Disney buying Alien and Predator is paying off in Marvel Comics. The Fox acquisition has proven to be rather influential in terms of film, television, and merchandising for the Walt Disney Company. However, those aren't the only areas that are benefitting from the merger. Even Marvel Comics have a lot to gain.

The Walt Disney Company officially bought 20th Century Fox in 2019, with mergers beginning in 2020. With that acquisition, the company gained access to many different properties, from The Simpsons to The Greatest Showman. It has allowed for some character rights to be reallocated to Marvel Studios for the future, in the case of the X-Men and Fantastic Four. They also acquired Alien and Predator—huge science fiction properties that released in 1979 and 1987, respectively. What does that have to do with comics?

Related: Marvel Shows Humans Will Never Be Prepared For Xenomorph Attacks

It turns out, it has a lot more to do with comics than fans of either company—and the Alien and Predator franchises—may have initially thought. Already Marvel has begun releasing Alien in 2021, with later plans to release a Predator series later in the year. Even though the new Predator comic has been delayed until fall, there's no arguing that it'll be popular based on the large quantity of pre-orders that had to be cancelled with the delay. Additionally, there have been announcements of an upcoming one-shot that will be a sequel to Aliens. Yet it isn't just the core, new series that Marvel's currently profiting on. It's using these properties rather extensively right now, and this might only be the beginning.

In addition to comic series based upon the world of Alien, Marvel also released numerous variant covers of some of the regular ongoing series currently being published. These covers included Xenomorphs facing some of Marvel's biggest heroes, from Captain Marvel and Spider-Man to Daredevil and Thor. When the new Predator series releases this fall, there will also be another group of variant covers. Those will feature a predator facing off against Marvel's heroes like the Guardians of the Galaxy and the Fantastic Four. This approach seems like a fun way to kick off the new series featuring the new properties, but with so many comic crossovers in existence, it doesn't seem too far-fetched to believe that someday Xenomorphs and Predators could find themselves legitimately fighting against Earth's Mightiest Heroes. Regardless of who is being fought, using these two franchises to boost variant cover sales and grow the brands under Marvel's heading isn't the only way that they're being used.

Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery and Marvel is definitely doing some imitation. In Star Wars: The High Republic, the alien race the Drengir have multiple similarities to Xenomorphs. They don't look anything alike as extraterrestrial organisms, but they have behavioral and physiological similarities. The Drengir have a vine-like nest that in many ways resembles Xenomorph nests, where hosts are held. Initially it seems as though the Drengir simply use captured beings as food, but recently there actually seemed to be a chestburster moment involving a Hutt. This would imply that the Drengir also capture beings to use as vessels for breeding, like Xenomorphs do. While their bodies are different—the Drengir are far more plant-like and appear less menacing—their other similarities are too noticeable to ignore.

In both the Marvel superhero universe, and the Star Wars universe, Alien is making itself comfortable. It seems likely that even Predators could find a home in the galaxy in some way similar to this in the future. It is clear that Marvel knows the potential these franchises have and is making the most out of Disney's acquisition of Alien and Predator in their comics.

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