Ash (Alien)
A sleeper agent android with secret orders.
He is later revealed to be a Hyperdyne Systems 120-A/2 android acting on secret orders to retrieve the alien lifeform.[1] Per Schelde describes Ash as the "perfect Corporation man" who reflects the Corporation's views.[2] In the first film, Ash is the science officer aboard the Nostromo and functions as the secondary antagonist.[1]
Quick Facts
- Series
- Alien
- First
- Alien (1979)
- Last
- Alien: Romulus (2024)
- Species
- Hyperdyne Systems 120-A/2 android
- Occupation
- Science officer
- Portrayed by
- Ian Holm
- Voice
- Dave B. Mitchell (Alien: Isolation), Rutger Hauer (Alien: Out of the Shadows audio play)
- Creator
- Dan O'Bannon, Ronald Shusett
Facts from the source article.
Making and release
Ash was portrayed by Ian Holm in the 1979 film Alien.[3] Ripley becomes suspicious of Ash after his actions break quarantine by allowing the infected Kane back on board.[1][4] Parker and Lambert rescue Ripley, and Ash is decapitated and then electrocuted.[4] Ash rerouted the shuttle to intercept a distress call, hoping to continue his mission for Weyland-Yutani.[5]
In Alien: Romulus, director Fede Álvarez used Ian Holm's likeness for a different synthetic character named Rook, who shares Ash's operating system.[6] After Ripley uncovers the true cause for the Nostromo's detour, Ash attacks her by shoving a rolled-up pornographic magazine into her mouth.[4] Hoop eliminated Ash by erasing his program from the shuttle's mainframe with a computer virus.[7]
What the cited sources add
Roz Kaveney characterizes Ash as a "counter-revisionist robot" from an era where robots were seen as competitors to humanity.[8] Mary Pharr notes that from Ash's own viewpoint, he is comfortable with his programming and interested only in "collating" knowledge.[9] Kristin Thompson argues that Ash's assault with the magazine alludes to the facehugger's infestation method rather than being primarily about pornography.[10] A deleted scene where Lambert states she never got the idea Ash was "particularly interested" in sex suggests his otherness.[11][12]
References
- Wikipedia, "Ash (Alien)" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Kristin Thompson, "Storytelling in the New Hollywood: Understanding Classical Narrative Technique", Harvard University Press, 1999, p. 285, 293, 294, 299, 300; "Aliens", 20th Century Fox Film Corporation, 1986-07-18 (we also read that source) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Ash (Alien)" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Per Schelde, "Androids, Humanoids, and Other Folklore Monsters: Science and Soul in Science Fiction Films", NYU Press, 1994, p. 91, 227 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- Lambie, "Rutger Hauer interview: Alien: Out Of The Shadows", Den of Geek, 26 April 2016. facts only, no text reused. denofgeek.com
- Wikipedia, "Ash (Alien)" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: C. Ximena Gallardo and C. Jason Smith, "Alien Woman: The Making of Lt. Ellen Ripley", Continuum International Publishing Group, 2006, p. 16, 48, 49 (we also read that source) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Ash (Alien)" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Lebbon, "Alien: Out of the Shadows: An Audible Original Drama" (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- "How and Why Alien: Romulus Brought Back Surprising Original Franchise Star", 17 August 2024. facts only, no text reused. movieweb.com
- Wikipedia, "Ash (Alien)" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Lambie, "Rutger Hauer interview: Alien: Out Of The Shadows", Den of Geek, 26 April 2016; Lebbon, "Alien: Out of the Shadows", Titan Books Limited, 2014 (we also read that source) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Ash (Alien)" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Roz Kaveney, "Alien to The Matrix: reading science fiction film", I.B.Tauris, 2005, p. 137, 138, 144, 145; Kristin Thompson, "Storytelling in the New Hollywood: Understanding Classical Narrative Technique", Harvard University Press, 1999, p. 285, 293, 294, 299, 300; C. Ximena Gallardo and C. Jason Smith, "Alien Woman: The Making of Lt. Ellen Ripley", Continuum International Publishing Group, 2006, p. 16, 48, 49; Nicholas Mirzoeff, "An Introduction to Visual Culture", Routledge, 1999, p. 195; Nicholas Mirzoeff, "An Introduction to Visual Cul en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Ash (Alien)" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Mary Pharr, "No Cure for the Future: Disease and Medicine in Science Fiction and Fantasy", Greenwood Publishing Group, 2002, p. 134, 135 (we also read that source) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Ash (Alien)" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Kristin Thompson, "Storytelling in the New Hollywood: Understanding Classical Narrative Technique", Harvard University Press, 1999, p. 285, 293, 294, 299, 300 (we also read that source) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Ash (Alien)" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Gerard Loughlin, "Alien Sex: The Body and Desire in Cinema and Theology", Wiley-Blackwell, 2004, p. 109 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Ash (Alien)" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Gerard Loughlin, "Alien Sex: The Body and Desire in Cinema and Theology", Wiley-Blackwell, 2004, p. 109; Gerard Loughlin, "Alien Sex: The Body and Desire in Cinema and Theology", Wiley-Blackwell, 2004, p. 109; Kristin Thompson, "Storytelling in the New Hollywood: Understanding Classical Narrative Technique", Harvard University Press, 1999, p. 285, 293, 294, 299, 300; Gerard Loughlin, "Alien Sex: The Body and Desire in Cinema and Theology", Wiley-Blackwell, 2004, p. 109; Kavanagh, ""Son of a Bitch": Feminism, Humanism, and Science in "Alien" en.wikipedia.org
Each numbered sentence above was checked against the source it cites before publication. Sentences citing Wikipedia adapt text from the English Wikipedia article Ash (Alien) (contributors), used under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is available under the same licence. Other sources were used for facts only; no text or images are copied from them.
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