Alien’s Xenomorph vs. Pennywise: Who Would Win (& Why)

Alien created the Xenomorph, which has been described as a “perfect killing machine” and Stephen King created Pennywise the Dancing Clown in his novel, IT: which of these two extraterrestrial creatures would win in a fight?

The Xenomorph was first featured in Ridley Scott’s 1979 movie, Alien, but was created by H.R. Giger. The extraterrestrial creature has gone to blows with another prominent creature, the Predator, in a film directed by Paul W.S. Anderson of Resident Evil fame called Alien vs. Predator. The victor of that battle appeared to be a stalemate of sorts, but the Xenomorph ultimately revealed its upper hand when a chestburster that seemed to carry the traits of both species burst from the Predator’s chest. Pennywise the Dancing Clown is one form of an ancient alien being that chooses to prey on the children in Derry, Maine every 27 years because it feeds on fear. It has appeared in three adaptations that are based on Stephen King’s novel, and is an iconic villain due to its wit, intelligence, and downright terrifying clown visage.

While these two creatures would likely never cross paths in actuality, it would make for an interesting battle if they did – both are nigh invulnerable with very specific weaknesses and some pretty incredible a abilities. Here’s how the fight might stack up.

Alien’s Xenomorph Powers & Abilities

As proven through the Alien franchise, the Xenomorph has a strong exoskeleton that is similar to that of a lobster – it is invulnerable to most physical and melee damage except very strong firearms. As an example, in Aliens, the Queen withstood the crush damage of an exo-suit, which weighed over a ton, falling on her from a height of over 30 feet. The Xenomorph, in its fully mature form, are quick and stealthy, naturally able to camouflage, and are very agile creatures known to stalk their victims from the shadows like true hunters. Once they’ve captured their prey, they have numerous ways of killing it; they have sharp teeth, claws, and a toxic, serrated tip on the end of their tails, which are sometimes used to whip and knock opponents off their feet.

Xenomorphs stand over 7 feet tall at their full height and weigh approximately 300 to 400 pounds. Some Xenomorphs have the ability to spit acid in a way that is similar to a King cobra; the acid presumably comes from their stomachs, as their saliva is not otherwise acidic. A Xenomorph’s blood, however, is highly acidic and can be used as a counter-defense if the creature is injured; it can burn through nearly any natural or man-made material. There are not too many traditionally vulnerable spots on a Xenomorph; for example, the creature does not possess eyes and, as such, possibly uses some sort of echolocation to communicate and explore. The primary weakness of a Xenomorph is heat, but its exoskeleton is weakened through any massive change in temperature; transition in temperate can cause its shell to shatter.

Pennywise’s Powers & Abilities

IT, which commonly takes the clown form to lure in children, is an ancient alien being that is part of a race of shapeshifting creatures that are known as “Glamours”. According to King’s lore, IT is billions of years old and spawned in the void of the Macroverse, which is known as the Todash Darkness. Likely, IT is older than the Xenomorph. IT does possess some similar skills as the Xenomorph, such as stealth, agility, intelligence, and very few weaknesses. However, IT has some additional skills – highly powerful, psychic abilities – that make IT an interesting foe for the creature. Some of these include psychic powers that can steal and trap souls, as well as conjure up psychic hurricanes that could level an entire town, mind control, possession, and immortality.

IT has weaknesses in that it feeds, very specifically, on fear. This is why, throughout the years, IT has chosen to target children, specifically. IT can take virtually any form, but is limited to the same limitations of said form; IT is not above the laws of physics. IT is also overly confident, which led to the Losers Club ultimately defeating it by professing they were no longer afraid and belittling IT until it was reduced to nothingness. As the Xenomorph doesn’t communicate by traditional means, this is an interesting foil. According to King’s book, only the Ritual of Chüd can truly defeat the creature forever; anything else would merely be temporary.

Who Would Win?

Though it’s likely the Xenomorph couldn’t be rid of Pennywise for good, in a one-on-one matchup, the Xenomorph has greater skills to win short-term. They both have the ability to regenerate and there are many Xenomorphs vs. IT is only one entity. Also, given that something in the Xenomorph’s genetics could allow it to, somehow, replicate aspects of its victim’s DNA when impregnated with a chestburster – as seen with the “Predalien” – potentially it could create an even stronger version of itself with some of IT’s DNA, which might make a nigh unstoppable Xenomorph. As the Xenomorph doesn’t seem to fear, nor have any embedded humanity – it is an alien, after all – Pennywise/IT would not be able to sustain any sort of strength from it, and could not reason with it to manipulate.

About The Author

Jack Wilhelmi
(581 Articles Published)

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Jack Wilhelmi is the horror features editor at Screen Rant, and has been with the site since 2019. He is a lifelong fan of the horror genre, and loves any excuse to discuss genre-related topics, since none of his friends dare challenge him in horror trivia. He has been published on the independent horror blog Morbidly Beautiful, and has covered major genre film festivals such as Cinepocalypse in Chicago. He has also served as a judge for the Ax Wound Film Festival.

In his free time, he is a devoted dog dad to a high-spirited rescue pup named Peter Quill and enjoys volunteering with various animal rescue organizations. Jack likes to travel and explore dark tourism-related and other various haunted locations. He enjoys studying psychology, the paranormal, and will watch literally any schlocky B-movie on the planet for a laugh.

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