Filmmaker Robert Rodriguez presents a bold new chapter in the Predator universe, “Predators,” shot on location under Rodriguez’s creative auspices at the filmmaker’s Austin-based Troublemaker Studios, directed by Nimrod Antal. The film stars Oscar®-winner Adrien Brody (“The Pianist”) as Royce, a mercenary who reluctantly leads a group of elite warriors who come to realize they’ve been brought together on an alien planet… as prey. With the exception of a disgraced physician, they are all cold-blooded killers – mercenaries, Yakuza, convicts, death squad members – human “predators” that are now being systemically hunted and eliminated by a new breed of alien Predators.
In addition to Brody, “Predators” stars award-winning actor and filmmaker Laurence Fishburne (“The Matrix” movies), Topher Grace (“Spider-Man 3”), Alice Braga (“I Am Legend”) and Walton Goggins (“The Shield”). Also taking on key roles are Rodriguez stalwart Danny Trejo, plus UFC champion Oleg Taktarov (“National Treasure”), Mahershalalhashbaz Ali (“The Curious Case of Benjamin Button”), and Louis Ozawa Changchien (“Fair Game”).
One of the most celebrated actors worldwide, Laurence Fishburne, portrays Noland, a recluse human found surviving on the planet. His hidden cave contains numerous artifacts and weapons. Noland’s very existence on the alien planet provides hints of a rich off-world history of the Predators. “Once you’ve set up this planet, there’s a lot that can happen there, and once you’ve seen characters like Noland, you know there’s a lot of potential stories to tell,” says Rodriguez.
Screenwriter Michael Finch adds, “Noland is a guy who can give us a whole bit of the history and can perform a very specific function and that function is this: demonstrate to these guys that dying on this planet may not be the worst thing that can happen to you. Living on it might be.”
Fishburne responded strongly to the direction the filmmakers were taking with the material.
“What’s nice about this movie is that it really is a throwback to the old ‘Predator,’” comments the actor. “The structure of it is very much the same and the archetypes of the characters are similar. They’re different, but they’re similar enough that you get a feeling of the old movie. My character is one of those pieces that connect to the old movie. I think the character of Noland is a great sort of wink at the audience.
“Noland lets them in on what’s going on and why everybody’s here, but it also lets the audience in on the inside joke of the movie. When ‘Predator’ came out, we had never seen this [creature] before, and it was a really cool boogie man,” adds Fishburne. “This is a real return to the tension and the excitement of the first movie. We do have a new breed of Predator in this movie, but they’ve really taken the time to look at the first film, take the best elements, and try to enhance them, and to honor them in any way we can. I think that’s been done really effectively with respect to the script and with the casting of the ensemble and the archetypes that these characters represent.”
“Predators” opens July 8 (Thursday) in theaters from 20th Century Fox to be distributed by Warner Bros.
