The Predator franchise features one of the most iconic alien designs of all time, with the Yautja hunters becoming legendary figures in the realm of pop culture. That said, the series is about to get a boost of adrenaline by introducing the ultimate predator in Shane Black's The Predator. But where did that design come from? As Black explained in a recent interview, the creature was created by taking cues from actual predators that didn't look like humans in suits. The Iron Man 3 explained:
If the predator was to be an amalgam of, not just an ordinary predator, but also a collection of traits garnered from the various most powerful species that they've hunted, then you basically would have one that is stronger, faster, and smarter. We finally got an image that we liked, which captures this very canny, very cunning, and effortlessly powerful, savage predator. One of the only quibbles that I've had with some of the past predators is that, if you're not careful, it can look like a guy in a football suit; big, bulky guy just stomping around. I wanted a certain more graceful, more light, more athletic quality, literally like a predator. If you watch a cheetah, it's not clunky.
As Sterling K. Brown's character says in a recent trailer for The Predator, "They conquered space." This is an advanced alien species that's faster and stronger than any man on earth, and the franchise needs to find a way to reflect the Yautja's physical and intellectual superiority. As Shane Black explained in his recent interview with EW, The Predator pulled that off by creating a design for the ultimate predator that was far sleeker, more agile, and more predatory in nature. It's not just a guy running around in a rubber suit; it looks like a wild animal on the loose.
Of course, that obviously raises questions about the continuity of the Predator franchise and the specific creatures that the Yautja stole genes from in the creation of the hybrid. After all, as many fans of the Predator franchise already know, the Alien series' Xenomorphs have often served as prey for these expert hunters. Does this mean Xenomorph DNA could show up in The Predator? There's no way of knowing at this point, but it definitely seems like a very intriguing possibility.
No matter what happens, we can rest easy knowing that The Predator looks like a true sequel that fans of the franchise have waited to see for decades. The Predator will finally hit theaters later this summer on September 14, so make sure to mark down your calendars and check out our movie premiere guide for more information on all of the films set to debut this year!
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