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The Internet Is Debating If Alien Is A Horror Movie

Social media can often be a cesspit of bile and vitriol, but it also opens the door to much more constructive conversations, arguments and debates that anyone in the world with an internet connection can get involved in. On that note, the latest Twitter conversation regards the status of Ridley Scott's classic Alien, and whether or not it's a horror movie.

Alien

Social media can often be a cesspit of bile and vitriol, but it also opens the door to much more constructive conversations, arguments and debates that anyone in the world with an internet connection can get involved in. On that note, the latest Twitter conversation regards the status of Ridley Scott’s classic Alien, and whether or not it’s a horror movie.

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It all started when journalist Elle Hunt tweeted that she didn’t consider the 1979 sci-fi as part of the horror genre, because it took place in outer space. While that’s a very peculiar take to have when plenty of great scary films have been set beyond the stars, it ignited some passionate responses from longtime Xenomorph enthusiasts and cinephiles in general, as you can see from the reactions below.

https://twitter.com/MontyYuanti/status/1379488382322044928?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1379488382322044928%7Ctwgr%5E%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fcomicbook.com%2Fmovies%2Fnews%2Fis-alien-a-horror-movie-internet-debate%2F

https://twitter.com/BatsInLavender/status/1379525578995404802?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1379525578995404802%7Ctwgr%5E%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fcomicbook.com%2Fmovies%2Fnews%2Fis-alien-a-horror-movie-internet-debate%2F

https://twitter.com/11shroomz/status/1379514600404758533

Alien is very much a horror movie, and one of the greatest ever made, no less. The bare bones of the concept transplant the haunted house formula onto the Nostromo, with the addition of an instantly iconic extraterrestrial antagonist. It’s also the only one of the eight features to involve the Xenomorphs that fits the description.

James Cameron’s Aliens is definitely a balls to the wall actioner, Alien 3 and Resurrection are a bit more existential and thought-provoking by design, the Alien vs. Predator crossovers are banal blockbusters and Scott’s return to the series with Prometheus and Covenant were big budget sci-fi epics that tried to blend heady themes with intense thrills, and suffered mixed results in attempting to do so.

You can’t make a generalization like saying horror can’t take place in space without leading to dissections of almost every imaginable genre under the sun, but fans clearly have Alien‘s back in this particular debate.