Tyrannosaurs & Aliens with Riley Black! Plus: SCARY SPACE MOVIE FINAL
Thanks for tuning back into The BeX Files! And beware, for you are now entering the final match of the Scariest Space Movie of All Time (cackles in cosmos).
But before we get to the culminating clash of creepy classics, I have an announcement. The BeX Files is now a show! I’m launching a new series that will feature interviews and commentary about aliens, dinosaurs, alien dinosaurs, cool rocks, dead things, and other cosmic curiosities. Subscribe on YouTube, Spotify, or Apple Podcasts!
I’m so honored that my first guest is Riley Black, a paleontologist and prolific author whose new book Tyrant Lizard Queen: The Love, Life, and Terror of Earth's Greatest Carnivore will be loosed upon the world next Tuesday, October 27 (preorder now!).
I’ve been following Riley’s work for over a decade and am always inspired by her expansive expertise and inventive perspective. She has an amazing talent for opening portals into the long-lost past where readers can find iconic lifeforms—such as Tyrannosaurus rex—portrayed not only as singular characters, but as expressions of broader lineages and ecosystems.
Riley Black
Tyrannosaurus rex (Riley's version)
Riley immerses readers into the corporeal reality of these animals, and the sensory experience of their world. Tyrant Lizard Queen is the life story of a scrappy T. rex—from a hatchling that is dodging hungry mouths while trying to fill her own, to the resplendent bone-smashing apex predator that we all know and love today. Despite the mega-fame of T. rex, Riley’s vision reveals completely new and surprising sides to this beloved animal. I enjoyed every page.
Riley is the author of many other excellent books, including The Last Days of the Dinosaurs: An Asteroid, Extinction, and the Beginning of Our World (2022) and When the Earth Was Green: Plants, Animals, and Evolution's Greatest Romance (2025). Check out her website or subscribe to her excellent newsletter The Boneyard.
On this inaugural episode of The BeX Files, we spoke about the diverse incarnations of T. rex, the allure of alien dinosaurs, the prospect of a hybrid xenomorphic tyrannosaur, and the ultimate cosmic horror story. I hope you enjoy the conversation as much as I did!
And now, it’s time to exercise your franchise in the most important election of the season: The Scariest Space Movie of All Time. Here are your finalists!
SEMIFINAL WINNER: ALIEN (1979)
The xenomorph, like the Egyptian goddess Nut, has swallowed the Sun and plunged us into darkness.
SEMIFINAL WINNER: EVENT HORIZON (1997)
Hell hath no fury like an alternate dimension scorned. Event Horizon advances; Total Recall is forgotten.
THE FINAL: ALIEN vs. EVENT HORIZON
Talk about an express elevator to Hell! Where we’re going, we won’t need eyes to see—which is convenient for a xenomorph. From the start of this tournament, the odds favored these heavy-hitting horrors as the likely finalists. But now that we’re here at last, I’m so excited to find out which nightmare will emerge from the cosmic depths to claim the terrifying title of the Scariest Space Movie of all Time.
Cast your vote here!
A reminder that you have to join the Yub Nub Club to access the exclusive coronation of the winner next Friday. To my cherished paid members, thank you so much for your support and let’s meet for a double-feature at the haunted space drive-in on October 30!
For all other subscribers, have a Happy Halloween! See you at the cosmic rest stop in November.
