It’s like he always says: “I’ll be back.” Now it seems we are closer than ever to seeing Arnold Schwarzenegger go toe-to-toe once again with the Predator. Wait. Is Schwarzenegger returning to Predator? Hmmm. READ ON!
“I haven’t talked with him (Shane Black) yet but I’m going to meet with him for lunch sometime soon.” Arnold continued, “Just as soon as I’m finished with this (Arnold’s Sports Festival) and ‘The Apprentice‘ and all this stuff. But I will get together with him. If there is any news, we’ll of course let you know right away. There’s also a meeting coming up soon about Conan, about the project moving forward.”
Wait… he’s going to be in another Conan the Barbarian movie as well?!? 80s nostalgia overload!!! We’ll have to deal with that another time. Right now, it’s all about The Predator.
Schwarzenegger was at his peak when he starred in the 1987 original about a group of commandos being hunted down by an alien warrior in Central America. It is one of the best action movies of its time, and his role of Dutch raised the bar for muscle-bound heroes for decades to come. Bringing him back on board (something I previously mentioned) doesn’t just make sense… it just feels right.
Fellow Predator co-star Shane Black is at the helm for the sequel/reboot. You’d have to assume after meeting with Schwarzenegger, Black would agree that the star-power Arnold has would certainly help the movie (then again, I assume that was the plan with Terminator: Genysis and looked how that turned out). So first, get a good script. Then, work Arnold in. Let’s not mess this thing up, Black.
So why would Schwarzenegger return this time? He didn’t reprise his role in Predator 2 due to a contract dispute (instead is was Danny Glover… who was too old for that sh*t). Well, according to Arnold, putting on the camo and donning the flat top once again has nothing to do with money or fame; it’s about giving back to his fans.
“Look, the fans are the most important thing because without the fans, I’d be nothing. So I just always want them to know that I appreciate them very much, their loyalty, their dedication, and their passion about all the stuff that I’m doing. So, thank you.”
Not gonna lie; that puts a tear in my eye. It’s great that Arnold wants to fight the Predator to appease us all once again, but to be perfectly candid I’d rather see a great Predator movie instead of a bad one that just happens to feature Schwarzenegger. That mistake was made with the last Terminator outing.
So, Shane Black; the ball’s in your court. Can you deliver a solid Predator reboot while working in Arnold once again? Pull that off, and a super-sized high five will be waiting for you. Or maybe just a muscly handshake.
