

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As much as we'd love a live-action Alien: Isolation, there's no indication that this is the case. We seem to be pushing away from the franchise that was previously established, meaning introducing Amanda Ripley as the daughter of Sigourney Weaver's Ellen Ripley is unlikely. 

Still, if Álvarez's Alien is influenced by the retro style of the Sevastopol Station and harks back to Scott's '70s classic, we're all for it. The Craft: Legacy's Cailee Spaeny is reportedly the Ripley-esque lead of the movie, while its setting on a "distant colony" nixes the idea of an Isolation adaptation.

With Creative Assembly never giving us an Alien: Isolation sequel, we're left to imagine what Amanda Ripley got up to next through fan fiction and various in-canon novels. At least it seems Álvarez is as much of an Isolation fan as we are.