How is Ian Holm back in Alien: Romulus? “Digital necromancy” controversy explained

Alien: Romulus is here, and word on the street is that it’s a pretty great entry into the franchise. But, there is one thing upsetting fans: Ian Holm has been brought back from the dead.

We’ve been excited for the Alien: Romulus release date all year. The promotional images, trailers, and even the popcorn buckets have been out of this world.

One thing the new movie didn’t reveal in the lead-up to release, however, is that one of the most iconic characters in the Alien timeline is coming back.

Yes, the late, great Ian Holm has a role to play in Alien: Romulus. So, how has he returned? And why are fans angry about it? Warning: spoilers ahead.

Ash returns in Alien: Romulus… sort of

Ian Holm’s likeness has been digitally resurrected for Alien: Romulus, with a new synthetic taking on the appearance of his character, Ash.

The new synthetic is not the Ash we know and love from the original film, of course. The android-turned-antagonist is decapitated and electrocuted by the end of the first movie.

However, with Romulus set just 20 years after the original sci-fi movie, it figures Weyland-Yutani is still producing synthetics with the same appearance.

The credits for Romulus name Ian Holm as “facial and vocal reference” for a character called Rook. The character is also credited to Daniel Betts for “facial and vocal performance”.

So, Betts does deliver a genuine performance as the character. However, Holm’s face was planted over using CGI, and the two actors’ voices were merged in post-production.

Fans are not happy

Alien fans have taken to social media to lament this decision to use Ian Holm’s likeness in the new movie. It’s been criticized as unnecessary and immoral, and raises questions about Ash’s role in the original Alien film.

One fan on X/Twitter said: “So strange to do AI Ian Holm when you could just ask Lance Henriksen to do some lines and change up the story a touch and no one would question it.”

That is a very valid point. There’s literally no need for Rook to look like Ash at all, especially considering that character is also dead. It would’ve been far simpler to introduce a new synthetic or use someone like Henriksen to come in as a Bishop replica.

20th Century Studios

Another fan describes this move as “the CGI puppeteering of a dead man who can’t consent to any of this” and said it makes them “deeply uncomfortable.” They even suggest they might refuse to see the film because of it.

It’s safe to assume Ian Holm’s estate signed off on the rights to his face and voice at some point. Whether that makes it morally acceptable or not is another matter.

Assuming we go with the idea that Weyland modeled all their androids on that original Ash concept, though, that creates a plot hole for Ridley Scott’s original movie.

One fan argues, “If Ian Holm is what all androids in the Alien universe look like in that time period then why are the crew in the first film surprised when it’s revealed Ash is a robot?”

What is digital necromancy?

Digital necromancy is a term coined to describe the growing trend of deceased actors having their faces and voices used posthumously by studios to bring back old characters.

One X user discussed “digital necromancy” in relation to Alien: Romulus and described the technique as a “movie-killing sin.”

It’s a combination of CGI, performance capture, and digital face replacement. If you’ve ever seen a character aged up or down, it’s essentially that, but extra morbid.

Not to generalize things, but this is something Disney is guilty of more than any other studio. We’ve seen Peter Cushing’s Grand Moff Tarkin and Carrie Fisher’s Princess Leia both resurrected in Rogue One.

The House of Mouse also received criticism for the way it messed with Luke Skywalker in The Mandalorian and The Book of Boba Fett. While Mark Hamill was still involved there, Disney essentially used deepfake technology to make him the spritely young Jedi we remember.

It’s not just Disney, though. DC has done it with Christopher Reeve’s Superman in The Flash. Paul Walker was brought back from the dead for Fast & Furious 7. Audrey Hepburn was even digitally restored for a Galaxy chocolate advert, of all things!

We’d love to say that all the negative reactions to this kind of thing will see the technique abandoned. But, with the rising ability of AI and franchises leaning more and more into nostalgia bait, we can only imagine digital necromancy becoming even more commonplace in years to come.

We’ll let you decide how you feel about Ian Holm’s role in Alien: Romulus. For more on the franchise, here’s what we know about Xenomorphs. We’ve also covered potential returns for Sigourney Weaver and Michael Fassbender. Or dive into this feature on why the worst Alien movie is way better than its reputation suggests and the Alien movies ranked.