The Offspring in Alien: Romulus explained – how was the new hybrid monster created?

Forget the Xenomorph, Alien: Romulus just delivered an even more terrifying new monster that’s been giving us nightmares. Here’s what you need to know about the Offspring, including how it was made and whether it’ll return.

You only have to read our Alien: Romulus review to see that the new sci-fi movie is a great entry in the franchise. What’s best is, it takes big swings and has ambitious ideas at its core.

The most sinister element of the whole film – no, we’re not talking about the digital resurrection of Ian Holm – is the Offspring, who appears towards the end of Romulus to terrorize the young crew.

Read on to find out what this hideous creation is all about, if you dare. It goes without saying, but there are spoilers ahead.

What is the Offspring?

The Offspring is a hybrid organism that’s part-human, part-Xenomorph. He’s huge in stature, but gangly and gaunt, and he feasts on human flesh.

Oddly, this terrifying new Alien monster looks quite similar to the Engineers we meet in Prometheus. With pale, white skin and hollow black eyes, there are definitely comparisons to be made.

The Offspring moves unnaturally, almost spider-like in the way it crawls and scuttles around the spaceship hunting its prey. It may be more human in appearance, but make no mistake, this is an abomination that flies in the face of everything humanity represents.

How was it made?

When Kay (Isabela Merced) injects herself with the pure life pathogen Weyland-Yutani has been working on, her pregnancy takes a nasty turn and she gives birth to the human-alien hybrid.

20th Century Studios

On board the Romulus spaceship, the evil corporation has been conducting experiments on Facehuggers to extract the black goo we see in Prometheus and help humans take the next (unnatural) step in their evolution.

After Kay is attacked by the Xenomorph, she is close to death. As she desperately attempts to escape, she realizes she’ll need the help of the pathogen she is carrying, and sticks a dose of it in her neck. While this gives her the strength to make it to the Corbelan IV, it also infects her and her unborn baby.

Kay’s stomach swells as the pregnancy accelerates, and she gives birth to an alien egg. When the egg hatches, the Offspring emerges and rapidly grows to become the giant, grotesque villain of the film’s final act.

Who plays the Offspring?

You might think the Offspring is a CGI creation, but it’s not. He’s actually played by a first-time actor called Robert Bobroczkyi.

You can learn more about the man behind the monster with our guide on Robert Bobroczkyi. In short (pun intended) he is a former basketball player from Romania. He was selected for the role of the Offspring thanks to his unbelievable height, coming in at 7ft 7inches.

Will we see this monster again?

As the Offspring was killed in the closing moments of Romulus, it’s unlikely. But, if there’s ever a pregnant woman in space again, there’s every chance the hybrid could be replicated.

Who knows, maybe Weyland-Yutani will learn of their latest creation and want more? We certainly wouldn’t put it past them.

Of course, we’d need a sequel to Alien: Romulus for this to happen. Judging by the film’s box office takings so far, that isn’t beyond the realms of possibility at all.

For more from the franchise, check out our ranking of all the Alien movies. You can also see exactly where Romulus takes place in the Alien timeline or read why Alien 3 is better than you think.