*Alien: Romulus* has been a resounding success, captivating both critics and fans alike, leading to a sequel announcement fueled by its impressive box office performance of $350 million globally. Despite the film's triumphs, one aspect received widespread criticism: the CGI used to bring back the late Ian Holm, who reprised his iconic role as the android Ash from Ridley Scott’s original *Alien* film. The CGI was so poorly received that fans created edits removing Holm's character entirely, citing its distracting and unrealistic appearance.

In response to the backlash, director Fede Alvarez admitted in an interview with Empire that time constraints during post-production were to blame for the substandard CGI. He stated, "We just ran out of time in post-production to get it right. I wasn’t 100% happy with some of the shots, where you could feel a bit more the CG intervention. So, for people that react negatively, I don’t blame them.” Determined to rectify the issue, Alvarez ensured the CGI was improved for the home release, shifting more towards practical puppet work. He insisted, "We fixed it. We made it better for the release right now. I convinced the studio we need to spend the money and make sure we give the companies that were involved in making it the proper time to finish it and do it right. It’s so much better."

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Despite Alvarez's efforts, fans have mixed feelings about the updated Ian Holm CGI. Some acknowledge a slight improvement but still find it distracting. On Reddit, users like Kwtwo1983 commented, "Better, but still awfully uncanny… and for no sound reason," while thelastcupoftea suggested, "Should’ve messed his face up much more." Smug_amoeba remarked, "Still such a needless and distracting part of the movie," and Worried_Bowl_9489 observed, "Both look bad and one is a bit darker lol." TheUrPigeon was even more critical, stating, "Let's be real, it's still awful and garish to resurrect a dead man so needlessly. They can only improve upon it so much because the initial effort was so poor."

The home release version features more of the practical puppet work Alvarez mentioned, with less emphasis on the CGI face. However, the consensus among fans remains that while there is some improvement, the decision to bring back Holm's character was unnecessary and continues to detract from the film's overall experience.

Despite these criticisms, *Alien: Romulus* has revitalized the franchise, and 20th Century Studios is already developing *Alien: Romulus 2*, with Fede Alvarez potentially returning to direct and continue the story from the first film.