In space, no one can hear you… But right now, we’re hearing from filmmaker Aileen Wu (she/her) about her debut role in Alien: Romulus which comes out this Friday. Starring in a beloved franchise is no easy feat, but Aileen didn’t mind getting her hands face dirty—even if she was scared while doing it.

Here, we went behind the scenes of her audition process, the Alien movies’ magic, and found out which horror moments will stick with her for life—just like a facehugger.

Alien: Romulus will be your first feature film, which is a big deal to say the least! What was it like filming for a fan-fave franchise?
It was like falling down a rabbit hole. It’s quite a deep rabbit hole because there’s just so much there, canon wise. Sometimes it was a real lifesaver for any questions I had, sometimes it was a little overwhelming. The audition process was crazy; it happened so fast. I got the self-tape request email from my manager Helen, taped it, sent it in, did a call back over Zoom, then got the full script, read it, met Fede Alvarez again over Zoom, and then was on a flight to Budapest—all in the span of two weeks. I had no idea what was happening until it was too late!

When I met Fede over Zoom, we talked for 40 minutes, and at the end, he was like, “So, you wanna do this?” My first thought was, “This is a trick question!” so I kind of answered, “Yes…?” and he was like, “You don’t seem excited! You should be excited!”

Are you a fan of scary movies? And is making a scary movie as, well, scary as it seems?
Scary movies aren’t my go-to choice. I have to really mentally prepare myself beforehand or completely shut off my emotions while watching. Making this movie in particular was pretty scary because of how real everything was since there were no green screens or tennis balls. The creatures and monsters were all very much right there in front of you, covered in lube [laughing].

What do you think it is about franchises like Alien that make viewers keep coming back for (and wanting) more?
From talking to people about it, I discovered there’s two main categories for the demographic described as “the viewers that keep coming back and wanting more.” I want to point out that that’s the demographic we really kept close to our hearts and in our minds while making this movie: the fans. So, the two categories are people who go: “I remember watching this film when I was a kid in the theater and how it made me wet my bed for a month straight,” and the second category is filled with the hardcore nerds who have followed along every step of the way, watched every film, read every comic book, played every video game, delved into every lore and legend about the universe, or maybe even wrote some themselves.

A scene that will always stick with us from the Alien series is in Prometheus when Elizabeth… births the alien. Is there a scene from a film that sticks with you like that?
I have two: One is the cliff scene from Midsommar, and the other one is the ending in The Babadook.

Speaking of horror movies, do you have a fave?
Don’t hate me but The Human Centipede. I love that the concept really pushes the boundaries of possibilities as to how sick and grotesque a human being can be.

Is there anything else you’d like to share?
Make sure you watch Alien: Romulus in theaters. This is something you want to experience the OG way. When the lights dim, and you can hear everyone around you, strangers in the same auditorium all hold their breath or gasp or exclaim at the same moments, it’ll be worth it—I promise!