How great would Shane Black's The Predator have been if original Predator star Arnold Schwarzenegger had had a cameo? The guy is a legend, and his appearance in the new film may have been worth the price of admission for many. We personally liked the film (somewhat) but it was mostly reviled by both franchise fans and casual viewers. Maybe it wouldn't have been as unlikable if Schwarzenegger had dropped in with a famous line from The Terminator. Sadly, he turned down the role and director Shane Black didn't bat an eye.
The Predator co-writer Fred Dekker explained what almost was in the movie, comparing the plan to Luke Skywalker's end scene cameo in Star Wars: The Force Awakens. Here's what Dekker told Moviefone:
And the other thing I said is, 'We have to have Arnold Schwarzenegger in this movie.' Because, like it or not, one of the master strokes of The Force Awakens is that ending. Because even though Luke doesn't do anything except turn around and have a beard, it touches that little nostalgia button in you and you go, 'Oh cool.' And then you go to the credits and there's no way that movie's not going to be a big hit.
The new film is already chock-full of references to the original, but Fred Dekker also wanted a callback to the other popular Schwarzenegger-led franchise saying:
We very much wanted him in the film but what we had written was a cameo that would have spring-boarded into a major role in any sequel. He decided it wasn’t enough of a role and nobody was willing to put money on the possibility of a sequel. He would be taking a pay cut. He would have said, 'Come with me if you want to live.' Shane had a talk with Arnold but at the end of the day, the sequel wasn’t a done deal and this is really not a lot of screen time for Arnold to go and fly to Canada and do a half day.
Also, speaking of callbacks, the film almost included a HUGE star from the Alien franchise: Sigourney Weaver's alien-destroying Ripley. Anyone else bummed that didn't happen?
The film features Boyd Holbrook, Trevante Rhodes, Keegan-Michael Key, Olivia Munn, Sterling K. Brown, Jacob Tremblay, and Thomas James and works from a script by Shane Black and Fred Dekker. Black is know for directing the divisive Iron Man 3, The Nice Guys, Kiss Kiss Bang Bang, and a handful of others, with his writing credits extending far beyond his directing credits in number.
Would Shane Black's The Predator have been even just a bit better with such a high-profile cameo? Have you even seen The Predator? Are you wanting to see it at all? Let us know!
