The Tomorrow War: Unused White Spike alien designs unveiled by Ken Barthelmey!

Scified.com
News
Scified2021-07-09 08:44:04https://www.scified.com/articles/the-tomorrow-war-unused-white-spike-alien-designs-unveiled-ken-barthelmey-87.jpg
Scified
Written by Chris22,128 Reads2 Comments2021-07-09 08:44:04

Ken Barthelmey is the man responsible for creating the terrifying antagonistic alien species featured in Chris McKay's The Tomorrow War movie. Since the film has debuted on Prime Video this month, Barthelmey has been sharing some earlier concept designs he created for the alien creatures, named White Spikes. Check out some of his most recent uploads below:

In a recent interview with Variety, Ken also touched on what influenced his design for the White Spike aliens, to which he explained:

I remember the initial script had a battle scene at the Miami Beach that was mostly in water. Therefore, in my early sketches, I pictured the White Spikes more aquatic with tentacle-like legs. During the design process, those tentacles eventually became the two tails on the back. I also used various animal references that influenced the design.

For the head of the White Spikes, for example, I tried to incorporate various references of deep-sea fish. Especially the Viperfish was a big influence when I worked on the face.

I like to mix the anatomy of insects with mammals in my designs. For example, the small front arms are based on Mantis claws and the backplates resemble the shell of a grasshopper.

To make a good design, I think it’s important to find a good balance between realism and imagination. If you design a creature too outlandish or abstract, it will look unbelievable and silly. And vice versa. If you make a design too realistic, it will look boring.

I love seeing actual anatomy in a design, this makes it look more grounded. Using reference photos from real-life animals is a great help to accomplish that.

The goal is to come up with something new and original and avoid making it look similar to an already existing design. This is always very challenging and the hardest part of the job.

You can read the entire interview over on Variety!

Check back soon for more on The Tomorrow War and Ken Barthelmey's alien creations!

The Tomorrow War is NOW STREAMING on Prime Video!

More Scified Editorials News & Articles

2 Comments

Reaper's Wineglass

MemberNoobSep-10-2021 7:41 PM

Really hope this movie gets a sequel. 

Kattozilla

MemberConversationalistMay-06-2022 9:28 AM

man i like viperfish

Add A Comment
Sign In Required
Sign in using your Scified Account to access this feature!
Email
Password
Visitor Comments
Recently Active Forums
Jurassic World Rebirth
Jurassic World RebirthDiscuss the new Jurassic World film by Gareth Edwards!
Alien: Covenant
Alien: CovenantDiscuss the Prometheus Sequel, Alien: Covenant
Godzilla Versus
Godzilla VersusMonster battle debates
Godzilla x Kong: Supernova
Godzilla x Kong: SupernovaDiscussions about the Monsterverse movie Godzilla x Kong: Supernova
New Forum Topics
Hot Forum Topics
Latest Media
Scified Community Stats
Scified hosts a network of online communities containing 406,162 posts by 48,321 members (5 are online now). The Jurassic World Rebirth Forum is the most recently active forum. The latest Forum topic added was: T- Rex vs. D-Rex battle fan art by Hong Li
VIPWhat are VIP?AdminModeratorSpecial TitleMemberLeaderboard

Scified is an entertainment website and media network offering scoops and reporting on the most popular, upcoming science fiction movies, games and television. All content is property of Scified.com unless otherwise stated. Images and titles of content we promote, discuss, review or report are property of their respective owners. Scified is independantly owned and operated by a team of dedicated sci-fi movie fans, who strive to provide the best information and community experience for other like-minded sci-fi movie enthusiasts.

© 2025 Scified.com
New Member? Join Up!
Create A Profile

Remove Ads, Contribute Content, Win Prizes!

Already A Member? Sign in


Log in to view your personalized notifications across Scified!

Transport To Communities
AlienFansite
GodzillaFansite
PredatorFansite
Search Scified
Main Menu
Content
Community
Sci-Fi Movies
Help & Info