Benicio del Toro almost played the lead protagonist in 2018 sequel The Predator, but eventually dropped out and was replaced by Boyd Holbrook. Directed by Shane Black, and written by Black and Fred Dekker, The Predator came into 2018 with a lot of hype. It had been eight years since a new Predator movie was released, and while both 1990's Predator 2 and 2010's Predators have their fans, most still felt that the 1987 Arnold Schwarzenegger classic still hadn't received a worthy sequel.

Black seemed a great choice for the gig, having appeared in a supporting role in the original Predator, and subsequently directed acclaimed films like Kiss Kiss Bang Bang and Iron Man 3. He made lots of promises too, about how The Predator would be an old-school action flick with lots of blood and foul language, and fully embrace its R-rating. To be fair to Black, those weren't necessarily exaggerations, as there's certainly lots of R-rated material in the film, including some that more sensitive moviegoers found offensive.

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Unfortunately, The Predator as a whole just ended up underwhelming, and is now actually regarded by many fans as the most forgettable sequel, not including the widely lambasted Alien vs. Predator crossovers. Perhaps Benicio del Toro dodged a bullet by dropping out of the project, but on the other hand, maybe him playing the lead would've elevated the material.

The Predator Almost Starred Benicio Del Toro - Why He Dropped Out

The Predator (2018) - Predator Vision

In September 2016, it was officially confirmed that Benicio del Toro was in final negotiations to star as the lead in The Predator. Reports at the time said del Toro and Fox had been in behind-the-scenes talks for months by that point, but that the actor's busy schedule had proven to be an issue in finalizing things. However, just one month later, it was reported that del Toro had exited the project, after reaching some kind of impasse in his talks with Fox.

Neither side publicly commented on what happened, but industry reporting said that del Toro's schedule had once again become a problem. Some of the actor's other projects had moved around their production dates, including fellow 2018 release Sicario: Day of the Soldado, and Fox had grown weary, after already having reportedly pushed back the start of filming on The Predator once to accommodate del Toro. Thus, the decision was made to part ways and find another lead actor. The lead role would eventually go to Narcos actor Boyd Holbrook, and nothing against his portrayal, but one wonders how cool a battle between Benicio del Toro and the galaxy's ultimate hunter might have ended up being.

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