When it comes to iconic franchises being reimagined for the modern day, bringing back The Predator is one of the more highly anticipated films on the horizon. There is a lot of love from action movie fans of all generations for the first Predator movie, but the new film will certainly benefit from advances in technology, visual effects, and more. Fox has had Shane Black attached to direct the film for some time, but the search for a lead was thought to be done when Benicio Del Toro was revealed to be in talks to star.
With a star seemingly attached, some of the newer updates for the film have pointed to an IMAX release and just today, the working title for the movie was revealed. Now the cast is getting an overhaul with Del Toro reportedly on the outs, and Boyd Holbrook looking to step into the lead.
THR is reporting that Del Toro has fallen out of negotiations for the lead role, citing possible scheduling conflicts as a result of the deal never closing. While they are reporting that Boyd Holbrook is being eyed by the studio, Variety is reporting that is a done deal. This would be Holbrook's biggest role to date, after appearing in Narcos on Netflix, and can soon be seen as Donald Pierce in Logan.
With Del Toro now out of the project, the star power is significantly less with Holbrook on board. Del Toro has proven to audiences multiple times that he is an actor to take seriously and can carry the lead. This would have been a different role for him, but after his performance in Sicario, it is hard to imagine him not killing it in the lead. Holbrook is a capable actor, but has not yet shown he has what it takes to carry a film, and potentially a franchise.
The seemingly quick turn to Holbrook should point to Fox liking what he did with his role in Logan, and are confident that he has what it takes to carry a film. This is not to say that he will be alone, as the Predator films have previously had some sort of team assembled, so Holbrook will likely have a group of individuals right next to him throughout the film. Then again, there has not been any plot details revealed so far, so this new direction for the franchise could include a departure from previous installments.
The Predator opens in U.S. theaters February 9th, 2018.