The Predator franchise has roared back in a big way with the release of Prey. The latest entry in the Predator film series arrived on Hulu to great critical acclaim, with many highlighting the simple yet genius pitch of the movie. The Predator movie formula is very simple: Predator hunts something in a specific location. It has been elite commandos in the jungle in Predator, crime in Los Angeles in Predator 2, xenomorphs in two different Alien vs Predator films, or various killers on a Predator planet in Predators.
Prey updates the formula, not only changing the what but also the when, now focusing on a Comanche warrior in 1719. This might seem small, but it is a great way to breathe new life into the Predator franchise. Prey showcases a different time period, so both the Predator and its prey have different weapons, while the film also highlights a culture not typically given the spotlight in American action movies.
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Predator is in many ways a genre exercise, as many of the films start as something else before transitioning into a slasher film with the Predator picking off people one by one. Predator begins as a standard 80s action film, while Predator 2 goes for the route of a typical cop film. Prey starts as a historical drama of a young woman wanting to prove herself a warrior before the Predator shows up and changes the entire trajectory of the film.
This opens the door for more Predator movies to update the formula. Now the filmmakers can decide who the Predator is hunting but also when in human history, opening the door to so many exciting possibilities and stories to tell. These are six different subjects the Predator should hunt in future films, the genres they open up, and thematically why they are a perfect fit for the franchise.
Samurai vs. Predator
Toho
Samurai films are some of the most popular and culturally recognizable. Films like Seven Samurai, Yojimbo, and the Lone Wolf and Cub series are some of the most influential in the world, to the extent that even if an audience has never seen them they would recognize the iconography. The samurai was a fixture of Japan from the late 12th century to about 1876, as modern militarization made them obsolete. There are plenty of time periods to explore in that era, and honestly could be a mini-franchise within the larger Predator franchise itself. Prey did an incredible job highlighting Indigenous talent, a Predator movie focusing on samurai could do the same for Japanese performers and also give the film a great international appeal.
Starting with Predator 2, the franchise has tried to establish the Predator creature as a noble hunter, a warrior with a sense of honor. For that reason, there is a thematic parallel to be had pitting the Predator against a samurai. It also could tie back into the wider franchise, as the film Predators featured a samurai sword being shown on one of the alien ships, hinting at another Predator battle that has yet to be told.
Cowboys vs. Predator
Warner Bros.
The western and the samurai film tend to have a lot of overlap, hence Seven Samurai being remade as The Magnificent Seven or how both genres greatly influenced Star Wars. The idea of Predators in the wild west seems a little too much like Cowboys and Aliens for some, but the western provides several great opportunities for the Predator franchise. It provides a new change in scenery to distinguish itself from the rest of the franchise. The cowboy was a mythic figure of popular culture for generations, the ultimate symbol of heroism that became the subject of deconstruction in various films like Once Upon a Time in the West, The Wild Bunch, and Unforgiven, just to name a few. These films often stripped the veneer of the western away, showing the more violent and colonialist methods that previous versions sanitized.
Pitting the Predator against a traditional popular image version of an American cowboy, only to reveal the dark truth about the American frontier in regard to the treatment of Native Americans and other minorities, in many ways reframes the Predator as an antihero protagonist. The Predator could represent a sense of karmic justice as the frontier pushes back, and the cowboy’s peace is shattered when they realize their weapons are no match for the advanced weaponry of the Predator.
Pirates vs. Predator
Buena Vista Pictures Distribution
Predators vs. pirates seems like such a strong premise, it’s honestly amazing they haven’t made it yet. Probably because, until Pirates of the Caribbean, the pirate genre was known for being box office bombs, but now it feels like other film studios don’t make pirate movies because it has become synonymous with Disney.
Predators have faced off against pirates before in the comics, specifically in the story ‘Predator: 1718,’ which explored the origins of the flintlock pistol wielded by Spanish pirate Captain Raphael Adolini that was given as a gift in Predator 2. Prey features the pistol (and is set one year after the events of that comic) but instead, the pistol is in the hands of a French fur trader. How the pistol of a Spanish man ended up in his hands remains unclear, but that is a story that could be explored in a future Predator film. A movie set on the high seas is a change of pace for the Predator franchise, as the action can take place on land and a ship, restraining the action to a single location to raise the tension.
Vikings vs. Predator
Focus FeaturesUniversal Pictures
Vikings were fierce warriors, and make for not only a great hunt for the Predator but a worthy adversary. Like the pirate genre, a Viking-set Predator film could see more ocean and aquatic settings. It also could lend itself to snowy and colder climates, which so far has only been showcased in Alien vs Predator. Pitting the Predator against the Vikings would serve as a way to mirror the two cultures, which pride themselves on combat.
The enduring popularity of the history channel series Vikings as well as the recent film The Northman show there is an audience for Viking set stories, and it feels like the perfect time period for a Predator movie.
Prohibition Gangsters vs. Predator
Paramount Pictures
Predator 2 saw the Predator fight various gangs in the city of Los Angeles in the year 1997. A way to make a thematic prequel to Predator 2 could be a film that is set during Prohibition-era America, often cited as the birth of organized crime. Aside from the great costumes and production design that would go with the film, there are a lot of historical elements that make the setting great for a Predator film. The advent of the Tommy Gun is a good example; a weapon originally designed for World War 1 trench warfare, it didn’t reach the market until one year after the war ended, meaning it became available to the public and was an easy weapon for organized crime during the Prohibition era, allowed for criminals and law enforcement to inflict a lot of damage and casualties. That weapon in the hands of everyday people marks a drastic shift in humanity and one that could mark a point where Predators see humans as true equals worthy of hunting.
Another reason is that it provides a great change in action for the Predator series. Bootleggers needed to distribute alcohol under the radar and often used small but fast vehicles to evade law enforcement, which could also be used to evade a Predator in an action scene trying to hunt. It mixes action with horror, and also draws a parallel between the Predator and law enforcement. Where Predator 2 saw the Predator through the eyes of a police officer, a prohibition-era film could shift the perspective to a criminal who must evade police and also an alien hunter.
Superheroes vs. Predator
DC ComicsDark Horse Comics
The first Predator movie pitted the alien hunter against an elite team of commandos, a play on the popular action movie archetype of the type, embodied by Arnold Schwarzenegger who starred in a movie titled Commando. In the 1980s, those action stars were the epitome of heroism which made the Predator an all more terrifying threat how quickly he dispatched them.
Now though, the modern popular symbol of heroism and action in films are superheroes. Predators are no strangers to battling superheroes, as the character faced off against both Batman and Superman in the comics. Now with the acquisition of 20th Century Pictures, Predator is set to get a new line of comics by Marvel. While Disney would never let the Predator crossover with their various Marvel and Fox characters, the creators of a new Predator film could create an original batch of superheroes for the Predator to hunt. It is a new type of foe for the Predator, one that would allow for a greater display of weapons. It also would be a different type of superhero story, one where heroes are brutally killed off in the style of a slasher movie facing a foe they’ve never encountered before.
