Popverse's top stories of the day

• Winona Ryder was reduced to tears on the set of Stranger Things when the young cast couldn't identify a vinyl record
• Watch: The Lord of the Rings: Rings of Power cast explains what's coming in season 2
• Bleach's character designer says pop culture's greatest villain isn't from anime, but Disney

Don’t expect all the mysteries of Alien: Romulus to be answered in the movie itself. In fact, audiences who want the whole story of what happens to the scavengers whose attempts to escape space squalor will have to wait until October, and the release of a one-shot Marvel comic spinning out of Fede Alvarez’s much-anticipated feature.

The one-off issue — titled, simply, Alien: Romulus #1 — is actually a prequel to the movie despite coming out two months later; written by Zac Thompson with art from Daniel Picciotto, the comic will, according to Marvel, provode “an illuminating backstory behind the film’s main threat.” That would presumably be the xenomorphs themselves, but it’s an Alien movie; for all we know, it’s a Weyland-Yutani shout-out. Who else would be a bigger threat than the corporation seeking to profit from everything, behind the scenes…?

Importantly, Marvel announces that the issue has been created “in close partnership” with Alvarez and Alien: Romulus (movie) co-writer Rodo Sayagues, suggesting that this might be an essential part of the mythology of the movie, as opposed to a tie-in with little impact on the overall storyline.

"The Alien franchise is responsible for my lifelong love of body horror, so needless to say, I’m ecstatic to be contributing a small piece to the canon,” Thompson said of the issue, in a statement provided by the publisher. “Working with Fede Alvarez to craft a prequel to Alien: Romulus was a genuine dream come true and a responsibility I don’t take lightly. The result is a thrilling, terrifying story that slowly gestates into something wholly unpredictable."

Alien: Romulus #1 will be released in two editions — one with a cover from Leinil Francis You, another with a cover by Björn Barends — on October 16. Alien: Romulus the movie will be in theaters August 16.

Want to know what's coming up next in pop culture? Check out our guides to upcoming movies, upcoming TV shows, upcoming comics, and upcoming comic conventions. If you're looking for specific franchises or genres, we have all the upcoming MCU, upcoming Star Wars, upcoming Star Trek, and upcoming DC movies & TV for you. If you're a fan of superheroes and not specific to just Marvel or DC, we have overall guides to all the upcoming superhero movies and upcoming superhero TV shows (and new seasons) as well.