Runner Biological information Host Quadrupedal beings Caste Physical description Height 7'5" Weight 320 lbs. Distinctions Smooth-domed head Quadrupedal body Brown-reddish skin color Lacks dorsal tubes Chronological and political information Status Appearances Alien 3 Aliens: Colonial Marines Portrayed by

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The Runner is a quadrupedal Xenomorph breed created as a result of the embryo gestating within quadrupedal beings.

AppearanceEdit

It is different from the other Xenomorphs seen before in a number of ways due to the host it was spawned from was a dog. It is born completely formed and needs only to grow larger. The adult is quadrupedal, has double jointed hind legs and lacks the dorsal tubes of other varieties. It's skin is also tinted brown-ish red.

IntelligenceEdit

It is hinted that Runners may be lacking the intelligence of human-spawned Xenomorphs. Instead of gathering hosts to herald the soon to be birthed Queen, the creature killed each and every one of its victims, sparing none as Ripley observed its function as a "killer,", with exception of Ripley herself, who was spared twice due to the Queen embryo gestating within her (although it seemed to have decided to try and kill her during its later encounter with her). This would suggest that Xenomorphs gain intellectual, as well as physical traits from their host.

Abilities and MannerismsEdit

Runners are capable of spitting acid. This ability, while mostly shown as a defensive/offensive mechanism (possible to make up for the reduced strength due to it being physically weaker than a fighting Warrior), can have practical purposes.

Behind the ScenesEdit

Concept and credit controversyEdit

Originally, H. R. Giger was approached on July 28, 1990 by David Fincher and Fred Zinnemann, and was asked to redesign his own creations for Alien 3. Giger's new designs included an aquatic facehugger and a four-legged version of the adult Alien. Giger said in an interview; "I had special ideas to make it more interesting. I designed a new creature, which was much more elegant and beastly, compared to my original. It was a four-legged Alien, more like a lethal feline - a panther or something. It had a kind of skin that was built up from other creatures - much like a symbiosis." However, when Tom Woodruff and Alec Gillis of Amalgamated Dynamics told Giger that they had their own design, Giger expressed himself as "very upset" and that the creature he had especially designed was his "baby". Even after the production severed contact, Giger continued to fax suggestions to Fincher because of his enthusiasm for the project, and made full-scale drawings and a sculpt of the Alien, all of which were rejected. Giger stated,"David Fincher neglected to inform me that Woodruff and Gillis were also contracted to take care of the redesign of the Alien - I found out much later... I thought I had the job and that Woodruff and Gillis would work from my plans. On their side, they were convinced that it was their job and accepted my 'suggestions' with pleasure. They believed that all my effort was based on a huge love for the matter, because I worked hard even after my contract was over." Giger would later be angered by the end credits of the released film presenting him as merely the creator of the original creature, and the fact that ADI personnel gave a series of interviews that minimized Giger's contribution. Fox eventually reimbursed Giger, but only after he refused to be interviewed for their behind-the-scenes documentary of Alien 3.

The Academy Awards overlooked Giger's contribution to Alien 3. However, Ridley Scott included Giger's name along with nominees Carlo Rambaldi and Richard Johnson in the 1980 Academy Awards. Fox, at the time Alien 3 was released, pointed out that studios are precluded from submitting nominees in the effects category directly to the Academy. This upset Giger so much that at one point he sent Academy president Karl Malden a fax with this closing comment: "I am under the strong impression that my contribution to the visual effects of the nominated movie has been intentionally suppressed", signing the letter with a large black pentagram.

Giger however would comment that he thought the resulting film was "okay" and that the Alien was "better than in the second film."

TriviaEdit

• The production crew nicknamed the Runner as the Bambi burster or Dog Alien.
• In the assembly cut of Alien 3, the Runner is shown to be created through the use of cattle.

GalleryEdit

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