Ranking the Aliens and Predator movies from worst to best

Are they better alone, or together? Judging by the quality of the movies, probably alone.

There are few franchises in cinema that have managed to span genres, decades, and generations quite like Alien and Predator. What began as two completely separate sci-fi horror-action films in the late 70s and 80s, each iconic in its own right, slowly mutated into a sprawling, tangled cinematic universe full of acid blood, cloaking devices, bad decisions and the occasional disaster. And yet, despite the missteps (there have been many), here we still are. Watching. Ranking. Arguing online.

Because the truth is, for all the canon-breaking lore dumps and unnecessary prequels, we care about these movies. Not just because they’re good (some of them are absolutely not), but because they helped shape an entire genre. They’re part of our cultural DNA. They’re the reason we instinctively side-eye air vents and check motion trackers even in games of hide-and-seek.

This list isn’t just about what’s technically the best. It’s about impact. About legacy. About which films still live in our heads rent-free and which ones made us say “nope” out loud in the cinema. It’s about Aliens vs Alien, jungle vs spaceship, Alien: Covenant vs our patience.

So here it is: every Alien and Predator movie, ranked from worst to best.

14. Aliens vs. Predator: Requiem

Trying to figure out what exactly was going on with Aliens vs. Predator: Requiem is a bit like trying to assemble IKEA furniture with a missing manual - you get some pieces that seem promising, but by the end, you’re just wondering why you bothered. The movie throws some genuinely intriguing ideas at us - most notably, the Predalien, a gruesome hybrid that should have been the star of the show. Plus, it leaned heavily into practical effects, which was a nice change from the CGI overload we’d been fed before. You’d think that combination alone would be enough to score some serious points, right? Well, not quite.

The backstory behind this mess is almost as chaotic as the film itself. The Strause brothers, who originally pitched this as the real Aliens vs. Predator movie, had their vision sidelined when Fox decided to go with the version we now consider the “original” AVP instead. The Strause duo stuck around, despite a rejected Wolfenstein movie script, and eventually got the directing gig for this sequel. Honestly, the setting - a small town, after an alien crash-landing - was fine, but it did a pretty solid number on the Alien timeline, screwing up continuity like a box of Lego bricks strewn over the floor.

At the end of the day, Requiem doesn’t have much going for it beyond “well, that happened.” In a franchise with so much untapped potential, it felt like someone just assumed we’d be dazzled by the basic premise: “Hey, what if we take terrifying xenomorphs and drop them in suburbia?” Spoiler alert: we weren’t. The execution wasn’t bold or imaginative enough, and it had that unmistakable whiff of a cash grab.

What’s more, it doesn’t really feel like it belongs to the Alien saga at all. It’s more like a Predator side story with some aliens crashed along for the ride. If you’re a hardcore fan hoping for some thrilling, timeline-respecting action, Requiem is going to leave you scratching your head and maybe a little disappointed.

13. Aliens vs. Predator

I was seriously hyped for this one. Back in the mid-90s, I managed to snag the original Aliens vs. Predator trade paperback - the thick, glossy kind that felt like a prized artifact in my collection. The whole Aliens franchise was having a bit of a renaissance at the time, thanks largely to James Cameron’s re-release of Aliens: Director’s Cut. Suddenly, it wasn’t just movies anymore - we were drowning in Dark Horse comics, board games, role-playing games, and more novels than you could shake a pulse rifle at. I was about thirteen and I devoured it all like a fiend.

The crown jewel? My Aliens vs. Predator trade paperback, naturally. When the movie was announced, I practically turned into a walking hype machine, regaling my friends with the storyline like it was gospel: “So here’s the deal - the Predators seed planets with xenomorph eggs, then come back to hunt the monsters they created. But this time, there’s a human colony on the planet, so now it’s a three-way fight: humans, aliens, and predators all duking it out. How rad is that?”

I kept telling them that, right up until we sat down in the cinema. Oof. Big mistake.

I just didn’t get why the movie went the way it did. It wasn’t fun. The premise took forty minutes to actually get going, and everything was locked down in tight, claustrophobic corridors and cramped rooms. Where was the epic scope? The alien jungles or Predator temples? Nope, just endless stoney hallways in a building that looked to be about the same size as a medium sized Walmart. And then there was the baffling subplot about ancient humans worshipping the Predators. Wait, weren’t we supposed to worship the Engineers? Or is that a different sci-fi universe entirely?

It was a mess. No denying the movie had some impressive visual effects and a handful of well-executed action scenes, but beyond that, there’s really not much to recommend it. The movie had the ingredients for something great but ended up feeling like it was stuck in second gear - a confusing stew that neither captured the spirit of the comics nor fully satisfied fans of either franchise.

12. The Predator

Remember Shane Black? Yeah, that guy from the original Predator movie - you know, the one with the glasses who delivered that (un)forgettable joke about his wife’s vagina? Classic. Since then, he’s carved out a seriously impressive career as a Hollywood writer-director, dropping some genuinely great films along the way. So when the news came that Shane Black was returning to his roots to helm a new Predator movie, I was stoked. Like, finally, the franchise was in the hands of someone who actually gets the vibe.

Well, it didn’t exactly turn out that way.

I’m not sure what went wrong here, because Shane Black is normally pretty reliable, but this movie just didn’t work. It lost that gritty, raw edge that made the original Predator so memorable. Instead, it felt weirdly slick and polished, almost Disneyfied in a way that was totally at odds with the franchise’s darker tone. Honestly, it felt like it belonged in the Star Wars sequel universe: cool bad guys, but a boring, sterile setting that drained all the tension.

And the ending? Oh man, by the time we got there, the movie had somehow morphed into a kind of Godzilla-style “G-Team” scenario - introducing this special task force set up to take on the Predators whenever they decide to drop by Earth again to rip out a few spines. I don’t know about you, but that feels like a hard sell as part of the same universe that includes Weyland-Yutani and the Alien franchise. It’s like they just threw all the weight of lore out the window in favor of some half-baked franchise-building.

In the end, The Predator was a big disappointment - wasted potential and a cool premise that just didn’t stick the landing.

11. Alien Resurrection

As I’ve mentioned before, between ’93 and ’98 I was absolutely obsessed with the Aliens franchise. Every Saturday morning on Australian TV, there was this Hollywood-focused movie show, kind of like Entertainment Tonight, but way more about behind-the-scenes scoops and interviews with cast members. So when Alien Resurrection was announced, I went full-on religious with that show for three months straight, desperate for even the tiniest hint of news. I was hyped. Seriously hyped.

It hit Australian cinemas on New Year’s Day 1998 and there I was, bright and early for the first screening - because, you know, you gotta beat the crowd. Except... there was no crowd. Who was going to see this movie? Ripley wasn’t really Ripley anymore, and the same tired trope: “somebody’s experimenting on the xenomorphs and, of course, it all goes horribly wrong” - got dragged out yet again.

To top it all off, the director was that French bloke who made Delicatessen and The City of Lost Children. Weird choice, right? Because honestly, the whole thing feels so disconnected from the core Alien story that I can’t quite put my finger on what exactly went wrong.

I hated all the characters, even Ripley, so when they started getting picked off one by one, I felt zero pity. No empathy. It just didn’t click. And that’s the real problem here - Alien Resurrection fails in the same way a lot of Aliens media tends to these days. With each movie, book, or comic that came before, the overall xenomorph saga moved forward. We learned new stuff: Alien built the universe; Aliens gave us Queens, hives, and the terrifying corporate bureaucracy of “the company”; Alien 3 brought in DNA splicing and the idea that xenomorphs adapt to their hosts.

But Resurrection? It’s just a standalone survival story. Ripley didn’t really need to be there. The setting felt recycled, the narrative treaded water. It’s like a DLC mission pack in a game you love, not a full sequel or new chapter. Something that feels like an afterthought rather than an essential part of the story.

10. Alien: Covenant

I’ve made my feelings about Prometheus pretty clear before - it’s completely underrated and way over-hated, with some genuinely amazing themes and visuals. But Alien: Covenant? Nah, it just didn’t hit the mark.

First off, it messes with the timeline of the original universe Ridley Scott created in a way that feels sloppy. It leaves you scratching your head about how the events of the Nostromo could possibly play out at all. Spoiler alert: in Covenant we learn that David, Weyland’s synthetic “son”, has been experimenting with the mysterious black goo that results in species very much like the classic xenomorphs. But then how on earth do we get from that to an Engineer ship infected with xenomorphs, which the Nostromo crew eventually stumbles upon in the first movie?

The timeline feels rushed and sudden, almost like a retcon that wipes out decades of books, comics, and side media that kept Scott’s franchise alive while he was away. That’s a tough pill to swallow if you’ve invested in the expanded universe.

That said, the movie does get massive credit for going full horror instead of action. It’s genuinely tense, which is refreshing in a series that often veers into shoot-em-up territory. But it also makes me nervous about where future movies are headed.

Because Covenant feels like Scott’s “Black Ooze” - this all-powerful, mysterious catalyst - is the franchise’s version of George Lucas’s infamous “Midichlorians.” A twist nobody asked for that sucks the mystery and organic menace right out of the bad guys.

We already saw Alien: Romulus tiptoe this line, and now with the possibility that the xenomorphs are synthetic creations (or maybe not? The movie isn’t even clear), the species has been totally demystified. They just seem... boring now.

9. Predators

This one actually gets a surprising number of things right. For starters, it gives us a proper deep dive into Predator society - how their hunting rituals work, the hierarchy, their cool, lethal weaponry - all of which feels true to the original lore. The setting nicely echoes the vibe of the first Predator movie, a kind of isolated jungle-with-a-twist scenario that feels familiar but fresh. They even try to create a parallel between Anna from the first film and Isabelle here, which is a neat idea, though honestly, it doesn’t quite land the way it should.

But here’s where the movie falls flat: logic. The film implies the Predators have been carefully spying on each human they picked for this hunt, selecting them specifically for their traits and skills. Okay, that sounds intriguing at first, but then you stop to wonder - how did they actually know the serial killer was a serial killer? Were they sitting around, watching him for weeks or months while he went about his grim business? And even if they did, what kind of sport could this guy possibly provide for an advanced alien warrior packing plasma casters and wrist blades? The guy was literally just a man with a scalpel. Were the Predators expecting him to try some grand kidnapping scheme, tie someone up, and bundle them into the back of a car on a street corner? It makes zero sense.

Despite that glaring flaw, Predators is still a fun movie with some solid action scenes and enough cool Predator tech to keep fans interested. It’s worth the watch, even if the plot logic leaves you scratching your head.

8. Predator 2

I already know what people are thinking: “Why is this so far down the list?” But to me, Predator 2 is a bit like that cult TV show Monkey Magic. You know the one: a show so beloved for its nostalgia that people forget the actual title was just Monkey. We remember it fondly not because it was objectively good, but because we’re nostalgic for nostalgia itself.

Predator 2 feels exactly the same. It came along and said, “What if we take the jungle and swap it out for a concrete jungle?” and then called it a day. That’s basically the whole movie, and it feels like very little else was thought through beyond that premise.

Now, that’s not to say it’s bad, it’s cool in its own way. But it’s just not as cool or impactful as the films that follow it on this list. The storyline itself, about a cop chasing a killer who turns out to be an alien, isn’t exactly groundbreaking. That premise has been done to death in a hundred B-movies long before Predator 2 showed up.

If you haven’t seen it in a while, I’d actually suggest giving it another watch before you rage at me for being harsh. It’s got its moments: it’s messy, it’s sloppily fun, there’s a bit of hokey gimmickry, and the action scenes do deliver. But let’s be honest, it’s not the Mona Lisa of sci-fi action.

7. Prey

If Alien Resurrection felt more like DLC than a full new game, then Prey is what I’d call top-tier DLC. Think Oblivion’s Shivering Isles expansion or Half-Life’s Opposing Force, a genuinely fresh take on an established universe that actually adds something worthwhile.

Honestly, it was a breath of fresh air. The premise is simple but clever: how would Native Americans in colonial America handle being hunted by a Predator? Spoiler: not well. It’s a fascinating twist on the usual “hunter and prey” setup, grounded in a historical context that hasn’t been explored much in the franchise.

Visually, Prey impresses without going overboard on CGI - practical effects and good design really make the Predator feel threatening again. The tension works because you never really know who’s going to make it out alive. It toes the horror line, but definitely leans more into action, which keeps things moving at a good clip.

To me, Prey is a sleeper hit, it reignited my excitement for what the Predator universe can still do. It proves this franchise has legs on its own and doesn’t need to hitch a ride on its bigger, more famous Alien cousin anymore.

6. Alien: Romulus

I’d heard some good things from folks who caught this one in cinemas, but after the disappointment of Alien Covenant, I was seriously skeptical. As a lifelong Alien fan, it took a lot of convincing just to bother watching it. Over the years, I’ve learned to expect the worst from these newer entries.

Well, turns out I was wrong. Alien: Romulus is great - not just good, but genuinely hopeful. Much like Prey did for the Predator universe, it shows that standalone Alien movies can still be cool, fresh, and absolutely worth your time.

Its biggest flaw is the continuation of Scott’s “Black Ooze” storyline, which I’m a bit nervous about. It feels like that element might get shoehorned into every future piece of Alien media, whether it fits or not. But beyond that, the movie delivers solid action, a good cast, impressive special effects, and, most importantly, characters you actually care about (Looking at you, Alien: Resurrection).

While it’s still a long way from reaching the epoch-making heights of Alien or Aliens, it proves the franchise still has plenty of life left. Ultimately, it doesn’t feel essential enough to catapult itself to the very top of the list, but it absolutely does justice to the Alien legacy.

5. Alien 3

Aliens, David Fincher, a decent budget, and a massive marketing push, throw all that together and you get a movie that was absolutely everywhere. It’s hard to overstate just how much this film was inescapable at the time. Alongside James Cameron’s 1991 Special Edition re-release of Aliens, Alien 3 helped kickstart a resurgence in the franchise.

That said, it became pretty divisive among fans. But for me, it’s undeniably more mature and far more competent than a lot of the entries that come before it on this list. It harks back to the tone of the original Alien film, stripping things back to basics: this time, there’s only one xenomorph. And in a setting with zero weaponry, the characters are forced to be creative, using whatever they can find to survive and try to defeat the creature. That concept alone is pretty brilliant.

What really stands out is how it grounds Ripley as a character. Aliens gave us the tough, action-hero version of Ellen Ripley - the “badass” survivor who seems almost invincible. But Alien 3 reminds us that despite all her experience, she’s still deeply vulnerable and scared. She fights not because she’s some invincible hero, but because survival is all she’s got. It’s a humanising portrayal that often gets overlooked. This Ripley feels closer to the woman we met in the original Alien: flawed, frightened, and utterly real.

4. Prometheus

This movie represents a radical shift in the Aliens timeline, and honestly, I’m all here for it. I’ll sing its praises from the rooftops. Prometheus dives deep into the big questions about what separates us as a species from our own creations. We’ve always imagined ourselves as Prometheus, the mythic fire-bringer, handing knowledge and power to our creations. But this film flips that on its head: what if we were created by someone else?

The character of David, the synthetic, perfectly embodies this theme. He has no free will - he’s a creation acting out the whims of his maker. Likewise, the movie suggests that humanity’s history might be nothing more than an illusion of choice, a cruel joke where we have no real say in our fate.

Why were we created? For what purpose? Did we fulfill it or fail so spectacularly that our creators wanted us destroyed? The movie toys with these questions, but in the end, none of them really matter. Like David, we’re just pawns in a far larger game. Playthings for gods whose motives are unknowable.

Prometheus is philosophical, yes, but it’s also a raw, visceral horror story. It’s gory and tense, almost Lovecraftian in its cosmic dread. I honestly recommend putting aside everything you think you know about the Alien franchise before you watch it again. Give yourself fresh eyes and appreciate it on its own terms.

3. Predator

This is just a straight-up, no-nonsense action movie, and honestly, that’s part of what makes it so great. What amazes me is how perfectly it works as an easygoing “in” for anyone who isn’t a science fiction fan but wants to discover just how awesome sci-fi can be. It’s an Arnold Schwarzenegger movie, which automatically roots it in the pantheon of classic ’80s action alongside Red Heat, Commando, and The Terminator.

But Predator manages to transcend the sci-fi genre itself. Think about that buff bully from school - the guy who always picked on the nerds and thought Star Wars was childish - he probably loves this movie. It somehow crosses all those boundaries. The franchise aspect might’ve even worked against it over time, because honestly, Predator could have just stayed a one-off classic.

It’s so deeply embedded in our culture that the phrase “Get to the chopper!” has become shorthand for doing your best Arnie impression, even though most people can’t even name the movie it’s from. Predator has woven itself into the very fabric of society.

That’s why it outlasts all its offspring. Long after the stain of Aliens vs Predator is scrubbed away, Predator will still be there. Maybe it’s a late-night cable action movie you stumble upon, or a special screening at your local Alamo Drafthouse, but this movie isn’t going anywhere. In fact, for some people, it is their Citizen Kane. And honestly? I’m all here for that.

2. Alien

The last two films on this list were never really in doubt, but I’m willing to bet most people didn’t expect Alien to take the second spot. There’s a good reason for that, and it’s not because Aliens is a better movie. In fact, Alien is absolutely the better film.

Ridley Scott, at least during this period, was operating on another level. He was a far superior director to James Cameron when it came to atmosphere, tension, and pure cinematic artistry. The world-building that Aliens would later be praised for? That all came from Alien. Scott and his team created an astonishing piece of science fiction horror that has etched itself into the DNA of modern cinema - not because of its story per se, but because of the universe it spawned and the overwhelming sense of dread and isolation it invoked.

The chestburster scene alone deserves its own place in the annals of film history. When that little monstrosity exploded out of Kane's chest mid-dinner, it was so sudden, so visceral, it changed movie horror forever. I wasn’t there in 1979 to see it in cinemas (what with being entirely unborn at the time), but I can only imagine the collective shriek from the audience was something that hadn’t been heard since The Exorcist.

That tagline, “In space, no one can hear you scream”, is still unmatched. It’s terrifying, simple, and so iconic that it’s been copied and parodied to death. Like Star Wars, Alien launched a thousand imitators and more or less created its own genre: grimy, industrial, space-bound horror. And we haven’t even mentioned H.R. Giger yet. His grotesque, biomechanical aesthetic didn’t just enhance the film - it made the film. Without his designs, Alien might still have been great, but it wouldn’t have been legendary.

So why isn’t it number one?

Because like Star Wars: A New Hope, Alien existed in a vacuum. It was never really meant to answer the big questions: who the Space Jockey was, where the creature came from, or how the company knew anything about the derelict ship on LV-426. It was perfect on its own terms, but it wasn’t built for expansion. Aliens was. That film saw the bigger picture. It built out the universe, gave us a deeper sense of the company’s shadowy authority, and showed us just how insignificant we were in the vastness of space.

Alien is one of my favourite films of all time. A masterpiece. A genre-defining, blood-curdling, artfully constructed sci-fi horror experience that set a bar few films have ever reached. But it wasn’t quite the summit.

That honour goes to…

1.Aliens

The ultimate comfort movie.

Aliens holds a rare and hallowed place in cinema history as one of those sequels that didn’t just live up to the original, it completely surpassed it. It’s part of the holy trinity of superior sequels: Aliens, The Empire Strikes Back, and Terminator 2. Two of those were directed by James Cameron, which is less a coincidence and more a testament to Cameron’s rare talent for blowing the doors off existing franchises.

Cameron may not possess Ridley Scott’s flair for emotional subtlety or slow-burning dread, but he is, hands down, the better technician when it comes to building spectacle. And with Aliens, he didn’t just make a good follow-up to Alien - he evolved it. He took the DNA of Scott’s grim horror-thriller and injected it with adrenaline, artillery, and attitude.

If you haven’t already, I highly recommend checking out the Aliens episode of The Movies That Made Us for a deeper look at the production. It’s chaotic, brilliant, and occasionally very British. But even that documentary can’t fully capture the social impact of the film.

Because where Alien gave us the foundation - the xenomorph, the terror, the tone - Aliens built the universe around it. This is the movie that gave us Colonial Marines, motion trackers, Pulse Rifles, smart guns, dropships, power loaders, and the Alien Queen herself. It turned a singular monster movie into a full-blown mythology. It shaped the look, feel, and vocabulary of sci-fi action for the next 40 years. Think of how many games, books, and movies ripped it off. Halo? Wouldn’t exist without Aliens. Half of ‘90s PC gaming owes it royalties.

And let’s not ignore the emotional core here - Ripley’s relationship with Newt gives the film a real beating heart. It’s about trauma, survival, and ultimately, about protecting the ones you love from the monsters in the dark. It’s not just action for action’s sake - it’s action with soul.

This is where Alien became a franchise. Not through dread and isolation, but through explosive action, camaraderie, and the spark of hope that we can fight back. We can survive. We can beat the bugs.

A genuine masterpiece, and the rightful number one.