ARCHIE RENAUX IS ABOUT TO LAUNCH INTO THE STRATOSPHERE, QUITE LITERALLY, IN HIS LATEST ROLE AS TYLER IN THE NEW ALIEN: ROMULUS MOVIE, WHICH CENTRES AROUND AN INQUISITIVE GROUP OF 20-SOMETHING SPACE COLONISERS WHO DISCOVER AN ABANDONED SPACE STATION AND DISTURB A NIGHTMARISH NEST OF FACE HUGGERS, CHEST BURSTERS AND THE ICONICALLY MONSTROUS XENOMORPH. IT’S NOT THE ACTOR’S FIRST JOURNEY INTO ORBIT, HAVING PLAYED ALEX IN THE 2021 FILM, VOYAGERS, WHICH HE THEN FOLLOWED UP WITH AN APPEARANCE AS MAL, THE ENIGMATIC SOLDIER WITH A MYSTERIOUS PAST IN THE HIT NETFLIX FANTASY SERIES SHADOW AND BONE. AS THE CHARISMATICALLY GROUNDED BRITISH ACTOR’S STAR CONTINUES TO RISE, THE QUESTION IS, WHERE ON EARTH DOES HE GO FROM HERE?

Hey Archie! Let’s talk about face huggers and chest busters, as of course, you’re starring as Tyler in Alien: Romulus. This movie is passing the torch to a new generation of Alien stars. How would you sum up your character?

He lives on a colony with his sibling Kay, in a group of young adults who are trying to find a better life for themselves, as the colony has low life expectancy with lots of new diseases and there’s no daylight. So, Tyler and his cousins Bjorn and Navarro discover an opportunity to get to a planet with a better quality of life; and Tyler is the captain of the crew, orchestrating a plan of how to get there.

Preparing for this movie must have been a dream…

Completely, just getting to watch all the Alien films, not hard work at all! [Laughs]

I just wanted to get the feel of what Alien represents and means to people, and how to capture that tone and make it my own, as it needs to be familiar to audiences, but you also need to have your own stamp on the character. In the other Alien films, the characters were marines, but in this film, none of us have any combat experience, so it’s interesting to see how that plays out.

Left Full look **Saint Laurent by Anthony Vaccarello**
Right Full look **Paul Smith**

Was there any training for this role then?

We had a few stunts to rehearse, and there’s a zero-gravity scene where we’re on wires and you’ve got to have good core strength for that, to really sell to the audience that you’re weightless in space. So, we had a few weeks of training for that, and it was a learning experience, as you really need to find your balance, otherwise one wrong move and you tip one way and end up spinning around on the wire!

What’s your first memory of seeing the original movie, and did that instigate a fear of aliens or a total love of them?

I watched the film with my dad, and I loved it, but I was probably too young when I saw it, maybe 8 or 9 years old, and I remember him saying to me, “Don’t tell your mum that I let you stay up and watch this.” [Laughs] Now, having revisited the film as an adult, I realise how pioneering it was for its genre, especially with Sigourney Weaver paving the way for women to play an action hero rather than a damsel in distress, which was often the case in movies back then.

Sweater **Comme Des Garçons Homme Plus** , denim **Levi's**

That must have blown your mind a little, having watched the original with your dad all those years ago, and now here you are, part of the next chapter in that iconic movie franchise.

To be a part of this legacy is surreal, and for my dad, it’s also building on something he and my mum loved, as they both watched the original movie together. My dad has also told all his mates I’m in the film, so he’s amazed and proud!

How was it when you saw the iconic Xenomorph for the first time? Was there a real heightened moment of proper horror?

It was like seeing a celebrity! It was amazing within the narrative of the film, which was shot chronologically, to have all these practical effects, certainly with the Xenomorph, face huggers and chest bursters. It helped with following the narrative of the film, as you don’t have to pretend or imagine, it’s all there. It was the best immersive alien experience anyone could ever wish for.

Speaking of which, the director Fede Álvarez revealed that he used sound effects to frighten you all in the cast while filming. How did that play out and did it help you find the character more in your scenes?

Well, not so much frighten us, but he did have this big speaker, and he would play the noise of the Xenomorph through it, and other details like the sound of the spaceship docking. It all helped to really feel part of it without using any green screen, like having to talk to a tennis ball and pretend it’s someone!

Left Full look **Balenciaga**
Right Full look **Sean Suen**

How was it shooting on a soundstage in Budapest? It must have felt such a contrast to anything you’ve done before because the scale of this movie is so huge.

It was so intense! We had to come out of the soundstage every now and then, as it’s so dark in there and your body clock gets all messed up, so you need sunlight and fresh air.

What about costumes and props, how did they help inform your character? Will we see you wearing any Sigourney-esque Reebok Alien Stompers?

All my costumes were very rugged! They felt very lived in and my character works as a miner, so his clothes are quite worn and distressed, and I had to wear a gilet that I loved. Most of the costumes we’re all wearing are very similar to the sort of things you’ve seen in the other Alien movies, which fit in with the set design too, as this movie is set in between the first one and the second, so there’s a very 1980s feel to it, like stepping back in time, for me anyway!

Now you’re making me feel old. Talking about time passing and style, watches… I heard that you’re a real collector of fancy wrist pieces.

As a kid, I remember my dad showing me some of the pricey designer watches when we were on holiday once, and he said, “You’re doing well if you can afford one of those.” So then, I became fascinated by them, and the untouchability of them, and now I’m lucky to own a couple for myself. But it’s also the design, mechanics and engineering of these watches that fascinates me and they’re like an extension of your personality. I also like watches inspired by my favourite TV or movie characters, like Del Boy would wear an ‘80s yellow gold timepiece, and Tony Soprano wears a Rolex Day Date 36, which I would love to own!

Del Boy and Rodney became millionaires, thanks to a vintage watch they found in a garage. So, keep collecting…

Exactly, you’ll see me one day on Antiques Roadshow with my vintage collection! [Laughs]

Ok, this is getting too geeky. Speaking of which, there is a cult Alien fanbase who will want to know any behind-the-scenes gossip or facts about this new film. So, did you discover anything revealing about the filming experience or aliens in general?

Put me on the spot, why don’t you!! Well, what you see in the original Alien movie with the Xenomorph is exactly what you see in this one, in terms of the animatronic version, the puppetry version, and a guy in the suit version when more specific movements were required. Each one has its own purpose, be that for more speed, or to be more menacing, is that factual or interesting enough for you? Well, I think that’s exciting to know, quite geeky!

How about an alien group chat, not literally, but between you and the rest of the cast – what kind of stuff do you all send one another?

Haha! Well yes, we do have a group chat, and I’m probably the one who sends all the memes still! It was good to have the chat to bond while filming in Budapest for ⅘ months, and there was a real camaraderie between us all, a bit like that scene in the original Alien movie, where they’re all sat around eating and chatting, telling stories!

Left Full look **Miu Miu**
Right Full look **Prada**

How was it doing the promo trail for the film at Comic-Con? I imagine there were plenty of fans dressed casually in face-hugger masks?

It was daunting but exciting, and we all know how much the franchise means to people, and I think fans will really enjoy this film. Seeing the reactions there was great, and they were all given face-hugger masks at the end of the panel discussion, so afterwards when we were leaving, there were all these people walking along the streets with face-huggers wrapped around their heads, so funny!

This movie is not your first time doing sci-fi. It must be interesting to see the similarities and differences between the projects you’ve worked on. Does the genre agree with your sensibilities?

I am drawn to sci-fi, in fact, I’m fascinated by it, like the, ‘What if?’ scenarios; are there aliens out there…? These kinds of films and shows deal with real-life subjects because there are people researching if we can colonise Mars and find new home planets. So yes, I love the genre.

You’ve done rom-coms too and more recently starred in the TV drama The Jetty, but is there a role you would love to play, maybe an indie?

Well, I’ve just done a project where I’m playing a character that was a challenge and someone quite far away from who I am, in terms of relatability, which I can’t give anything away about! I think the weirder a character is, and the more thought-provoking, the more they’re on my radar to play. I’m also starting up a production company with my friend who is a great writer, so there are ideas floating around behind the scenes and we’re hoping in the next couple of years they’ll start to take off.

What about making something for your daughter? You’re a dad, that must influence and inspire the sort of projects you want to personally make or put out there?

Completely. I would love to voice a character in a kid’s movie before she gets too old to watch those kinds of films. I would also like to make something meaningful and sweet, like Tim Burton’s Big Fish, which I watched the other day; I love the relationship between Ewan McGregor and his dad, there are similarities to me and my dad in that, so it was quite an emotional viewing experience. I want to make something beautiful that my daughter can one day relate to.

…

Discover the full story in our upcoming FW24 Issue - release next End-October.

Interview by Kate Lawson

Photography by Jonas Huckstorf

Fashion by Ingo Narhwold

Casting by Imagemachine cs

Production by Lauren Sloan at Lalaland Group

Grooming by Nao Kawakami at The Wall Group

Video Operator Max Buchheim

Post Production by Nitty Gritty Berlin

Post Production Video Trey Studio

Photographer’s assistant Emil Dietrich