Director Fede Álvarez’s contribution to the Alien franchise, Alien: Romulus (you can read our review HERE), had only been in theatres for a matter of hours before it stirred up a SPOILERy controversy on social media. That’s because one of the film’s cast members has been dead for several years, so Álvarez and his collaborators decided to resurrect them with CGI… and the CGI wasn’t exactly convincing. Alien: Romulus has since made its way to home video – and if you have watched it in the comfort of your own home, you may have noticed that an attempt was made to fix that unconvincing CGI.

Of course, what we’re talking about here is the fact that the android character Rook was given the face of the late, great Ian Holm (with his estate’s permission), who played the android Ash in the original Alien. Discussing the look of Rook, Álvarez told Empire, “We just ran out of time in post-production to get it right. I wasn’t 100 percent happy with some of the shots, where you could feel a bit more the CG intervention. So, for people that react negatively, I don’t blame them.” But, for the home video release, “We fixed it. We made it better for the release right now. I convinced the studio we need to spend the money and make sure we give the companies that were involved in making it the proper time to finish it and do it right. It’s so much better. [Animatronic puppeteer] Shane Mahan actually did this animatronic of Ian Holm based on a head cast from Lord of the Rings, and that was the only one in existence. What we did [for the home entertainment version] was revert a lot more to the puppet. It’s way better.“

It has been said that the story Alvarez and co-writer Rodo Sayagues crafted for Alien: Romulus is not directly connected to the other films in the Alien franchise (which isn’t exactly true), but it’s not ignoring any of the other entries, either. Alvarez has been clear about the fact that his story takes place within the established franchise continuity. In fact, it slots right in between the events of Alien and Aliens. It has the following official logline: The sci-fi/horror-thriller takes the phenomenally successful “Alien” franchise back to its roots: While scavenging the deep ends of a derelict space station, a group of young space colonizers come face to face with the most terrifying life form in the universe.

The cast includes Cailee Spaeny (Priscilla), Isabela Merced (Madame Web), David Jonsson (Industry), Archie Renaux (Shadow and Bone), Spike Fearn (The Batman), and Aileen Wu (Away from Home).

Did you notice an improvement in the Rook effects, with less CGI used, on the home video release of Alien: Romulus? Share your thoughts on this one by leaving a comment below.

The post Alien: Romulus fixed a CGI issue for the home video release appeared first on JoBlo.