“Alien” is a film full of influential and iconic moments. Whether it’s the simple premise that has been copied time after time, the strong female action star at the center, the way the Xenomorph is designed, or any number of moments, “Alien” has stood the test of time to constantly be brought up as one of the greatest films of all time. And perhaps the most famous moment in the entire film is also a scene that led to filmmaker Ridley Scott getting the coveted Stanley Kubrick seal of approval.
Speaking to the Los Angeles Times, Scott reminisced about the creation of “Alien,” and particularly, the famous chest-burster scene that featured a small Xenomorph baby ripping its way out of the chest of one of the crew members. It’s a scene that people that haven’t even seen the film are probably familiar with. As has been said before, the effect was especially convincing thanks to the reactions from the cast, as they weren’t sure what was going to happen. And that was all part of Scott’s plan.
“I kept it very much from the actors and I kept the actual little creature, whatever that would be, from the actors. I never wanted them to see it,” the filmmaker said. “Remember there was no digital effects in those days at all. I’m going to somehow bring that creature out of his chest.”
And though the “how” of the scene is fairly simple with a special table and the actor only exposing part of his body as the rest was composed of a false torso that would have the chest-burster popping out of. But apparently, the practical, fairly obvious effect was so convincing, Scott got a call from one of the most iconic film directors of all time, asking how he did it.
“I remember Stanley Kubrick called me up saying, ‘How’d you do that?’ He said, ‘I’ve run it through slowly, I can’t see the cut,’” said Scott. “And I just said that much. He said, ‘OK, I got it. I got it, it worked.’”
Hey, if it passes the Stanley Kubrick test, then you know you are onto something great, and obviously, the scene from “Alien” is one of the best horror scenes ever filmed. There’s a reason why the chest-burster sequence has been copied so many times in other films, as well as parodies. It’s a classic.
Of course, the rest of “Alien” isn’t too shabby, either.
You can watch the entire scene below: