'Alien: Covenant' Behind-The-Scenes Footage Shows Off Practical Sets And Spaceships

When I visited the set of Alien: Covenant last year, I couldn't help but be bowled over by the sheer scale of the production. It's one thing to hear about a movie that costs far north of $100 million to produce, but it's another thing to actually see what that cash is paying for. In the case of the sixth movie in the science fiction/horror franchise that director Ridley Scott kicked off back in 1979, much of that cash seems to have been spent on elaborate, detailed, and utterly enormous sets. The reviews have been all over the place, but one thing is certain: Alien: Covenant is a huge movie.

While there is a great deal of CGI in the finished film, the scale of the production and the practical effects are on full display in a new video, which offers a look at sheer number of elements that need to come together to make a movie of this size happen.

Technically, this video is a teaser for an upcoming HBO First Look, which will offer a much larger behind-the-scenes look at the movie. But for now, we'll make do with this very entertaining assembly of footage taken from the set, which finds Scott, his cast, and his enormous crew constructing everything from extraterrestrial temples to giant spaceship cockpit built on gimbals to simulate turbulence. The only thing not present is the many, many gallons of fake blood we were told all about on set, but we may have to wait until we're in theaters to glimpse all of that red stuff.

While the reviews of Alien: Covenant have been mixed, I can't help but be encouraged by this. Those who dislike the film, including a member of the /Film team, really dislike it, but those who like it came out swinging, prepared to defend it from the naysayers. Heck, another member of the /Film team initially didn't like it but started to come around to it a few days after his screening. In other words, this movie is going to prove divisive and get people chattering. Not every massive summer blockbuster can do that and I can't wait to have an opinion of my own.

Alien: Covenant is set to open on May 19, 2017. To warm up for the main event, we'll be writing a lot more about the Alien series as a whole next week. So stick around! In the meantime, this HBO First Look is set to premiere tomorrow, May 10.