Shane Black has nearly finished the script for the Predator sequel
A year ago, the news broke that Shane Black (Iron Man 3, Lethal Weapon) had targeted a reworking/”inventive sequel” to 20th Century Foxs Predator. So what progress has been made in the year since? According to Collider‘s recent interview with producer John Davis, writer/director (not to mention co-star of John McTiernan’s original) Black is still fully engaged to making the Predator sequel, despite having filmed the 1970’s-set noir The Nice Guys with Ryan Gosling and Russell Crowe and the Amazon spaghetti western pilot “Edge” in the interim.
Shane shot a movie and hes doing a pilot now, but Ive read a lot of his script and I think its genius,” Davis said. “I think its genius and I think its entertaining, and what it did is recreate a famous franchise in a different, interesting way; looking at it from a different light. Hes just an amazing writer-director. Hes got a way of looking at this that makes you excited again. I love this franchise. It was the first movie I ever did. I remember in being in the jungle with Arnold [Schwarzenegger] as a 28-year-old and going, This is a fun business! Shanes amazing. Hes an amazing storyteller.
Black will be directing the new film and is writing the treatment that will tie in to franchise continuity, with the full script being supplied by his longtime pal Fred Dekker, with whom Black worked on Monster Squad.
Shanes got a writing partner, Fred Dekker,” Davis continued. “Theyve been doing it together and Freds great. The two of them together, theyve been in the business for a long time, but the writing is so fresh, the perspective is so fresh. Im telling you youre going to get something you dont expect and youre going to say, This is the most entertaining way to reinvent a franchise. I mean hes the guy who wrote ‘Iron Man 3.'”
The 1987 original was directed by John McTiernan and starred Arnold Schwarzenegger as the leader of a United States special forces team that comes under attack from an alien entity that prizes the thrill of the hunt above all else. It was followed by a direct sequel, Predator 2, in 1990 before crossing over with Foxs Alien franchise for two additional sequels, Alien vs. Predator and AvP: Requiem. In 2010, Nimrod Antal helmed a reboot with a new feature, Predators.
John Davis (The Man from U.N.C.L.E., Chronicle) is attached to produce the new Predator sequel with Matt Reilly overseeing for Fox and Ira Napoliello overseeing for Davis Entertainment.
