Prey has been something of an unexpected hit in the Predator franchise. Having been prematurely written off by those unhappy with the movie having a female lead, or just assuming that the movie would go the way of its predecessors, Prey has instantly become the biggest debut of any release on Hulu and a number of Disney Star Banner platforms. Actress Amber Midthunder, who stars as the lead in the movie has revealed how director Dan Trachtenberg used a classic Predator line to tell her that she had won the role in the film, even if she wasn’t sure at first that it meant she had been cast in the movie.

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Prey is claimed not be a prequel to the original Predator by Dan Trachtenberg, but it is set many years before Arnold Schwarzenegger’s Dutch found himself confronting the terrifying alien creature in the jungle, back in the 18th century. The film tells of the first Predator to land on Earth and Comanche hunter Naru, played by Midthunder, who must battle against the creature.

When Trachtenberg reached out to Midthunder to tell her she had been cast as Naru, the director attempted to use one of the most quoted Arnie lines from the original movie, but explained to The Empire Film Podcast that it didn’t quite go the way he intended it to. She explained:

“I got a call from a random number and it was Dan [Trachtenberg] and I was like, ‘Oh, this is either going to go good or bad.’ And then he was like, ‘If you had to get somewhere by air and you couldn’t go by land, sea, or legs, what would you do’? I said hang glider, and he was like, ‘No, it has an engine.’ And I was like, ‘Oh, a hot air balloon.’ And he was like, ‘No, you’re supposed to say “Get to the chopper!” Because you’re going to be Arnold.’ And I was like ‘Ugh, I failed’ but then I was like ‘Oh!’ So, not quite what he had in mind. Not, like, the dream scenario of how that would go. But that was how he told me.”

Prey Sequels Are Being Planned At Disney

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Prey delivers the most original and most highly rated Predator movie of the entire franchise, with the movie scoring even higher than the 1987 original with both audiences and critics. Having added the title of most watched premiere ever on Hulu’s platform to its list of accolades, as well as being cited as a movie that should have been given a cinematic release over direct-to-streaming, it is not surprising that more additions to the IP are now being considered. Trachtenberg previously teased:

Prey has certainly managed to alleviate any fears of the Predator franchise becoming “Disney’d”, and as word of mouth kicks in, there is no doubt that despite its streaming only release, Prey has the potential to be the most successful Predator movie of the franchise.

“There are a lot of exciting ideas for what could be next for the franchise. The things that most excite me are the boldest swings and I think there’s scope to do other things that haven’t been done before.”