Javier Botet did motion capture performances for Alien: Covenant

Last Updated on July 31, 2021

Javier Botet

Yesterday morning I was talking about some of the genre work 6'7" Spanish actor Javier Botet has done in the last ten years, bringing monstrous, nightmarish, and ghostly characters to life in films like [REC], MAMA, CRIMSON PEAK, and THE CONJURING 2, with more coming down the line in THE MUMMY, ANNABELLE 2, IT, INSIDIOUS: CHAPTER 4, and POLAROID.

You can add another terrifying creature to that list, and it's the most iconic character Botet has played yet: the actor has revealed that he did motion capture performances for the Xenomorphs and Neomorphs in Ridley Scott's upcoming ALIEN prequel / PROMETHEUS sequel ALIEN: COVENANT. He shared the news on his Instagram account by showing off his IMDb credit with the caption "Dreams come true (sometimes)".

As John "The Arrow" Fallon mentioned in his set visit report, COVENANT will feature practical effects with CG enhancements when necessary. Botet's motion capture performances are part of that process.

Botet's COVENANT co-stars include Katherine Waterston, Michael Fassbender, Billy Crudup, Danny McBride, Demián Bichir, Carmen Ejogo, Amy Seimetz, Jussie Smollett, Callie Hernandez, Nathaniel Dean, Alexander England, Benjamin Rigby, James Franco, Noomi Rapace, and possibly Guy Pearce.

Written by Michael Green, Jack Paglen, and John Logan, the film tells the following story: 

The crew of the colony ship Covenant, bound for a remote planet on the far side of the galaxy, discovers what they think is an uncharted paradise, but is actually a dark, dangerous world.  When they uncover a threat beyond their imagination, they must attempt a harrowing escape.

We'll get to see Botet's alien work on the screen when ALIEN: COVENANT is released on May 19th. In the meantime, get a preview of it in the trailer.

Source: Instagram

About the Author

Cody is a news editor and film critic, focused on the horror arm of JoBlo.com, and writes scripts for videos that are released through the JoBlo Originals and JoBlo Horror Originals YouTube channels. In his spare time, he's a globe-trotting digital nomad, runs a personal blog called Life Between Frames, and writes novels and screenplays.