Fred Dekker Discusses the Original 3rd Act of THE PREDATOR & Arnold Schwarzenegger Cameo
Josh Millican
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2018’s The Predator (directed by Shane Black) was a turbulent affair, pretty much from start to finish. There were close to half a dozen postponements, and the entire third act of the film was eventually reshot. Then, there were allegations of a real-life (sexual) predator on set, which put a huge damper on the film’s release. Then came the abysmal reviews.
If you’re wondering what the original third act of The Predator was like, screenwriter Fred Dekker recently sat down with the folks at Moviefone to discuss what we could have seen–including a potential cameo from Arnold Schwarzenegger, who played Dutch in the original Predator, released in 1987.
“I think we were halfway through the shoot. Um, we had devised a sequence which, which I confessed was my idea, which was essentially, our heroes have to get from point A to point B and they commandeer military convoy. And at that point in the film, we had established a pair of Predator emissaries, basically good guy predators. What was interesting to Shane and I was to ask a question that nobody to give a shit about, which is, what do predators do, except for hunt? Because they’ve invented interstellar spacecraft. So they’re not stupid. They’re not just a bunch of Arkansas rednecks who come to Earth to play the most dangerous game. They actually have a civilization and a culture. And presumably, that’s worth exploring since none of the other movies do it.
“So our idea was that their planet is dying. And so they’ve decided to take what previously was explored, which is to dope up creatures with the DNA of other types of predators from alien worlds and create new targets for their hunt. But now they realized, well, hey, we need maybe to upgrade ourselves just to survive. And then they go to themselves, well, hey, earth is warming up. We like a warm environment. Maybe we should move in. So the premise of the movie is that in the third act was these two predators come aboard the ship and everybody’s freaking out and the predators actually want to communicate. They want to say, ‘Hey, we’ve got a problem, you have a problem. Maybe we should team up.'”
The interview is absolutely worth reading in its entirety, HERE. If video is more your cup of tea, check out the recap embedded at the top of the article from one of our favorite UK film critics and academics, Mr. H.
Synopsis:
From the outer reaches of space to the small-town streets of suburbia, the hunt comes home. The universe’s most lethal hunters are stronger, smarter and deadlier than ever before, having genetically upgraded themselves with DNA from other species. When a boy accidentally triggers their return to Earth, only a ragtag crew of ex-soldiers and an evolutionary biologist can prevent the end of the human race.
Were you a fan of 2018’s The Predator? What do you think about the original third act as described by Fred Dekker (and recapped by Mr. H)? Let us know in the comments below or on Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram! You can also carry on the convo with me personally on Twitter @josh_millican.
