As recently as April 29, when Variety dropped a Resident Alien update—Stephen Root guest-starring as Alan Tudyk’s father is pretty fantastic casting—it seemed certain that the sci-fi show was only going to be airing on the USA Network in a shift from its original home at fellow NBCUniversal outlet Syfy. However, today’s season four date announcement trumpets Resident Alien‘s return to USA and Syfy.
That’s good news, if a bit of a turnaround, for the offbeat comedy starring Tudyk as an alien who crash-lands on Earth and immediately has to pretend to be the local doctor—an endeavor made more awkward by the fact that he’s supposed to be destroying the planet that’s now his home. It’s based on the Dark Horse comics and has picked up a fan following since its 2021 debut.
Last year, Deadline reported that Resident Alien had gotten a season four renewal but would be moving from Syfy to USA, with budget cuts to go with it. An earlier Deadline article had noted that Netflix was also a potential new home after the first two seasons were well-received when they were released on the streamer, but that didn’t end up happening.
However, today’s announcement clearly states that the show will be returning to both USA and Syfy; a fresh Deadline report notes that, indeed, “the decision to keep the show on Syfy in addition to its USA run reportedly came in the months following the Season 4 renewal.”
It makes sense for a sci-fi show to stay on the Syfy channel, does it not? io9 reached out to NBCUniversal for any further comment on the decision and will update this post if we hear back.
As for season four, according to a press release it “starts with Harry (Alan Tudyk) and his baby Bridget stuck in prison on the Grey Moonbase, while a shape-shifting Alien called a Mantid (also Alan Tudyk) has taken over his body on Earth passing himself off as the real Harry Vanderspeigle.”
“Harry manages to escape the Greys and arrives back on Earth for a showdown with the Mantid Alien, but soon finds he may not have what he needs to finish the job. Asta (Sara Tomko) and D’arcy (Alice Wetterlund) struggle to keep a secret from Ben (Levi Fiehler) and Kate (Meredith Garretson), who are both desperate to find answers to what has been happening to them. Sheriff Mike (Corey Reynolds) and Deputy Liv (Elizabeth Bowen) attempt to solve some mysterious deaths in Patience that Sheriff Mike is beginning to think aren’t caused by anything human.”
As noted above, comedy veteran Stephen Root will also guest-star as Harry’s evil alien father. Firefly fans, take note: Jewel Staite will also pop up in season four, joining the returning guest-starring likes of Gary Farmer, Gracelyn Awad Rinke, Jenna Lamia, Sarah Podemski, Linda Hamilton, Enver Gjokaj, Terry O’Quinn, and Edi Patterson.
Tudyk will also make his TV directing debut with the season’s first two episodes. Resident Alien season four premieres Friday, June 6 at 11 p.m. on USA and Syfy; you can also catch the new episodes one week after air on Peacock.
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