Between Creed and Jurassic World, film series cherished by members of Generation X have been experiencing something of a renaissance over the last year. Amidst all of the major film franchises that have been revived recently (or will be in the foreseeable future), one of particular interest is that of Kiss Kiss Bang Bang and Iron Man 3 helmsman Shane Black’s untitled Predator project a.k.a.Predator 4.
A new update from screenwriter Fred Dekker – Black’s longtime writing partner and, in turn, co-writer on Predator 4 – has confirmed that the project’s development has just taken a significant step forward.
This information comes from Dekker via his Facebook page (h/t to AVP Galaxy) and indicates that the script for Predator 4 has been turned in for review. Accompanying the post is a picture of the film’s titular alien hunter — crudely drawn, but still quite obviously a Predator — by young 7-year-old Angus Herndon. Have a look, below:
Shane Black’s Predator film will mark the overall fourth entry in the film’s continuity, following Predator, Predator 2, and Predators (which hit theaters in 2010). While Black’s installment will acknowledge the existence of certain previous Predator films, there is little to no indication that events from the Alien vs. Predator movies will receive any recognition – something most fans will likely not lose any sleep over.
Predator 4 seems to be following the increasingly popular trend of producing sequels that are loosely related to the continuity of the original film series – rather than total reboots. Doing this allows future films in the franchise to acknowledge the events of the classic films that audiences have come to love over the years without necessarily finding themselves beholden to the characters or continuity. Jurassic World in particular has shown the potential of such a method, when it comes to re-invigorating a long-running franchise.
With Predators, Robert Rodriguez made vague hints to the events of the first film, and what happened to Arnold Schwarzenegger’s Dutch without ever explicitly confirming anything. Predator 4 could be an opportunity to tie everything together while at the same time handing the reins of the franchise off to a younger generation of action heroes.
Whether not this means the series will bring back key players like Schwarzenegger — or Danny Glover for that matter — remains to be seen, but placing the story within the already established universe keeps that door open.
We’ll keep you updated on development of Shane Black’s Predator movie.
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