Alien: Romulus Improves Ian Holm's CGI for Home Release, Fans Remain Unimpressed

The highly acclaimed *Alien: Romulus* captivated both critics and fans alike, achieving significant box office success and paving the way for a sequel. However, one aspect of the film received widespread criticism: the CGI used to portray the late Ian Holm, who played the iconic android Ash in Ridley Scott's original *Alien* film. Holm's CGI appearance in *Alien: Romulus* was criticized for being distracting and unrealistic, leading some fans to create edits that removed his character entirely from the movie.

In response to the backlash, director Fede Alvarez acknowledged the issues with the CGI in an interview with Empire, stating, "We just ran out of time in post-production to get it right. I wasn’t 100% 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." Alvarez took steps to rectify this for the home release, insisting, "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."

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For the home release, Alvarez shifted the focus more towards practical puppet work rather than CGI. Despite these efforts, fans have mixed feelings about the revised portrayal of Holm. While some acknowledge a slight improvement, many still find his appearance distracting and question the necessity of bringing him back at all.

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On Reddit, user Kwtwo1983 remarked, "Better, but still awfully uncanny… and for no sound reason." Thelastcupoftea added, "Should’ve messed his face up much more. It looked awful in theaters and it looked awful when I rewatched it on Blu-ray." Smug_amoeba commented, "Still such a needless and distracting part of the movie…" and Worried_Bowl_9489 noted, "Both look bad and one is a bit darker lol."

The comparison between the theatrical and home releases reveals that the latter version uses more of the practical puppet, with less emphasis on the CGI face. Nevertheless, some fans, like TheUrPigeon, remain critical, stating, "Let's be real, it's still awful and garish to resurrect a dead man so needlessly. They can only improve upon it so much because the initial effort was so poor."

Despite the CGI controversy, *Alien: Romulus* successfully revitalized the franchise, earning $350 million globally upon its summer debut. In October, 20th Century Studios announced plans for *Alien: Romulus 2*, aiming to continue the story, with Fede Alvarez potentially returning to direct.