Spider-Man's 'Aliens' Easter Egg in 'Avengers: Infinity War' Explained

Peter Parker is really young. So young that he considered The Empire Strikes Back to be an “old movie” in Captain America: Civil War. And now, in Avengers: Infinity War, the young Spider-Man makes another pop culture reference to a “really old movie.” But was Peter confused? Here’s what that quick reference to Aliens was all about and why Peter probably meant Alien. Or…maybe he did mean Aliens.

Spoilers ahead for Avengers: Infinity War.

When Iron Man, Doctor Strange, and Spider-Man are all stuck on the spaceship toward the beginning of the movie, Peter suggests that in order to beat Thanos’s henchmen Ebony May, they should use a strategy he once saw in a movie called “Aliens.” Later, in order to win, the three superheroes blow a hole in the side of the spaceship and Ebony Maw gets sucked out into the vacuum of space. This is like what Ripley (Sigourney Weaver) did to the xenomorph in the original 1979 Alien: She let it get sucked out into space.

In Infinity War, Iron Man quips that the reason they get the upper hand on Thanos’s henchmen is that “the kid’s seen more movies than you,” referencing the fact that Peter’s knowledge of the original Alien gave them a great idea to screw over the bad guys.

But, Peter was slightly wrong, or misremembering when he made “Alien” plural with “Aliens.” The big scene people probably remember from Aliens happens when Ellen Ripley comes out in a badass exo-suit and says, “Get away from her, you bitch!” So, for older viewers who were primed for Tony Stark to say something similar, this is probably what young Parker probably meant.

We can forgive Peter for not remembering the differences between the titles of the movies Alien and Aliens. After all, he is very young, and it was a pretty stressful situation.

Update: as a few smart people have pointed out, the Alien queens is sucked out into space in Aliens, meaning, this reference works for both films. Which means, Peter Parker was RIGHT and I was WRONG.

Avengers: Infinity War is out now in theaters everywhere.