Fred Dekker On The Predator Fan Reception and The Predator Killer Ending

[Samhain13]

Not uncommon with all the liberal infighting happening these days.

First Uma Thurman vs team Tarantino and Weinstein
Feminists vs Transgenders with the hastag #WomenCannotBeMen
Olivia Munn mediating and playing mother to the child who got molested by Shane Black's pal.

[The Shuriken]

In all honesty, my biggest issues with the Predator is the Upgrade, and the DNA splicing hybrid crap. The suit at the end, while I don't like the high level tech of it, I like the way it at least looks. It's not that big of a deal for me. Everything else is though.

[Huggs]

This situation is bad enough without bringing the all-destructive force of politics into it.

Can we not, and say we didn't?

[Eldritch_DM]

This situation is bad enough without bringing the all-destructive force of politics into it.

Can we not, and say we didn't?

Yeah let's not go there guys and gals, please. It never ends well...nor civil.

[Voodoo Magic]

Quinn asks the Assassin Predator "What are you?".  Then, as the Assassin Predator starts to answer Quinn, he shoots him in the face and says "Shut the f*ck up!".

Sure it makes no sense to ask something a question, only to kill it before you get an answer... but the audience will surely say "Ah ha! He got him there! See the giant Predator was about to speak and Quinn killed it before it could talk? That's so cool! Dutch asked his Predator 'what the hell are you' because he truly pondered the answer. But Quinn already knew the answer. He just did asked it because he's so badass! Even with his mates dead, he's badass!  So badass!"  Wait, the audience didn't like it??  But we were just trying something different. They obviously don't want anything different.

In the original script they had a short dialogue though, and i think it was a bit better.

Thanks for pointing this out to me Brother John. I would agree it's a bit better. (I attached the page below)

I guess I can't say who was finally responsible for the scene we got. The script I have features Dutch, and it's definitely not the final draft. Did Dekker rewrite it this way and the movie reflects the final result? Was it actor adlib? Was it Shane Black? I don't know. But it's still hard to look at the result, this film, these examples, and legitimize anyone suggesting that negative fan reaction to this type of output equates to the fan rejecting a "different approach" in my humble opinion.  And how does that view even explain the negative critical reaction?

With that said, even though this film with repeat viewings has fallen to my least favorite Predator film, I still find enjoyment with it. The ships. The lab. The Fugitive's breakout. Casey waking up in the hotel room. Sterling K. Brown as Traeger. Busey as Keyes. So if you're reading this Dekker, from one fan's opinion, it's not all bad.

[matthewjn]

So if there was three years between the original ending being drafted and Arnold saying no to appearing in the film, how was the Predator Killer studio intervention?  Did Dekker and Black just not offer any sort of alternative during that three year time period?  Or was there altogether a different ending that was posited that we haven't seen... (assuming that the Ripley / Newt scenarios weren't their idea to begin with.)

The ending in the official novelization had Quinn (along with Rory and Casey) looking up at the skies and Quinn saying "Come and get us, motherf**kers". I'm going to assume that was the original ending filmed before the Predator Killer knowing there was footage just like that in some of the trailers and TV spots.

He called out TOXIC FANS. We all know what toxic fans say, and if you think there aren't any toxic comments, you're going to need to read around more.

Everyone knows there are toxic comments. But even if you read his comment, he's not referring to people going after individual filmmakers; he's talking about people trashing the movie itself:

but I spent three years on it and to have it trashed by toxic fans who don't have the first clue how hard it is to get anything on the screen, well...that hurts.

Nobody's arguing toxic comments don't exist, just that whether it's hard to make a film is hardly a reason for people to take it easy when they don't like it.

Yeah, you're going to need to re-read AND UNDERSTAND what Fred wrote.

[SiL]

You need to understand he's done a very poor job of wording himself if he wasn't trying to lump all negative criticism into one basket.

I get where you're coming from, but it's not hard to see why people are reacting to what he wrote like they are.

[Naginata]

Feminists vs Transgenders with the hastag #WomenCannotBeMen

1. That's not "liberal infighting," that's two groups of people with conflicting opinions on a specific subject.

2. Feminism has dozens of branches, not all of which believe the same things. Most 'mainstream' 3rd wave feminists I've met don't think that about trans women.

3. Hastags are a pretty bad metric by which to judge huge swaths of the population.

4. What the hell does any of this have to do with space monsters?!

[matthewjn]

You need to understand he's done a very poor job of wording himself if he wasn't trying to lump all negative criticism into one basket.

I get where you're coming from, but it's not hard to see why people are reacting to what he wrote like they are.

He didn't really. Fred stated which type of people he was talking about.

Also, according to you guys Fred called anyone who disliked the film or any aspect of it a toxic fan. Well, let's not forget he stated he HATED the Predator Killer along with a lot of unnamed things. So you're telling me he thinks he's a toxic fan too because he dislikes aspects of the movie? That makes no sense to think that about himself.

You guys are over-thinking what he said and should relax if you didn't say anything over the top. If you were respectful in critiquing the movie, you're fine.

[Huggs]

"...to have it trashed by toxic fans who don't have the first clue how hard it is to get anything on the screen..."

When a crap ton of people from all walks of life are trashing your movie, this is called "sticking your foot in your mouth". He just had his "deplorables" moment. It is also disingenuous for him to imply that fans "don't have the first clue" about how difficult it is for a movie to be made. That's just being rude for the sake of rudeness.

#ToxicFan and proud.

[SM]

Pretty sure he's mostly right though.

'Just make a good movie and we wouldn't trash it' is obviously clueless.

That said, if he didn't mean to lump all criticism into the "toxic fans" basket, his response is incredibly badly worded.

[XenoHunter99]

'Just make a good movie and we wouldn't trash it' is obviously clueless.

Please explain what makes it a clueless statement.

[SiL]

1. "Just make a good movie" is a really vague statement.

2. People trash "good" movies all the time.

[SM]

^

[whiterabbit]

But was Fred Dekker paid for his work?