20 Most Memorable Quotes From The Alien Franchise

Summary

• The
  Alien
  franchise has evolved from horror to action to deeper themes, making it beloved by fans.
• Memorable quotes from characters like Ripley and Hicks add to the franchise’s appeal.
• Each movie in the
  Alien
  series brings new depth and challenges, keeping audiences engaged.

The Alien movies have morphed from an interstellar horror movie to a sci-fi action adventure franchise to something even deeper, with hidden meaning around every corner — and the best Alien quotes are a key reason the movies are beloved. The franchise started with 1979’s Alien, sci-fi horror movie with Ripley (Sigourney Weaver) and her crew of the Nostromo hunted by an alien known as a Xenomorph. By the second movie, 1986’s Aliens, there were big guns and more militaristic action, almost switching genres and paving the way for the intense sequels that followed.

There have now been seven main Alien movies in the franchise with the recent release of Alien: Romulus. While most of the entries saw Ripley as the main star, which also gave Sigourney Weaver many of the best Alien quotes so far, the most recent movies moved on from her character and focused more on lore and world-building. The most memorable quotes from the Alien movies may have started with Ripley showing how tough she is in the face of interstellar dread, but they — like the franchise itself — have since evolved.

Related Alien Movies In Order (Release & Chronological)

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20 “Mother’s Deciphered Part Of It. It Doesn’t Look Like An S.O.S… It Looks Like A Warning.”

Ripley (Sigourney Weaver) In Alien

The Alien franchise kicks off with the crew of the Nostromo being awakened early from their hypersleep by a distress call coming from somewhere nearby. The laws of space travel dictate that the crew is required to investigate the call and offer any assistance that might be needed. However, this act of aid proves to be the downfall of the doomed crew.

While several of the crewmembers venture out to the mysterious planet known as LV-426, Ripley has the ship’s computer, Mother, take a closer look into the supposed distress signal that had been sent out. In a terrific moment that turns Alien from a sci-fi movie into a horror movie, Ripley discovers that it was not a distress signal after all and was actually a warning for ships to stay away from this planet. It is a great moment to send chills up the spines of the viewers and give a hint that there is something evil lurking on this planet.

19 “Yes. I Read You. The Answer Is Negative.”

Ripley (Sigourney Weaver) In Alien​

Sigourney Weaver cemented herself as one of the greatest action heroes of all time with her performance in Aliens. However, part of the brilliance of Alien is that it takes a while before it becomes clear that she is the protagonist of the story. It could be easily assumed that the heroic captain of the Nostromo was the lead, but Ripley eventually proves that she is the most level-headed and intelligent character on the ship.

After Dallas and some of the other crew members investigate the strange planet where the signal appears to be coming from, Kane is attacked and the facehugger attaches itself to him. While Dallas orders Ripley to let them on the ship to give Kane medical attention, she points out that the proper procedure is to quarantine Kane. Dallas repeats his order, but Ripley shows her incredible confidence and strength in sticking by her stance. Had they listened to her, the rest of the Nostromo crew would have survived.

18 “I Can’t Lie To You About Your Chances, But… You Have My Sympathies.”

Ash (Ian Holm) In Alien

The idea of androids in the Alien universe was first introduced in the franchise’s first movie. Though Ash (Ian Holm) initially seems like a regular, albeit cold, member of the crew, he is revealed to be an android who was put on this mission by the Weyland-Yutani Corporation. After Ripley and the others discover the truth about Ash and that he has been ordered to bring the Xenomorph specimen back alive, they destroy him.

However, with some of his artificial life still intact, Ripley questions him about the alien and how to kill it. Ash proves to know a lot more about the Xenomorph than he initially revealed, showing a sense of admiration for this seemingly perfect specimen of destruction. Ensuring that Ripley and the others have no chance against the killer extra-terrestrial, Ash offers this chilling final line that cements just how formidable these creatures are.

17 “You’ve Been In My Life So Long, I Can’t Remember Anything Else.”

Ripley (Sigourney Weaver) In Alien 3

Alien 3 is often criticized as being too bleak to be any fun, but it makes sense that Ripley would be considerably traumatized following her third run-in with these vicious creatures. It is an interesting arc in this sequel as it begins to explore the connection between Ripley and the Xenomorph which is touched on even more in Alien: Resurrection.

Now in
Alien 3
, Ripley sees herself as the only one who can put an end to the Xenomorphs

In this memorable quote, Ripley reflects on how much her experiences with the Xenomorphs have shaped her life and carried her down a new path in the franchise. In Alien, Ripley was simply a survivor. In Aliens, she was a protector. Now in Alien 3, Ripley sees herself as the only one who can put an end to the Xenomorphs and prevent their spread across the galaxy – even if it is at the cost of her own life.

16 “What’s The Matter? The Food Ain’t That Bad.”

Parker (Yaphet Kotto) In Alien

While the Alien franchise has had a lot of iconic moments over the various entries, it has never topped the shocking impact of the first death in the series. After Kane is attacked by the facehugger, the rest of the crew is at a loss for how to help him. When the creature suddenly detaches and Kane wakes up as if nothing happened, there is a sense of relief as well as a lingering dread that the nightmare isn’t over.

As the crew settles in for a meal together, it seems as though the ordeal is behind them as they joke around together. However, when Kane begins seemingly choking, Parker’s attempt to relieve the tension with a joke makes for a memorable final line before the movie takes a terrifying turn. The image of the chestburster breaking its way out of Kane’s body is iconic and the scene, along with Parker’s comment, is made more effective by the fact that the rest of the actors didn’t know quite what was going to happen in the scene.

15 “I Got You…You Son Of A B****.”

Ripley (Sigourney Weaver) In Alien

Throughout Alien, Ellen Ripley watched as her fellow crew mates died, one by one, at the hands of the Xenomorph alien queen. Like other horror movies of the era, Ripley becomes one of the most iconic Final Girls, as Alien is as much of a slasher movie like Halloween as a sci-fi movie about aliens. That means that, in the end, it is time for Ripley to stand up and face her murderous alien tormentor — and this comes with a perfect one-liner.

In the closing moments of Alien, as Ripley flies away from the Nostromo and the station explodes, seemingly killing the Xenomorph inside, she says, “I got you…you son of a b*tch.” This is a call back to another horror movie, as at the end of Jaws, when Brody stuffs a tank into the shark’s mouth and shoots at it, he says, “Smile, you son of a b*tch!” Unlike Jaws, the movie wasn’t over and the Xenomorph was still alive for one last attack, another similarity to slasher movies of the 70s and 80s.

14 “Eat This!”

Hicks (Michale Biehn) In Aliens

When James Cameron took over the franchise with Aliens, he set out to change the subgenre of the sci-fi movies. Instead of the horror-centric sci-fi of Alien, Aliens chose to go in more of an action-adventure direction. 1986’s Aliens was still a horror tale, but only in the way that Cameron’s Terminator was a horror movie. Replacing the alien killing the hapless space crew one-by-one, this time multiple Xenomorphs faced off with military soldiers with big weapons who could fight back. This included the fierce Hicks.

Xenomorph blood is acidic, so it burns the surrounding soldiers, causing Hicks’ plan to hurt his allies as well — though it doesn’t make his taunt any less memorable.

Early in Aliens, Hicks shows off a gun that he “likes to keep handy for close encounters.” Later in the movie, when the Colonial Marines are struggling to close a door as a Xenomorph is trying to force its way in, Hicks finds the perfect opportunity to use it. He crams the gun in the Xenomorph’s mouth and says, “Eat this!” Then, he pulls the trigger, spraying the alien’s blood everywhere. Unfortunately, Xenomorph blood is acidic, so it burns the surrounding soldiers, causing Hicks’ plan to hurt his allies as well — though it doesn’t make his taunt any less memorable.

13 “What The Hell Are We Supposed To Use, Man? Harsh Language?”

Frost (Rico Ross) In Aliens

In Aliens, Ripley agrees to accompany the Marines to a planet infested with Xenomorphs, but she demands that they exterminate the aliens when they arrive. However, unfortunately for the Marines, the commanding officer is a man named Gorman (William Hope), and while there are some capable soldiers in the unit (with Hicks and Hudson the most notable), Gorman leads many of them to their death thanks to his inability to lead the team without the corporate Burke (Paul Reiser) compromising them.

Gorman orders the Colonial Marines to disarm themselves, so they won’t accidentally damage the Processor’s reactor. His men are outraged because, without their guns, they can’t defend themselves. Frost quips, “What the hell are we supposed to use, man? Harsh language?” Gorman allows them Flame Units. This marks the end of Frost when the Xenomorphs attack. Dietrich accidentally discharges her Flame Unit, setting Frost on fire, which leads him to fall over a railing and into the hive, resulting in his death.

12 “Roll Over, Play Dead, Heel.”

Ripley (Sigourney Weaver) In Alien: Resurrection

In Alien: Resurrection, the franchise goes full sci-fi, as it takes place 200 years after the events of Alien 3. Despite the time jump, Ripley is back, but this time as a clone. Called Ripley 8, she has the memories of the original Ellen Ripley, and that means she has full memories of how dangerous the Xenomorphs are. The clone is also combined with the Xenomorph queen’s DNA, and as with the best science fiction movies, the horrors here are because humanity can’t stop trying to play God with something they don’t understand.

Ripley has tangled with these creatures a few times (this was her fourth movie dealing with the species), and she knows they can’t be tamed.

When the Xenomorphs return in Alien: Resurrection, Dr. Wren (J.E. Freeman) is excited, saying, “The animal itself – wondrous! The potential? Unbelievable, once we’ve tamed them. We’ll teach them tricks!” Ripley has tangled with these creatures a few times (this was her fourth movie dealing with the species), and she knows they can’t be tamed. She sarcastically says, “Roll over, play dead, heel,” showing that she knows the only safe Xenomorph is a dead Xenomorph.

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11 “In Space, No One Can Hear You Scream.”

The Alien Tag Line

This isn’t technically an Alien quote that appears in a movie, but it is an iconic enough part of Alien lore to remain one of the most memorable lines from the franchise. It’s the poster tagline for the first Alien movie, and arguably the most iconic poster tagline of all time. It perfectly captures the feel of the film. A huge part of the terror of Alien is its isolated setting. In its soul, Alien is more of a horror movie akin to haunted house stories than a science fiction film despite its alien threat.

Most horror movies in isolated settings occur in the woods or a haunted house in the country, but Ridley Scott’s masterpiece takes isolation to the next level. The characters aren’t even on Earth; they’re on a space station many light-years away from the rest of the human race. The tagline “In space, no one can hear you scream” captures that beautifully, and shows that, unlike most horror movies, no one can save the day here other than the terrorized victims themselves.

10 “You Know, Burke, I Don’t Know Which Species Is Worse.”

Ripley (Sigourney Weaver) In Aliens

Like most popular sci-fi franchises, including Jurassic Park, Terminator, and Star Trek, the Alien movies deal with ethics. Humans are not necessarily inherently good. Many humans in the movie’s world remain shamelessly evil. In Aliens, viewers know not to root blindly for the humans and only hate the Xenomorphs, as both are evil in their own ways. The humans remain as responsible for casualties and deaths as the aliens because of greed and corruption. Despite the deadly Xenomorph, Ripley knows humanity is just as much of a threat.

The humans in
Aliens
don’t pull together to help each other survive a tremendous, otherworldly experience.

The humans in Aliens don’t pull together to help each other survive a tremendous, otherworldly experience. Ripley may care about saving lives, but the Weyland-Yutani Corporation wants the eggs, so they can experiment on them and engineer biological weapons from their DNA. They’re thinking about profit margins and selling points. Ripley sums up the human race pretty well when she says, “You know, Burke, I don’t know which species is worse. You don’t see them f**king each other over for a goddamn percentage.”

9 “It’s Us – It’s Everything. What Killed Them?”

Elizabeth Shaw (Noomi Rapace) In Prometheus

The 2012 prequel Prometheus took the ideas from the original Alien movies, filling in the blanks before 1979’s Alien and showcasing humanity’s earliest encounter with the Xenomorphs. In Prometheus, Ridley Scott returned and wanted to show the origins of the Xenomorphs and possibly even the origin of humanity itself. He touches on this in the prequel when the new heroine, Elizabeth Shaw, comes across the Engineers and realizes they might be responsible for the creation of humanity, the Xenomorphs, and likely dozens if not hundreds of other species.

This is easily one of the best Alien quotes to come from Promethus, and is said by Elizabeth Shaw when she analyzes the DNA of an Engineer and realizes that the Engineers might be where the human race came from. Prometheus is not the most popular movie in the Alien franchise, because the film asked more questions than it answered. The mystery of the Engineers was an interesting question, but only if it led to something satisfying. Instead, in Alien: Covenant, David massacred the entire population of Engineers — and the origin story remains mired in mystery.

8 “If Those Things Get Loose, It’s Gonna Make The Lacerta Plague Look Like A F**king Square Dance!”

Call (Winona Ryder) In Alien: Resurrection

When it comes to the best Alien quotes to come from Alien: Resurrection, most of the lines come from a screenplay by Joss Whedon. Of the movie, Whedon has stated, “It wasn’t so much that they’d changed the script; it’s that they just executed it in such a ghastly fashion as to render it almost unwatchable.” While he didn’t like the finished product, he still was responsible for many of the better quotes from the movie, including this line by Call, played by Winona Ryder.

The Lacerta Plague had become the new scale against which outbreaks and pandemics are measured — and this line comparing the Xenomorphs to it illustrates just how terrifying they are.

This line is the only mention in the Alien franchise that the story ever gets of “the Lacerta Plague,” which is supposedly a viral outbreak that happens in the future. Due to Winona Ryder’s delivery, viewers instantly understand that it’s a big deal. The Black Death was in the 1300s and is still a benchmark against which pandemics are compared centuries later. It stands to reason that, in the 2300s, the Lacerta Plague had become the new scale against which outbreaks and pandemics are measured — and this line comparing the Xenomorphs to it illustrates just how terrifying they are.

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7 “Serve In Heaven Or Reign In Hell?”

David (Michael Fassbender) In Alien: Covenant

In Alien: Covenant, Michael Fassbender does a great job of playing both the naive A.I. Walter and his shockingly evil counterpart from Prometheus, David — and it’s from the latter that one of the best Alien quotes comes. The original title of Alien: Covenant was Alien: Paradise Lost, named after John Milton’s epic poem about the struggle between God and Satan. This connection makes the chilling quote from David an incredibly prominent one to use in Alien: Covenant, especially when the deranged android would rather rule a destroyed world than return to a life serving humans in civilization.

Fassbender’s characters in Alien: Covenant carry most of the allegories From Paradise Lost, with Walter being too trusting for his own good (i.e. God) and David being just devious and ambitious enough to take over the world (i.e. Satan). David proves with this quote that he would rather be in charge — and a very evil being — rather than a being who served for the greater good of humankind. Since Ridley Scott positioned David to replace the Xenomorphs as the greatest threat in the franchise, it makes sense he would contrast him with true evil.

6 “We’re All Gonna Die. The Only Question Is When.”

Dillon (Charles S. Dutton) In Alien 3

David Fincher took Alien 3 as his first studio directing gig, and it turned out to be the worst experience of his entire life, with executives meddling and minimal creative control. However, it presented something very different and even included a definitive ending for Ellen Ripley. In this movie, Ripley is the only survivor from Aliens and crash lands on a prison planet. While there, she has to team up with the prisoners to battle a new outbreak of Xenomorphs, all while Weyland-Yutani serves as the true villain.

As an inmate at the prison where the story takes place, he knows he’s not going to be a priority if a rescue team ever arrives, which he knows it probably won’t.

The Dillon character spends the entirety of Alien 3 assuming he won’t make it. As an inmate at the prison where the story takes place, he knows he’s not going to be a priority if a rescue team ever arrives, which he knows it probably won’t. So, he accepted his fate:

“We’re all gonna die. The only question is when. This is as good a place as any to take your first steps to Heaven.”

5 “My Mommy Always Said There Were No Monsters. No Real Ones. But There Are.”

Ripley (Sigourney Weaver) In Alien

Ellen Ripley might be an example of the “Final Girl” trope, but she’s about the strongest example there is. The screenplay for Alien was not written as a feminist piece — it was just written with no gender roles in place. The opening pages specified that the characters were unisex and could be played by anyone, depending on whom the director chose while casting.

When Ridley Scott took on the project and started putting it together, it just happened to be the luck of the draw that Sigourney Weaver ended up getting cast in the lead role and, subsequently, kicking off a long, but important battle to get women represented in the action film genre. With this quote, Ripley shows she understands the dangers she faces in the movie. By the time the Xenomorph emerges, her gender becomes irrelevant because of her unparalleled intelligence and quick thinking, which allows her to take the lead over all the men in the movie.

4 “That’s It, Man. Game Over, Man. Game Over!”

Private Hudson (Bill Paxton) In Aliens

It’s no great shock that Bill Paxton was given a Saturn Award for his performance as Private Hudson in Aliens. If Ripley is the no-nonsense hero of the movie, then Hudson is the character most viewers might connect more to. He likes to think he’d be a hero and save the day, but deep down, Hudson is scared to death of the horrors as they begin to befall his crew of normally tough and stoic Marines. When the Marines end up on the planet with the unstoppable aliens, they think they are tough enough for the fight.

Hudson wants to be a hero, and tries his best to be, but only one person really rushes into the fight, showing no mercy — Ellen Ripley.

However, when poor decision-making by their commanding officer mixes with corporate interference by Burke, these tough-as-nails Marines start to die one by one. Hudson wants to be a hero and tries his best to be, but only one person really rushes into the fight, showing no mercy — Ellen Ripley. For Hudson, he simply realizes he is going to die, and his Alien quote shows this perfectly, when he pretty much gives up all hope, crying out, “That’s it, man. Game over, man. Game over!”

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3 “We Didn’t Leave Earth To Be Safe.”

Tennessee Faris (Danny McBride) In Alien: Covenant

At one time, Danny McBride was best known for starring in HBO’s darkest and quirkiest comedies and appearing in supporting roles in Seth Rogen movies. However, he has since moved into the horror genre and made quite a splash. He co-wrote the script for all three of David Gordon Green’s Halloween movies, and he also took on a role in Alien: Covenant as the comic relief who turned out to be one of the few survivors, alongside Katherine Waterston’s Daniels and Michael Fassbender’s David.

His character was called Tennessee Faris, and when safety was brought into question, he uttered the immortal line, “We didn’t leave Earth to be safe.” It was a funny quote, but it also shows that all the people who set off into space since the introduction of the Xenomorphs know the danger they are entering into. Almost everyone dies, and at least Tennessee knows their trip off-planet was always likely to be a one-way journey.

2 “This Is Ripley, Last Survivor Of The Nostromo, Signing Off.”

Ripley (Sigourney Weaver) In Alien

It is true that in space, no one can hear you scream. After Ellen Ripley rids the Nostromo of the Xenomorph that killed the rest of the crew, taking the ship down with it), she’s left drifting through the vacuum of space. She reports one last time before the end of Alien:

“Final report of the commercial starship Nostromo. Third Officer reporting. The other members of the crew – Kane, Lambert, Parker, Brett, Ash, and Captain Dallas – are dead. Cargo and ship destroyed. I should reach the frontier in about six weeks. With a little luck, the network will pick me up. This is Ripley, last survivor of the Nostromo, signing off.”

Ripley knows she will be alone in space for weeks. This is the “happy” ending of the 1979 horror movie, but it seems like a dark and disturbing end for Ripley as she is the last person alive and knows that she has a long trip ahead of her — she also knows that she might not even make it back home alive in the end. These final lines from the first movie almost sound like the beginning of a psychological thriller, and still rank among the best Alien quotes almost fifty years after it released.

1 “Get Away From Her, You B***h!”

Ripley (Sigourney Weaver) In Aliens

James Cameron’s love of mechanical exoskeleton suits was born during the production of Aliens. He would later use 2009’s more advanced technology and Avatar’s bigger budget to create a whole army of soldiers in mechanical exoskeleton suits. Arguably, though, Aliens‘ use of this particular technology was stronger. The whole sequence was far more cinematic, and it fit the story thematically, as viewers saw Ripley use the suit to match the alien queen’s physicality and save Newt.

The fight against the Xenomorphs has become personal for Ripley.

While this scene utilizes the dated trope of the “damsel in distress,” it gets credit for having a female hero and a female villain fighting to save the young girl. It also gives Ripley yet another great one-liner to use as she rushes into battle with an alien that is stronger than her in every way, even with the exoskeleton slightly evening the odds in her favor. It also ties into the first Alien movie, changing the line from “son of a b**ch” to the simple use of “b**ch,” showing the fight against the Xenomorphs has become personal for Ripley.

• Alien (1979) R

  Alien is a sci-fi horror-thriller by director Ridley Scott that follows the crew of a spaceship known as the Nostromo. After the staff of the merchant’s vessel perceives an unknown transmission as a distress call, its landing on the source moon finds one of the crew members attacked by a mysterious lifeform, and they soon realize that its life cycle has merely begun.

  Director Ridley Scott Release Date June 22, 1979 Cast Sigourney Weaver , Ian Holm , John Hurt , Veronica Cartwright , Harry Dean Stanton , Tom Skerritt , Yaphet Kotto Runtime 117 minutes

• Aliens R

  Aliens is a 1986 Sci-Fi classic by writer and director James Cameron. Starring Sigourney Weaver as Ellen Ripley, it’s widely considered one of the best Sci-Fi Horror films ever made. Ripley must band together with a group of Colonial Marines to investigate a disaster at a terraforming colony.

  Director James Cameron Release Date July 18, 1986 Cast Sigourney Weaver , Michael Biehn , Carrie Henn , Paul Reiser , Lance Henriksen , Bill Paxton , William Hope , Jenette Goldstein Runtime 137 minutes

• Alien 3 R

  Alien 3 is the 1992 sequel to Aliens. Directed by David Fincher and starring Sigourney Weaver in her iconic role as Ellen Ripley, the third installment in the Alien franchise follows Ripley as she leads a group of inmates in the fight against a Xenomorph after her ship crash-lands on a prison planet.

  Director David Fincher Release Date May 22, 1992 Cast Sigourney Weaver , Charles S. Dutton , Charles Dance , Paul McGann , Brian Glover , Ralph Brown Runtime 114minutes

• Alien Resurrection R

  After dying in Alien 3, Sigourney Weaver is back as Ellen Ripley for the fourth film in the Alien franchise. In Alien: Resurrection, a human/alien hybrid clone of Ripley prevents aliens from coming to Earth with the help of a band of space pirates. The film was directed by Jean-Pierre Jeunet and written by Joss Whedon.

  Director Jean-Pierre Jeunet Release Date November 26, 1997 Cast Sigourney Weaver , Winona Ryder , Dominique Pinon , Ron Perlman , Gary Dourdan , Michael Wincott Runtime 109 Minutes

• Prometheus R

  2012’s Prometheus is the fifth installment in the Alien franchise and was directed by Ridley Scott. Starring Noomi Rapace, Michael Fassbender, Idris Elba, and Guy Pearce, the film acts as a direct prequel to 1979’s Alien.

  Director Ridley Scott Release Date June 8, 2012 Cast Charlize Theron , Noomi Rapace , Idris Elba , Guy Pearce , Michael Fassbender Runtime 124 Minutes

• Alien: Covenant R

  Alien: Covenant, directed by Ridley Scott, follows the crew of the colony ship Covenant as they discover an uncharted planet. Initially seeming like a paradise, the planet soon reveals dark secrets. Katherine Waterston, Michael Fassbender, and Billy Crudup lead the cast in this science fiction horror film, which serves as a direct sequel to Prometheus and continues to explore the origins of the Alien species.

  Director Ridley Scott Release Date May 19, 2017 Cast Michael Fassbender , Katherine Waterston , Billy Crudup , Danny McBride , Demián Bichir , Carmen Ejogo , Jussie Smollett , Callie Hernandez , Amy Seimetz , Nathaniel Dean , Alexander England , Benjamin Rigby , Uli Latukefu , Tess Haubrich , Lorelei King , Goran D. Kleut , Andrew Crawford , Tom O’Sullivan , James Franco , Guy Pearce , Noomi Rapace Runtime 123 Minutes Expand