Prey director Dan Trachtenberg explains why he set the Predator prequel movie in the past. The upcoming fifth entry in the sci-fi action franchise, excluding the Alien vs. Predator crossovers, takes place in 1719 and follows a young Comanche warrior named Naru (Amber Midthunder) attempting to protect her tribe as they are hunted by a technologically advanced alien predator. Prey is set to release on Hulu August 5, 2022, skipping a theatrical release.
Positive Prey movie reactions have already begun to emerge, with many viewers calling it the best film in the franchise since the original 1987 Predator starring Arnold Schwarzenegger. Comparisons include both movies being set in the wilderness and the element of intrigue surrounding the Predator's presence as a covert, stealthy operator. There has also been acclaim for the performance by Midthunder as she stars in her breakout feature film role.
This reception to the movie may simply be a bonus to the reason why Trachtenberg decided to make Prey a Predator prequel movie. In an interview with Film Updates, the director discusses his reasoning for setting Prey 300 years ago, wanting to give a spotlight to Native American characters, specifically Comanche, who are never positioned as the leads of movies. Trachtenberg also stresses that his goal was to portray Indigenous characters outside of their historical portrayals in Westerns, hence Prey being set when the Comanche were at their strongest. Check out his full quote below:
Why not set it in the past? I think, well, mainly because I wanted to make a movie about protagonists that we never see as the leads of a movie, being Native American and the Comanche even more specifically, so that sort of lent itself to being set in the past. And I just want to sort of go even further than when we typically see Native Americans show up, it's in a Western, in a cowboy movie, in the 1800s. So I just wanted to go back further to the height of the Comanche empire.
Prey has a remarkable cast, consisting of majority Native American and First Nations actors. Along with Midthunder, herself being a member of the Sioux tribe, the movie stars fellow indigenous actors like Stormee Kipp, Dakota Beavers, Michelle Thrush, and Julian Black Antelope. Acclaimed producer Jhane Myers is also part of the film, and she is a member of the Comanche tribe. Prey will also be the first movie ever to release with an entire Comanche-language dub, separate from the English-language release.
This installment of the Predator franchise may be the most exciting since the original film, if not even more so, for a vast number of reasons. Considering the representation of Native people, reception of the movie so far, and potential for more sequels, Prey has incredible implications for the film series going forward. The trailers so far have demonstrated that Trachtenberg is dedicated to returning to the simplistic hunting motif that made the Predator such an iconic movie character. Prey looks set to make a killing, and if it does, it could allow fans to continue to see more interesting interpretations of the Predator universe.
Source: Film Updates/Twitter
