Earth to Alien fans, there’s another entry in the franchise, and FX wants to make it the most immersive experience possible.
Today, FX and Hulu debuted the Alien prequel series, Alien: Earth, which takes place two years before the original 1979 film. Leading up to its premiere, FX created an expansive and immersive marketing campaign that included several activations across the United States, as well as some creative collaborations with brands across the food and beverage, hospitality, and lifestyle categories.
Kenya Hardaway Green, svp, integrated promotions, FX Networks–and a 2018 Brand Genius honoree for ADWEEK—said the global launch for the Alien: Earth marketing campaign was a year in the making, with a lot of moving parts involved for the rollout.
The executive, who is certainly no stranger to spearheading two-part immersive campaigns, having done so earlier this year for Grotesquerie, told ADWEEK that experimental activations and brand collaborations were a priority.
“The experiential concept that we put together and wanted to bring to fans had multiple beats, and it was constructed that way intentionally,” Hardaway Green said.
Creating out-of-this-world activations
One of the first activations that FX launched was The Wreckage, which lets fans explore a spaceship crash site. The activation first appeared at South by Southwest (SXSW) earlier this year and also landed at last month’s San Diego Comic-Con.
Hardaway Green said that The Wreckage was inspired by the pilot of the show, which features the crash of the Weyland-Yutani spacecraft, the USCSS Maginot, which brings the alien creatures to the planet. The SDCC iteration also included a daytime and nighttime portion (dubbed “The Wreckage: Code Red”) that allowed more adventurous guests to take part in a creepy mission.
“We felt like that setup just really demanded an immersive engagement,” Hardaway Green said. “Building out that scene and featuring The Wreckage, and allowing fans to step into the world and explore, became the focus of that experience.”
Hardaway Green added that there were a lot of elements earlier in the year that could not be revealed in March at SXSW, so they had to build slowly as the campaign progressed; however, the early activation still utilized key moments and incorporated radio frequency identification technology (RFID), which uses radio waves to do things like track objects or trigger effects.
During SDCC, FX also debuted its collaboration with Chain, the dining experience company known for its reimagined takes on pop cuisine staples, which involved a vending machine stocked with exclusive custom in-world beverages.
More brands enter the orbit
In terms of brand activations, FX collaborated with Skullcandy for limited-edition Skullcandy x FX Alien: Earth Crusher Evo Headphones, which feature a custom design inspired by the show. The company is also teaming up with SoulCycle for a special ride full of Alien: Earth-themed classes and limited-edition giveaways across 54 SoulCycle studios.
Meanwhile, the company collaborated with Black Tap Craft Burgers & Beer for a limited-edition Alien: Earth Burger and Cryo CrazyShake found at Black Tap locations across New York City, Nashville, Dallas, and Las Vegas at The Venetian, which were available from July 28 to Aug. 10. Also on the beverage front, FX collaborated with Kraken Rum and Cocktail Courier for a limited-edition “Containment Cocktail Kit” featuring Kraken Rum and co-branded glasses and ingredients to make two custom cocktail recipes inspired by the show.
The campaign made sure to cover a lot of ground, also working with select W hotels, including W Hollywood, W New York – Times Square, W San Francisco, and W Seattle, between Aug. 8 and Aug. 14, to create branded moments like signature cocktails available at participating W Hotel restaurants.
Leading into premiere week, several of the brand collaborations came together in The Hunt, a global stunt across 14 cities, which includes the USCSS Maginot containment unit crate guarded by Prodigy Corp officers, where fans can look for hidden Easter eggs, photo ops, and exclusive prizes.
By participating, fans got the chance to win a pair of the limited-edition Skullcandy headphones, a round-trip airfare, and a 2-night stay in one of the W Hotel locations that participated in The Hunt, as well as other branded products.
When looking at the collaborations, Hardaway Green said the goal was to identify brands that “understood the importance of creating a unique experience.”
“There are all kinds of different collaborations that can be successful for various reasons, but we wanted to steer clear of a traditional logo-slap tune-in on a product, or in their space, so it was important for us that we could find interesting ways to engage the audience and provide opportunities,” Hardaway Green said.