‘Alpha Gang’ Debuts to a Strong Score on Rotten Tomatoes as Critics Fall for Its Weird, Leather-Clad Charm

Festival season has a way of surfacing exactly the kind of gloriously weird, star-packed oddity that critics either fall head over heels for or bounce off completely. This year’s circuit delivered a prime example of that phenomenon, one built around a premise so strange it almost demands to be seen just to be believed.

David and Nathan Zellner have spent their careers carving out a reputation for offbeat, deeply idiosyncratic filmmaking, following up 2024’s acclaimed ‘Sasquatch Sunset’ with something even more ambitious in scope and cast. Their latest project pulled together one of the starriest ensembles of any independent film this year, all in service of a story about alien invaders disguised as a 1950s biker gang.

That film, ‘Alpha Gang,’ has now made its debut, premiering at the Telluride Film Festival on September 5 before screening in Toronto’s Special Presentations section, and critics have responded with genuine enthusiasm. The film currently holds an 83 percent approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes based on its first wave of reviews.

Directed jointly by both Zellner brothers, with David solely credited on the screenplay, the film stars Cate Blanchett, Chris Pine, Léa Seydoux, Dave Bautista, Lily-Rose Depp, Adria Arjona, Doona Bae, Kelvin Harrison Jr., and Riley Keough as members of two rival alien factions, the leather-clad Alphas and the ’80s-styled Betas, who find themselves grappling with the unexpectedly contagious human emotion of feeling.

Variety’s review described the film as a mostly winsome ensemble affair, noting the cast fully commits to the bit throughout. The review specifically highlighted Blanchett’s arrival as a hilarious, eye-patched Beta leader complete with an unexpected accent, calling her entrance a genuine turning point that escalates the film’s mayhem.

The Zellner Brothers’ ‘ALPHA GANG’ debuts with 83% on Rotten Toamtoes. Starring Cate Blanchett, Chris Pine, Lily-Rose Depp, Kelvin Harrison Jr., Léa Seydoux, Dave Bautista & Riley Keough. Follows a group of alien invaders who disguise themselves as a 1950s biker gang on their mission to conquer Earth.

— Film Updates (@FilmUpdates) September 15, 2026

RogerEbert.com’s review went even further in its enthusiasm, describing the film as “a trippy, hyperviolent explosion of cool style and kooky jokes.” Not every critic came away equally impressed, though, with Rolling Stone’s review calling it “diverting” but “overstretched,” praising the deadpan performances from Seydoux, Bautista, and Pine while noting the film’s sharp visual style outpaces its script by the end.

Beyond her on-screen performance, Blanchett served as one of the film’s producers, and multiple reviews credited her involvement as instrumental in assembling such a stacked ensemble around the Zellners’ notoriously unconventional style. The production also brought together ‘Sasquatch Sunset’ cinematographer Mike Gioulakis and production designer Scott Kuzio to craft the film’s striking visual world, blending castle ruins, Cold War bunkers, and retro-futuristic spaceship interiors into a single cohesive aesthetic.

The Hollywood Reporter’s review was notably more mixed, praising the visual ambition while questioning whether the film’s ideas ultimately add up to a fully satisfying whole, describing it as “all flash and zero substance” despite enjoying individual moments from Pine and Blanchett. That split reaction, glowing enthusiasm paired with genuine skepticism, tracks with the Zellners’ established reputation as filmmakers whose specific rhythms aren’t for everyone.

With critics largely landing somewhere between charmed and cautiously impressed, ‘Alpha Gang’ looks set to follow a similar path to the Zellners’ previous work, generating strong festival buzz and passionate fans even if mainstream crossover remains uncertain. For a film built around the sheer novelty of watching A-list actors play emotionally confused space aliens in vintage leather, that kind of cult-favorite trajectory might be exactly the outcome the Zellners were hoping for.

Have something to add? Let us know in the comments!