20th Century Studios’ Prey has had a journey that’s as interesting as the plot to the film itself. Starting life as a “new on Hulu” streaming exclusive, director Dan Trachtenberg’s prequel to Predator was named one of CinemaBlend’s best sci-fi movies of 2022, a notion that was so prevalent among critics that a home entertainment release became a reality. That scenario meant that it was time to prepare the usual special features fans look forward to, and thanks to star Amber Midthunder’s participation in the commentary track that’s included, a very special deleted scene was then included on the director’s insistence.
I learned as much when I recently spoke with Trachtenberg for Prey’s home video release. The streaming sleeper hit is currently available on 4K, Blu-ray and DVD with over two hours of all-new bonus features, and to celebrate that occasion, we dug into some subjects near and dear to our hearts.
One such topic happened to the feature-length commentary that’s included on the disc, which sees the 10 Cloverfield Lane director joined by star Amber Midthunder, director of photography Jeff Cutter and editor Angela M. Catanzaro. It’s thanks to that particular revisitation that Dan Trachtenberg was able to share with CinemaBlend the story of how this specific cut scene was eventually shared with the world:
Amber reminded me of a scene that was cut from the film where she's talking to a little girl about how to maintain her bow. And then, because of that moment in the commentary, we then put that on the disc as a deleted scene. So it's like this almost serialized special features of like, listen to the commentary, you hear a thing, and then it shows up on the disc.
The scene, entitled “Big Warrior, Little Warrior,” sees Naru (Amber Midthunder) teaching a young girl how to maintain her bow. As critical reactions to Prey couldn’t stop talking about Midthunder’s performance in this hit film, having another example of the more human side of her warrior’s story just bolsters the excitement that helped propel Trachtenberg’s film into the limelight.
It’s also a good reason to discuss why Trachtenberg was so bummed to lose the moment in the long run. While he revealed in his commentary that this scene “stepped on the momentum” of Prey, the filmmaker shared with me the following reasons that the scene still works for him:
It's a very simple, seemingly simple moment. But I remember at the time of shooting it was just beautiful, touching little thing that you rarely see in this genre, and then also went on to set up some payoffs later. Not only with the young girl, but also what happens later with her bowstring and the bear. We were sad to lose it, but now you get to see it on the disc.
All told, there are three deleted scenes included on Prey’s Blu-ray disc, including an alternate opening and a treetop action pre-viz reel that shows a scene that truly displays Dan Trachtenberg’s fandom for one of the best action movies to ever exist. While the Predator-esque sequence wasn’t completed, it’s nonetheless exciting enough to include, along with the director revealing his reasons for still being hyped about 'what could have been' in the commentary.
In a market where streaming originals aren’t always guaranteed to be available on the home platforms that originate them, seeing the home entertainment package that is Prey is truly a blessing for physical media enthusiasts. Giving fans old and new a comprehensive look into the road that led to this blockbuster success, it’s enough to keep the movie alive in the pop culture conversation for some time. In turn, that only helps the odds for a potential Prey 2, which hasn’t started development, but is still very much a going concern.
Prey is currently available for purchase on 4K, Blu-ray and Digital HD to complete your Predator collection. Or, if you’re looking to experience the film before committing some shelf space, you can also use your Hulu subscription to watch Dan Trachtenberg’s entry into the canon for the first time.
