Romulus’ Blue Mist Origins & Xenomorph Connection Explained

Alien: Romulus brings back the Alien franchise’s blue mist, and here’s what it is and how to connects to the Xenomorph, explained. The Alien franchise has been full of mysteries and unanswered questions since the very beginning, with the lore of the Xenomorph still being incredibly vague even after Prometheus and Alien: Covenant promised to explain where they came from. However, the purpose of the Alien franchise’s blue mist has been one of the biggest mysteries in the series’ history, and while it seemed like Alien: Romulus would finally give an official explanation, it only made things more confusing.

Alien: Romulus is the Alien sequel that has been closest to the original two in tone and style yet, with it featuring all kinds of callbacks and references to the original Alien and Aliens. In fact, Alien: Romulus takes place between Alien and Aliens, with this timeline placement causing many fans to hope that the film would shed light on even more unanswered questions from the original film. While Alien: Romulus did have a massive impact on the franchise by finally tying the prequels to the original, it still left one major mystery unsolved: the Xenomorph eggs’ blue mist.

The Alien Franchise Has Never Fully Explained The Blue Mist

It Remains One Of The Series’ Biggest Mysteries

The blue mist may not be the first thing that fans think of when recalling the iconography of the original Alien, but it is one of the biggest elements in one of the most important scenes. Upon discovering the eggs in the original Alien, a mysterious blue mist can be seen hovering over the eggs. This mist is so oddly shaped that it almost looks like a neon laser beam, with it only being revealed as a mist upon the characters walking through it. The mist is constantly hovering over the eggs throughout the scene, with it presumably having a major purpose in holding off the Xenomorph.

However, the Alien franchise still hasn’t explained exactly what the blue mist is for. The blue mist didn’t return in any of the sequels until Alien: Romulus, meaning that none of the other sequels attempted to explain the effect that it had on the eggs. The real-world reason for this mist is most likely that it made the shots look nice, but for a universe as fleshed out as that of the Alien franchise, there should be an explanation for it. There are all kinds of theories surrounding what the blue mist does, but despite this, an official explanation has still not been revealed.

Alien: Romulus’ Blue Mist Was A Callback To The Original Movie’s Egg Scene

It Finally Brought Back The Blue Mist

Late in the events of Alien: Romulus, the surviving characters walk through a terrifying hallway that is filled with humans being used as incubation chambers for chestbursters. Near the end of the hallway, the iconic blue mist from the first movie can be seen covering the floor. The characters even notice this blue mist and call attention to it, with a character being down and running their hand through it. This is clearly meant to be a callback to the blue mist from the original Alien, but instead of answering questions, it only raises more questions.

The blue mist was seen in the trailer for Alien: Romulus, and since the marketing made an effort to call this shot out, it led to speculation that the sequel would finally reveal what it is for. Unfortunately, this wasn’t the case. Alien: Romulus uses the blue mist as nothing more than an aesthetic choice and a reference to the original Alien, which is a bit disappointing. Alien: Romulus had the perfect opportunity to finally reveal the origin and purpose of the blue mist, and this could’ve been one of the film’s biggest impacts on the franchise.

Why The Blue Mist Could Be Important For Xenomorphs

Here Are All Of The Best Blue Mist Theories

There are all kinds of theories as to what the blue mist could be for, with each of them linking it to the Xenomorph eggs. One of the most popular theories is that the blue mist acts as a protective membrane, stopping dangerous particles from falling onto the eggs. The mist clearly doesn’t seem like the most effective protective membrane, as it does nothing to stop the humans, but this could be an option.

Another theory is that the blue mist acts as a silent alarm, somehow letting the eggs, nearby Xenomorph, or the ship’s pilots know that someone is approaching the eggs. It isn’t known if this blue mist is an inherent property of the eggs, or if it was constructed by humans, synthetics, or engineers in order to monitor the eggs, making any of these theories possible. It could also be that the blue mist was originally intended to mimic the climate that the Xenomorph eggs were originally from, although their creation in Prometheus deconfirms this.

If the blue mist is made by those who wish to contain the facehuggers to their eggs, it could also be that the blue mist is designed to keep them inside the eggs. The blue mist could somehow have the effect of allowing humans to interact with the eggs without the facehuggers launching out. The two times that the mist has been seen in the Alien franchise is on alien ships, potentially explaining why this property of the mist wasn’t functioning when the characters arrived.

Does The Blue Mist Affect Synthetics Like Andy?

Or Did Something Else Happen?

Some viewers thought that Alien: Romulus may have introduced a new property of the blue mist, with it possible having an effect on synthetics. In Alien: Romulus, Andy collapses and glitches out shortly after interacting with the blue mist, with this happening offscreen. This has led some to believe that the blue mist can adversely affect synthetics, although this likely isn’t the case.

Alien: Romulus seems to be implying that Andy was hit by a Xenomorph in this scene, and the evidence seems to support this better. Andy has the exact same reaction earlier in the film when he is attacked by the group of kids, meaning that physical violence can cause him to malfunction. The blue mist affecting synthetics wouldn’t fit into any of these other theories, further making this seem like a misinterpretation. However, there is still hope that the blue mist’s true purpose will be revealed in a future project after Alien: Romulus.