Shane Black Talks The Upgrade Predator

Ahead of the upcoming panel at San Diego Comic Con, Entertainment Weekly have released new interview with director and co-write Shane Black. Early on in the interview Black is asked about the film’s new Upgrade/Ultimate Predator and what went into settling on the new design.

If the predator was to be an amalgam of, not just an ordinary predator, but also a collection of traits garnered from the various most powerful species that they’ve hunted, then you basically would have one that is stronger, faster, and smarter. We finally got an image that we liked, which captures this very canny, very cunning, and effortlessly powerful, savage predator. One of the only quibbles that I’ve had with some of the past predators is that, if you’re not careful, it can look like a guy in a football suit; big, bulky guy just stomping around. I wanted a certain more graceful, more light, more athletic quality, literally like a predator. If you watch a cheetah, it’s not clunky.

While we have seen the Upgrade/Ultimate Predator in the trailer, aside from throwing the Fugitive Predator, we haven’t seen much of him in motion just yet.

Shane Black also talks about the cast, some of the set-up around the Stargazer Project and he re-affirms how the film ended up being more difficult than he originally anticipated. He is also asked whether The Predator leaves room open for a possible fifth film.

I think it’s part of the task to always leave room, just like leaving room for dessert. But at the same time, unless you very firmly have in mind your pre-planned and pre-structured trilogy or sequel, it’s important to focus on the movie at hand and not get lost, like day one of a movie and you’re already planning the wrap party. It’s important that we get this one right. But of course we would leave room for continuing this, because as I mentioned, the Predator seems to have this uncanny longevity in the zeitgeist that people like new iterations of it, they like the hunting aspect of it, they break down every aspect of whatever costume he’s wearing this time and make toys of it. It’s strange, but it’s so longstanding and won’t go away.

Thanks to Tetsujin for the news. Keep checking in with Alien vs. Predator Galaxy for the latest on The Predator! You can follow us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube to get the latest on your social media walls. You can also join in with fellow Alien and Predator fans on our forums!