The following contains some mild spoilers for the upcoming release, The Predator. So stop reading now if you want to go into the new movie totally unscathed.
Shane Black's The Predator bursts into theaters starting on Thursday night, and with it comes a fresh take on the Predator mythology, with not one but two different Predator creatures arriving on our planet with deadly missions. There are plenty of new characters ready to stand in the Predator's way, but one supporting cast member saw their scenes hit the cutting room floor before the final edit reached theaters. So, when we did interviews with The Predator cast in Toronto, we asked them who Edward James Olmos was supposed to play in the movie, and co-star Trevante Rhodes told us:
He played, almost, Traeger's boss, in a sense. But it just didn't, I guess it didn't fit with the thing that we went with, so...
Short. Sweet. But it gives some deeper context into the role that Shane Black saw for Edward James Olmos. "Traeger" is the character played by Sterling K. Brown in the new movie. And yes, his introduction into the film is -- mysterious. He's certainly aware of the fact that the Predators have been visiting this planet since 1987. And Traeger recruits Olivia Munn's scientist character, Casey Bracket, into his quest to hunt down the Predator. But who he works for is... vague. And when he's at odds with Boyd Holbrook's hero, Quinn McKenna, we're not 100% sure why, when they both have a similar goal of stopping the ultimate killing machine, at whatever cost.
Perhaps there were scenes with Edward James Olmos that would have given more backstory into the purpose of Traeger's character. But for reasons only Shane Black knows, The Predator dropped all mention of Olmos, and the Mayans M.C. and Miami Vice star found himself out of the film.
Here's Trevante Rhodes, opening up a bit about his The Predator co-star:
And though we don't have Edward James Olmos bringing the intensity and heat to The Predator, the cast certainly isn't lacking for attitude and talent. Boyd Holbrook leads a band of crazies into battle against the Predator, including Thomas Jane, Keegan-Michael Key, Trevante Rhodes, Alfie Allen and Augusto Aguilera. Olivia Munn tags along, and they all fight to protect Jacob Tremblay, who might hold the key to stopping any future Predator attacks.
Shane Black's new movie will be in theaters on September 13.
