Shane Black and Fred Dekker’s original draft for The Predator reveals a lot changed between page and screen - but what are some of the major differences? Even if viewers went into the theatrical cut of The Predator without knowledge of its major production troubles, it was clear something about the movie was off. The editing was very choppy and abrupt, to the point where a major character dies in the finale and some audience members miss it entirely. It also ends on a Predator Killer sequel teases that feels like it belongs to a different movie.
That’s not to say the film is without its charms. The Predator has a great cast and The Loonies are easily the best team in the series since the original film. Director Shane Black’s skill with action and comedy is still intact, it introduces intriguing concepts like the Predators upgrading their skills and there were plenty of shout-outs to the previous movies like the addition of Sean Keyes, son of Predator 2’s Peter. There’s plenty to like about The Predator, which is part of what makes its faults so irritating. There’s a potentially great movie in there that’s let down by a fractured narrative and weak third act showdown.
Related: The Predator Reshoots Explained: Every Cut And Change Fox Made To Shane Black's Movie
The Predator joins the ranks of recent blockbusters like Justice League and Fantastic Four that underwent extensive reshoots and re-editing after filming. The movie went back for three weeks' worth of additional photography in March 2018 to film a different climax and then went back again a few months before release to shoot three different sequel teases. Much of the storyline was altered too, with the Fugitive Predator’s motive being changed and the removal of a huge battle sequence with hybrid creatures in the finale. Pieces of this original version are still visible in the movie itself but they don’t fit together anymore.
One of Shane Black and co-writer Fred Dekker’s early drafts (via AVP Galaxy) has recently made its way online and makes for a fascinating insight into what the movie originally looked like. Let’s look at how different The Predator could have been and find out if the original version was better than the end product.
- This Page: The Predator Script Explains Unanswered Questions
- Page 2: How The Predator's Ending Was Changed
The Predator Script Explains A Lot Of Unanswered Questions & Weird Moments
It should be noted every single movie – especially blockbusters – go through myriad changes from the shooting script to the big screen. Sequences and characters are cut or condensed due to budgets or schedules, and narrative arcs can completely change. The Predator is no different in that regard, but in this case, a lot of what’s found in the script was actually filmed; it was in editing the movie was reshaped. Most of the differences are reserved for the final third, but there plenty of changes in the first two acts also, some with pretty big impacts.
The original opening found the Fugitive – dubbed the “Good” Predator – hijacking a vessel called The Ark from a Predator mothership and heading to Earth. Just like the movie, the ship crashes during the middle of McKenna's (Boyd Holbrook) mission to save hostages in Cuba. Instead of a random roadside exchange, however, this scene takes place in front of an opulent drug dealer's mansion. This mansion is later destroyed by Project Stargazer helicopters when they arrive to capture the Fugitive, killing any potential witnesses. McKenna is later taken into custody by Traeger (Sterling K. Brown) after sending the Predator mask to America.
McKenna’s autistic son Rory gets the same introduction in The Predator script and movie, but instead of just verbal taunts, the bullies who find him cowering in class due to the fire alarms also kick him while he’s down (his later showdown with them also takes place outside a bar, not a house). The introduction to The Loonies is similar to the theatrical cut, but Lynch (Alfie Allen) is missing and there’s a character called Flyboy instead. Outside of Nebraska Williams (Trevante Rhodes), the group isn’t well defined in The Predator script, suggesting the cast brought a lot to their roles once they came on board. Casey Bracket's (Olivia Munn) missing introduction, where she’s hit on and rebuffs a jogger while walking her dog, is also in the script.
Related: The Alien Prequels Are Better Than The Predator
Conspicuously missing from The Predator script is Sean Keyes, with his role and dialogue assigned to another scientist named Colwell (he doesn’t fare well - the Fugitive cuts off his head and hand to use on scanners during his escape). Also cut was Casey realizing the Predator wanted to be captured so it would be taken to a location with weapons and equipment, and it played possum the whole time.
Several other logic gaps caused by bad editing are cleared up: The Loonies get their weapons from Cutter, a wheelchair-bound ex-marine living in a Winnebago; he’s introduced watching To Catch A Predator on TV and later joins the gang (explaining where the truck came from); and Nebraska’s magically appearing cop car was actually stolen from a rookie who pointed a gun at Rory following the explosion.
Perhaps most interestingly, the Fugitive Predator briefly talks during the McKenna confrontation, warning the group to run since the Upgrade is coming. It arrives and swiftly rips the Fugitive apart, before giving chase to the Winnebago with terrifying speed. It's only when McKenna rips The Kujhad - The Ark control device – from Rory’s hand and throw it away that it backs off.
Page 2 of 2: How The Predator's Ending Was Changed
The Predator Script's Third Act Involved Predator Hybrids, Trailer Parks & Area 52
It's here where The Predator script differences really kick in. It's discovered the Fugitive Predator’s ship crashed in a Florida swamp (instead of a random quarry like the released finale). The gang rides a helicopter out there while Traeger takes a kidnapped Rory to find the cloaked vessel since he learned their language and knows how to open it. Project Stargazer gets ready to move The Ark while The Loonies arrive and concoct a plan to break into the quarantined area. They recruit locals from a nearby trailer park and drive up to the soldiers in a food truck, where bikini-clad waitresses come out with food trays, including Casey, who is dressed like Daisy Duke and pulls the officer in charge into a dance.
Related: The Predator Was A Box-Office Failure – Here's Why
They soon unleash smoke grenades and mass chaos while McKenna grabs Rory from The Ark - only for the Upgrade to reveal it was hiding inside the whole time. He opens up mysterious pods in the ship and unleashes a horde of hybrid creatures, of which there's been copious concept art revealed since The Predator's release. They start ripping apart soldiers left and right, before disappearing into the trees. This is where a whole new subplot kicks in, with Traeger shot dead by a military sniper and the group escorted to Area 52, which was set up to defend Earth from the Predators. This place is loaded with Predator gear and General Woodhurst – played by Edward James Olmos before being cut – explains everything. They have two Emissary Predators living in an enclosure and the Fugitive was on their side; he stole The Ark so it couldn’t be used against them in a future battle. The Predators are said to be fighting a cold war, with some clans opposed to a future invasion of Earth.
Woodhurst also reveals The Upgrade is here to kill the Emissaries, and once alarm klaxons signal its arrival, he tasks the Loonies with escorting the friendly Predators to The Ark so they can escape. This leads to a huge chase where the gang piles into an armored convoy out of the base as the hybrids overwhelm it. Baxley and Coyle are killed during the chase (the former gets his skin ripped off and the latter unloads an assault rifle into a hybrid as it rips out his spine) and both Emissaries are immediately murdered by the Upgrade once the chase sequence ends. The hybrids are seen wearing self-destruct collars, so after Rory figures out how to pilot The Ark, the collars are triggered and the hybrids explode. Rory lands the ship but is soon snatched by the Upgrade, who he considers the most valuable opponent since Rory figured out the Predator language, learned to pilot the ship and killed the hybrids.
Arnold Schwarzenegger Is In The Predator Script's Ending
The final showdown in The Predator script is fairly similar to the final cut: McKenna, Nettles and Williams jump onboard The Ark as it leaves, only for the forcefield to activate and kill Nettles while trapping Williams outside of it; he’s later killed by a missile fired at the ship from a fighter jet. After The Ark crashes the Upgrade fight is almost identical but the script takes time to explain Casey stole a motorcycle and that’s how she got to the crash site so fast.
The big diversion comes in the final scene. Instead of jumping forward to the Predator Killer sequence, we get the much-discussed Arnold Schwarzenegger cameo. When the Upgrade is killed, helicopters arrive to take the three survivors away. When they approach the copper, Dutch Schaefer (Arnold Schwarzenegger) emerges from the hatchway to announce a war has started between Earth and the Predators. He orders them to come with him, and when Rory asks if he’s included, Dutch smiles grimly and proclaims "Especially you."
Read More: All The Predator’s Alternate Endings Explained
Was The Predator Script Better Than The Movie?
Apparently, the original cut of The Predator tested negatively with audiences, so it was decided between the studio and filmmakers to simplify the plot. The whole Area 52 section was removed and Traeger and the Upgrade became the central focus as antagonists. And, reading through Black & Dekker’s draft, it’s easy to see why some fans were concerned about early script leaks. It features a kid flying a spaceship, lots of goofy humor and Predators who team up with the heroes. The Area 52 section arrives abruptly and there isn’t much time to absorb it before the hybrid chase kicks in.
The Predator script was trying to shake up the franchise formula by breaking away from familiar tropes and expanding the mythology. Broadly speaking, the script draft works better than the finished movie simply because the story actually makes sense, but it's understandable why certain elements were reshot. Trimming the Area 52 plot makes the story cleaner, even if the hybrid chase would have been the standout setpiece in a film that’s lacking a real showstopper. Conversely, the food truck ambush is not a sequence that reads well (although it's not known if it was actually filmed. There are still some annoying plot holes and contrivances present in the script too.
Ultimately, an alternate cut of The Predator showing Black’s original intentions – good or bad – would be the best way to see how well it played. Sadly, given the film’s performance and the cost of finishing the VFX, that’s unlikely to happen.