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Leanna Perr
Ancient Aliens is an American television series produced by Prometheus Entertainment that explores the pseudoscientific hypothesis of ancient astronauts in a non-critical, documentary format. Episodes also explore related pseudoscientific and pseudohistoric topics, such as: Atlantis and other lost ancient civilizations, extraterrestrial contact and ufology, and popular conspiracy theories.[1][2] The series, which has aired on History since 2010, has been a target for criticism of History's channel drift, as well as criticism for promoting unorthodox or unproven hypotheses as fact.[3] According to Smithsonian, episodes of the series overwhelm the viewer with "fictions and distortions" by using a Gish gallop.[4]
Originally broadcast as two-hour documentary special in 2009, Ancient Aliens: The Series aired for three seasons as a flagship series on History from 2010 to 2012.[5] The series moved to H2 from 2012 to 2014, with frequent re-airings of episodes on History and other A&E services. In 2015, the series returned to History after H2 was relaunched as Vice on TV. A nineteenth season began in 2023.[6][1][7] All episodes are narrated by Robert Clotworthy.
The series is inspired by the works of Erich von Dniken, Zecharia Sitchin, Graham Hancock, Robert Bauval, Brinsley Le Poer Trench, Charles Hapgood, and Edgar Cayce. Producer Giorgio Tsoukalos, writer David Childress and journalist Nick Pope are featured guests.
The series has been criticized by historians, cosmologists, archaeologists and other scientists for presenting and promoting pseudoscience, pseudohistory and pseudoarchaeology as fact. Episodes are frequently characterized as "far-fetched",[8] "hugely speculative",[9] and "expound[ing] wildly on theories suggesting that astronauts wandered the Earth freely in ancient times."[10] Many of the claims made by guests are not commonly accepted as fact by the scientific community.[11] Brian Dunning debunked the series as "a slap in the face to the ingenuity of the human race".[12]
Executive producer of the series was Kevin Burns from 2009 until 2021. Giorgio Tsoukalos serves as consulting producer, and is a featured guest, appearing in every episode.[13] UFO researcher C. Scott Littleton served as a producing consultant during the series development until his death in 2010.[14]
In 2015, the series returned to History after H2 was relaunched as Vice on TV. In response to complaints from disgruntled fans, Vice on TV created Action Bronson Watches Ancient Aliens.[15] History renewed Ancient Aliens for a fifteenth which premiered on January 24, 2020.[6] Due to COVID-19 disrupting production, the season ended after the twelve completed episodes were broadcast. Production was soon restarted, and a sixteenth season began on November 13, 2020.[1][7] A nineteenth season began broadcast in 2023.
The series is based on and inspired by the pseudoscientific ancient astronauts hypothesis popularized in Chariots of the Gods?, by Erich von Dniken, and The 12th Planet, by Zecharia Sitchin. According to von Dniken, Sitchin, and others, extraterrestrial beings visited Earth in the distant past and introduced civilization, architecture, and high technology to pre-historic humans. Many, if not all, of ancient man's achievements in language, mathematics, science, technology and architecture, such as Egyptian pyramids, Pumapunku, Teotihuacan, and Stonehenge, are attributed to the influence of extraterrestrials. Remnants of extraterrestrial visitations are claimed to be found in religious texts, ancient myths and legendary histories, in addition to fragments found in the texts and practices of Hinduism, Ancient Egyptian religion, Gnostic Christianity, and more recent religious movements such as Mormonism. The hypothesis also holds that ancient visitations left etymological remnants in many of the world's languages, such as the root words for "Dagon", "dragon", "dog", and "Danann", or the frequent occurrence of the prefix anu- meaning "friend" or "visitor." Additionally, anatomically modern humans are the result of genetic modification and/or modern humans are somehow biologically descended from ancient astronauts.
There is little use of precise dates in many episodes. Guests use terms such as "the remote past", "prehistoric times", "ancient times", or they refer to "our ancient ancestors" in the abstract, when discussing hypothetical historical events. There is a frequent demarcation of pre-history from the modern era used by guests: "before or after 'The Ice Age'", or approximately 12,000 years ago. Many guests featured on the series, including Graham Hancock, and Robert Schoch, have claimed a sophisticated human civilization was destroyed at the end of the Ice Age.
When comments are made by guests in each episode, there is no indication made (either by the narration or on-screen) whether they are speculating on the rhetorical question made by the interviewer or narration, or if they are repeating claims made by other researchers, or if they are speaking of their own work or expertise. Geologist Robert Schoch said portions of his own interviews for the series are sometimes inserted into the finished episodes in a manner which is out of context, or wholly disconnected from the questions asked of him on and off camera.[16]
Terms such as "ancient astronauts", "ancient aliens", "alien visitors", "extra-terrestrial beings", "ancient gods", and "otherworldly beings", are used interchangeably by guests and the narration. Guests frequently conflate the meaning of "theory" and "hypothesis", or they frequently obscure or ignore the difference between mythology and legendary history, and verifiable archaeology, anthropology, or documented history.
Erich von Dniken is the featured guest in the pilot episode, in addition to being the focus of two biographical episodes: "The Von Dniken Legacy", in Season 5, and "The Alien Phenomena", in Season 13.
In the first season, credentialed scientists and professionals, such as Sara Seager and Michael Denning, respond to claims made by other guests, but their rebuttals were not rigorous. In subsequent episodes, scientists and professionals offer explanations of scientific phenomena or historical events without endorsing claims made by other guests, or they offer personal commentary. Psychologist Jonathan Young appears in 123 episodes, providing explanations of myths and legends, and legendary history. Boston University associate professor Robert Schoch presents his Sphinx water erosion hypothesis, as well as his hypothesis concerning the age and purpose of Gbekli Tepe, in several episodes.
Radio talk show host George Noory appears in more than 80 episodes, including the pilot episode. Reverend Barry Downing, known for describing angels in the Bible as ancient astronauts, appears in the pilot episode, and his comments are repeated in several other episodes. Writers Robert Bauval and Graham Hancock appear in many episodes. They both express skepticism of ancient astronauts, instead discussing their own theories of ancient civilizations. Hancock repeats the statement from his work that "There is a forgotten episode in human history." Nick Pope and Travis S. Taylor are also frequent guests.[17]
Segments and highlights from all first-season episodes, including the pilot, were edited into later episodes as late as Season 12, so that guests who appeared in Season 1 ostensibly appear in later seasons, although footage of their original interviews was re-used.
In many episodes, little empirical evidence is offered to support the presented claims. Episodes or episode segments focus on out-of-place artifacts, such as: the London Hammer, Antikythera mechanism, or the Aiud object; or segments focus on alleged inconsistencies in the historical record. Guests discuss evidence which supports their claims in general or abstract terms. Some guests have alleged professionals and government have suppressed evidence of ancient mysteries, such as the in episode "The Prototypes" during which guests alleged that the Smithsonian Institution suppressed findings of "giant humanoids" found alongside American Indian remains in the Kanawha Valley.
Other claims linked to the ancient astronauts hypothesis, such as UFOs, alien abductions, the Roswell incident and Rendlesham Forest incident, panspermia, and human space exploration, feature prominently in many episodes. Guests have presented other unproven historical and pseudoscientific hypotheses related to, or dependent upon an understanding of: Atlantis and other lost civilizations, as described in works by Brinsley Le Poer Trench and Edgar Cayce; or ley lines as originally described by Alfred Watkins, or more recent interpretations; cataclysmic pole shifts as promoted by Charles Hapgood; various forms of Christian and Hindu creationism, or pseudohistory promoted by various religious movements; mythical elements of the Kabbalah, Zohar, and Book of Enoch; and various new religious movements.
Other concepts explored include: faith healing, remote viewing, and various psychic phenomena. Guests discuss various forms of catastrophism, and refer to other featured guests or historical figures as catastrophists. In various episodes, guests have claimed prominent historical figures were either influenced by or were possibly "extra-terrestrial" or "otherworldly beings."
Guests have also discussed unrelated pseudoscientific claims, such as: dinosaurs coexisting with humans until a recent extinction event, crystal healing and crystal skulls, as well as Freemasonry, Rosicrucianism, and the New World Order. Linda Moulton Howe appears in several episodes which explore alien abduction, animal mutilation, and conspiracies involving military installations on Antarctica. The 2013 Citizen Hearing on Disclosure features prominently in numerous episodes, such as Season 14's "The Nuclear Agenda".
Prior to December 2012, several episodes explored facets of the 2012 Mayan doomsday prophecy. The episodes "The Maya Conspiracy" and "The Doomsday Prophecies", which aired in February 2012, explored the Maya calendar and its relation to the construction of Palenque, the god Kukulkan, in addition to links between the Maya civilization and the ancient astronaut hypothesis. Episodes focusing on Mesoamerica broadcast after 2012 make no mention of the 2012 phenomenon. In the episode "The God Particle", guests linked the Mayan long count to the discovery of the Higgs boson.[18]
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