Prey, the prequel to 1987 action classic Predator, has received well-deserved positive reviews and reignited quality into the Predator franchise. Directed by by Dan Trachtenberg, Prey is Hulu’s most successful streaming premiere ever and if a sequel emerges from its success, then we have the perfect idea for such a follow-up.
Before we reveal that to you, however, be warned that this article is filled with spoilers and we strongly recommend you watch Prey first and then bounce back to this article for your reading pleasure.
The central character of Prey is a Comanche tribeswoman named Naru, played by Native American actress Amber Midthunder. Naru struggles to get her first kill of an animal but it’s clear she has the potential. The only real thing holding her back is fear, which shows itself in the form of reluctance any time Naru is close to delivering a death blow. Her reluctance completely replaces her killer instinct, handicapping her overall hunting ability, which is otherwise steered by her innovation, her intelligence, and her keen awareness of her surroundings. With the events that occur in Prey, it becomes increasingly obvious that her first kill is gonna have be the Predator.
Perhaps the very best thing about Prey is that it’s not a Predator movie with Native Americans in it but rather it’s a Native American movie with the Predator in it. As the audience, we feel as if we’re on the hunt with tribe, right there in the forest and are a part of the family, thanks in part the natural performances of the supporting actors, including Dakota Beaver and Stormee Kipp.
Of course, in the end (spoiler alert!), Naru succeeds in killing the Predator, played by Daniel DiLiegro, thanks to some trickery. She then returns to the tribe with the Predator’s decapitated head, telling them they must move.
This is where Prey ends but the end-title sequence shows us three Predator ships arriving. This could lead to the idea of a potential sequel called Prey for Revenge.
As the three Predators look to pick up the tracks of the original Predator, they realize he was killed. This would make sense given that Naru returned only with the Predator’s head, as his body is still stuck in a mud pit. These newly arrived Predators can track him to the mud pit and from there easily trace the blood trail from his decapitated head back to the tribe.
They can also trace the tribe to where they are moving next and place the Predators in a position of revenge. In regards to the Predators hunting Naru, they certainly wouldn’t hesitate to go after Naru’s family, especially considering they likely would not yet know who within the tribe actually killed the first Predator.
Some might argue that this goes against some things we’ve seen in other Predator films, some of which show Predators basically awarding humans who are able to kill other Predators. Even though it appears to be some kind of custom, it doesn’t mean that it will always be the reaction of every Predator. Additionally, Prey takes place hundreds of years before any of the films so it’s also simple to excuse such customs as not having been created yet.
With Prey taking place in 1719 and Naru running into a camp of French fur traders, perhaps Prey for Revenge can show a larger French settlement. Given that the film is set in the Northern Great Plains, it limits what settlements would be in the area. This would allow the story to be one that sees a Native American tribe and a French settlement working together to defend against the Predator.
With the sequel idea featuring Naru’s coming across a French settlement, it would be tempting to hire an actor named Jesse “The Body” Ventura to be in the film. It allows the exciting possibility of Amber Midthunder and Jesse Ventura to star together in a Predator movie, and Ventura’s appearance in the original 1987 movie wouldn’t hurt continuity because he would obviously be playing an entirely different character.
Ventura and Midthunder could possibly be up for a team up considering Ventura’s compliment towards both her and the Prey film, as well as Midthunder’s response.
Let’s call Ventura’s character Chance. “Bonne Chance” means “good luck” in French Ventura’s character is gonna need it. With the tribe temporarily nearby the French, Naru is unaware that she has led the Predator there. The Predator begins a killing spree in the settlement, putting Naru in a position where, upon realizing what’s happening, she can decide to move her tribe again and thus be out of harm’s way or she can decide to help the French fight.
This decision can turn Naru into the true hero of the story and is an excellent build for her character as she has already proven that she can courageously defend her tribe. Simply having her do that again in the sequel would be a failed opportunity so, here, she can both defend her tribe and anyone whom she realizes is in danger. Naru can become an admirable warrior standing up to defend those who really need her, regardless of their differences.
It’s also a chance for the Predator franchise to have something of a greater importance in terms of the end of the film as once adversaries Naru and Chance team up to defeat the Predator.
One extremely important element for the sequel would be just how entertaining and realistic Ventura and Midthunder’s characters are when together.
The best scenario is if Chance has a daughter (or granddaughter) of Naru’s age and thus treats her like he would treat his own daughter, who Naru can develop a friendship with. This is the best way to get the audience to fully root for both characters as a team, especially if the writers can add elements of entertainment within their relationship that we haven’t seen in the series before.
If Ventura is allowed to be his mostly entertaining self, albeit with a bad French accent, and be completely different from his portrayal of his macho character in the original Predator film, then we can enjoy a fun relationship on screen that allows us to be treated to a heart warming ending, instead of just the usual non-emotional conclusion that the Predator series excels at delivering.
The sequel film can also do Prey one better in the sense that, instead of showing multiple sequences throughout the film that end with Naru surviving to live another day in order to get us to the finale sequence, we can have multiple sequences that have definitive endings. With three Predators, the first main hunting sequence can be seen fairly early in the film and end with Naru being the one to kill the Predator. The second such sequence can begin midway and end with Chance killing a Predator. This leaves one Predator for the final sequence, a sort of trilogy within the movie (and an outline that makes it easy to enjoy), but that final Predator can threaten the life of Chance’s daughter only to see his end thanks to Chance and Naru’s collective efforts.
For my money, if done right, this sequel would be more entertaining than Prey. I hope to see Amber Midthunder in many successful films in her career and maybe….just maybe….one of them will be Prey for Revenge.