Prey looks set to serve as a fresh start for the Predator franchise, and after a lot of disappointing efforts (including 2018's reboot), it needs one. Reactions to the movie have thus far been overwhelmingly positive, and the decision to explore the Predator's first visit to Earth during the early 1700s is both exciting and refreshing.
Of course, regardless of the setting (in this case, the Comanche Nation), we all know what the Predator looks like and what it can do.
When we spoke to Prey director Dan Trachtenberg earlier this month, we asked what sort of work went into creating a version of the Predator that felt fresh and unique, but also instantly recognisable to longtime fans.
"It was about delivering something new, but not changing it too much," the filmmaker explains in the video below. "In the iteration phase with the folks at ADI, who worked on the development of the suit, I really said, ‘Let’s push it. Let’s break it first and see what the design looks like when we change it so it doesn’t look like a Predator and then step back from that.’"
"I didn’t want us to be like, ‘Oh, a tweak of the eyebrow here…a tweak of the mandible…’ I wanted this to feel like it’s an exciting new face to look at. One of the things that made the first movie so special, at least in the way I remember watching it for the first time, was that I thought the Predator was how it looked wearing its bio mask. ‘That’s the Predator. That’s it.’"
"Then, there’s that amazing moment in the movie preceding Arnold Schwarzenneger’s wonderful, quotable line when it takes the mask off. That’s when you realise, ‘That’s not the creature…that is!’" Trachtenberg continued. "I really wanted our movie to be able to have that in it as well and to have a surprise even for die-hard fans. It was challenging. As scary as it was, I thought it would be worth it to make a real move moment again in the Predator franchise."
While we're not going to get into too much detail here, trust us when we say the filmmaker has nailed what makes the Predator a terrifying and formidable threat when it's unleashed in this movie. In terms of its specific appearance, the iconic sci-fi creation also looks great and fits in perfectly with this movie's aesthetic.
Hopefully, we get to spend more time in this era, as it feels like a better fit for the Predator than the present day right now. Check out what Trachtenberg told us about a possible Prey sequel by clicking here.
Prey is set to be released on Hulu on August 5.