Movies - TV
Ian Holm's Controversial Alien: Romulus Role, Explained
By CHRIS EVANGELISTA
Spoiler Warning!
This story contains spoilers for
"Alien: Romulus"
Digital technology has allowed studios to resurrect actors for their films. One film that employed this technology is "Alien: Romulus" to bring back Ian Holm.
Holm, who passed away in 2020, appeared in the first "Alien" movie as nefarious android Ash. In "Romulus," he plays the equally villainous synthetic character Rook.
Rook is a mix of a practical animatronic body and an A.I.-enhanced face. Unfortunately, the recreated Holm never looks convincing, and it becomes distracting.
What makes the actor's resurrection more frustrating is that director Fede Álvarez boasted in interviews before the film's release that "Romulus" is full of practical effects.
Even with the complete approval from Holm's relatives to bring him back in some form, the idea is strange, ghoulish, and ethically dubious.