Spoiler alert: Spoilers ahead for Alien: Romulus and potential future seasons of The Last of Us.After its release, it became clear that Alien: Romulus The film was a huge success. Director Fede Alvarez managed to do the seemingly impossible and make another film. Space The part that most fans of the franchise agree on (a task that seemed especially daunting after the massive split Prometheus and Space: The CovenantMost impressively, it returned the series to its horror-inspired roots, delivering tension, gore, and terror with precision after a series of sequels that focused largely on action.
Fortunately, Alien: Romulus It feels more like a collection of the series' greatest hits than a simple remake of the original.Alvarez still manages to find some opportunities to put his personal stamp on the game. Space. The battle of zero gravity, reminds us of Dead Space The matches are especially crazy, and the last 15 minutes were absolutely insane in the best possible way. But the most surprising connection in the film concerns the character of Kay (Isabel Merced).the pregnant colony, which Alvarez said was directly inspired by the video game. The Last of Us Part II.
How did The Last of Us inspire Alien: Romulus?
One of the most important characters introduced in The Last of Us Part II Dina is Ellie's friend. While Ellie is very likeable due to her sarcastic and annoying personality, Dina serves as a more realistic character. After Joel is unexpectedly killed by another survivor, Abby, the game moves into particularly dark territory as Ellie embarks on a mission for revenge, with Dina mostly acts as a kind of conscience for her..
She also proved to be an unexpected pioneer in the video game industry, being written to be openly Jewish (even if she did not follow many of the religion's traditional practices), and according to NPRMany writers have considered her character one of the first believable portrayals of Judaism in a game. Crucially, She is also pregnant in the first two thirds of the game.Consequently, she is absent from most of the action and appears mostly in her voice while communicating with Ellie. She gives birth to a son during a time jump as the story reaches its climax, and the new family Ellie is offered proves to be the key to the game's devastating ending.
It was Dina's pregnancy in particular that inspired Fede Alvarez. Alien: RomulusTwo weeks ago, he took to X/Twitter to answer fan questions, at one point saying, “Fun fact: I was playing The Last of Us 2 while writing Alien: Romulus“Dina’s pregnant story made me think about Kai’s character being pregnant as well.” However, as evidenced by RomulusWith the film's shocking climax, it's safe to say that Alvarez took the story in a completely different, more terrifying direction.
But the similarity between them Our last and Alien: Romulus Don't stop there. In one particularly bizarre case, a life-like artwork was filmed shortly after filming was completed. Actress Kay, Isabel Merced, has been cast in the second season of Our last — Like Dina.
Pregnancy symbolizes different things in Alien and The Last of Us.
However, even outside of this crazy coincidence, it is amazing how much Romulus Feel grateful for Our lastwhich itself feels like a city of SpaceBoth films are clearly horror thrillers, with the protagonists struggling to survive against terrifying monsters and seemingly impossible odds. Both films are distinctly bleak in tone, based on a sense of futility, and that survival is only a temporary measure to stave off the inevitability of death in a world that has become hellish. Space and Our last There is also a heavy focus on the main female characters, suggesting that they are better equipped to survive in a place where humans have arguably killed the world.
But Kai's pregnancy Romulus It works as a great counterargument to Dina's pregnancy.especially in terms of what their stories mean on a symbolic level. The Last of Us Part IIDina and her newborn are a lifeline for the vengeful Ellie and a promise that she can still find solace in family even after Joel’s murder. Their relationship also illustrates how much Ellie stands to lose as a result of her bloodlust; the game’s devastating final scene reveals that Dina has finally abandoned her, leaving with her newborn. Even after Ellie comes to the painful realization that killing Abby will only continue the cycle of violence, her raging rage leaves her with almost nothing.
While the birth of Dina's child depicts how life can find its way even after the world has gone to hell, Romulus Takes a darker, sadistic approach to childbirth.This is indeed a tradition with the rest. Space Much has already been made of how the hugging faces and alien creatures exploit viewers’ fear of pregnancy and physical violation, and the use of penis imagery for the creatures only underscores this point. However, the new film takes this trope to its extreme, making Kai’s pregnancy literal.
Unlike Dina, RomulusPregnant Vidi Alvarez is forced to take part in this work. Consequently, the alien faces and alien beings pose a direct threat to her unborn child. When one of the creatures seriously injures Kay, she is forced to use a mysterious substance, Compound Z-01, to rapidly accelerate her pregnancy and allow her to give birth safely. However, in the film’s most terrifying scene, Kay gives birth to a monster, mutating her child into a hybrid between an engineer and a human. This shows how pregnancy in Vidi Alvarez’s world is not just a relief from horror, but can be twisted into the most terrifying thing of all.
Video games are finally starting to influence modern blockbusters.
But the most interesting finding is one that has become increasingly clear over the past few years – Video games have reached a level of artistic legitimacy where they have begun to directly influence modern media.As evidenced by the sly references made by Jordan Vogt-Roberts to Metal Gear Solid in Kong: Skull IslandWes Paul's audio love for The Legend of Zelda The franchise (which helped land him the director's spot on the upcoming film), and now Alvarez's tribute to Our lastIt is clear that the new generation of filmmakers is clearly inspired by video games. As was the casting of actress Isabel Merced in Our last The exhibition also demonstrates how life continues to inspire art, and vice versa, in new and unexpected ways. Alien: Romulus Now showing in theaters.
