We've got a new Predator coming and it's been filling out its cast with some really interesting and exciting choices (hey there Keegan-Michael Key). One of those choices was rumored to be UFC fighter, Conor McGregor, who claimed he was offered the lead role in the movie, but turned it down due to the shooting schedule and pay issues. Director Shane Black is now stepping in to clear things up about the role McGregor was offered. According to Black, McGregor was indeed offered a part, but it wasn't the lead of the film.
Shane Black took to Twitter to clear up the rumors surrounding Conor McGregor's involvement with The Predator. Previously, the UFC fighter said in an interview that he was offered the lead role in The Predator, but that he turned it down. Aside from the fact that he wanted more money for the part, the shoot would have spent eight weeks in Canada. McGregor wasn't willing to commit the time, in large part due to his girlfriend being in the later stages of pregnancy. Still, hane SBlack wanted to clear things up and say that while McGregor was offered a role, it wasn't the lead role. That part belongs to Boyd Holbrook.
While this distinction might seem out of nowhere, Shane Black and company likely didn't want people thinking there isn't a lead character attached yet. Or it could be that if Boyd Holbrook is the lead, why let people think that the role is going to someone else? The lead role was offered to (and declined by) Ben Affleck, Tom Hardy, and Benicio Del Toro before Holbrook accepted, so they don't really need any more press swimming around the lead character
There's still a lot we don't know about The Predator movie, but new details have slowly been unwrapped. The film will not be a reboot, but a sequel that acknowledges the events of previous movies in the franchise. It stars Boyd Holbrook (Logan), and in an example of exceptional casting, Trevante Rhodes (Moonlight), and Keegan-Michael Key (Keanu) as former marines who are up against the threat of multiple alien hunters. Sterling K. Brown and Olivia Munn round out the cast as a government agent and a scientist respectively. It's still unclear if Arnold Schwarzenegger will show up in some way or not.
Shane Black will put his excellent action sensibilities to use once again as director off of a script that he co-wrote with Frank Dekker. The Predator is currently scheduled for release on February 9, 2018. There's bound to more updates, so stick with CinemaBlend and we'll keep you informed on any and all things Predator.
