predators

What exactly do producer Robert Rodriguez and director Nimrod Antal have up their sleeves that will re-vitalize the Predator franchise after suffering increasingly lukewarm installments? SXSW attendees will get to find out on March 12 at 10:15pm, when Rodriguez and Antal take the stage at the Alamo Drafthouse Ritz in Austin, Texas for a special extended sneak preview of this Summer's Predators.

The sci-fi action film stars Adrien Brody as a mercenary who bands with a group of cutthroat human survivors on an alien world, awaiting their turn as the Predators' game. The film co-stars Topher Grace, Alice Braga, and Lawrence Fishburne. "My director Nimród Antal and I are excited to bring this first look at Predators to Austin's SXSW Film Festival, an event that's become vital to the filmmaking scene," said Rodriguez in a press statement. "Austin is my home and I'm proud that Predators was conceived and filmed here."

Most are viewing Predators as the second sequel to 1987's Predator, and not the fifth in the series -- ignoring the two AVP films all together. One of the problems with the franchise has been finding a decent foil for the Predator to hunt. No one has come close to the swaggering, larger-than-life hero that Arnold Schwarzenegger played so well in the original film. On paper, it doesn't seem like Brody is any better a choice than Danny Glover or Sanaa Lathan, but we'll know if Brody's got the goods by the time Predators hits theatres on July 9, 2010.

With the critical verdict on Nimrod Antal's Armored being about as favorable as you could hope for, things are looking brighter all the time for Antal's directorial involvement on the Robert Rodriguez-produced Predators. The cast on Predators was already looking pretty damn solid: Adrian Brody, Danny Trejo and Topher Grace. Now, you can add Laurence Fishburne to the list.

Dispatched from a visit to the Predators set in Austin, JoBlo.com broke the news of Fishburne's spot in the cast, as well as a little bit on his character. Noland, unlike most of his comrades, is not new to the Predator-hunting game, in fact, he's something of a seasoned veteran. From Othello to Morpheus to "Whitey" Powers, Fishburne has honed that badass on-screen persona, so I definitely buy the guy as someone who has seen a few scuffles with a Predator over the years.

As far as hearsay goes on the project, according to Ain't It Cool News, everyone has been pretty bowled over by what Rodriguez and Co. have cooked up on the Predators set. With a July 7, 2010 release date and the film nearing the end of production, you have to figure we can't be too far off from a teaser of some sort.

Lots of movie geeks (yes, like us) have been abuzz with the vague discussions regarding the Predator remake / reboot / sequel / whatever. All we really knew was that the generally kick-ass Robert Rodriguez was on board to oversee, as the producer, but now we have confirmation have Robert's good pal that the director has been named. And that name ... is Nimrod.

Nimrod Antal, to be precise, who fest-goers will know from Kontroll and thriller fans will recall from Vacancy. Harry's got a whole bunch of cool info on the project right here, but I've chosen a small segment that makes me particularly happy: "It involves a very intense group of people stranded on a Predator planet discovering unspeakable horrors." Yes! Plus Mr. Rodriguez shares some enthusiasm from a Fox colleague: "No one is going to talk about AVP again after this movie. I stake my life on it."

Read the rest at Cinematical

We were skeptical when it was announced that Robert Rodriguez was producing a new Predator movie titled Predators, but if this very cool rumor is correct then here's a film that just shot up to the top of our Awesomeness meter. Here's Peter Martin reporting for Cinematical:

My principles may be crumbling, just a little. Neil Marshall (pictured) is in talks to direct Predators, according to Bloody Disgusting, citing an anonymous tipster. At this point, it's very much a rumor -- for all we know, Marshall was visiting a friend in the commissary at 20th Century Fox and was seen in close proximity to an executive -- but of all the possible candidates to helm a sequel to the alien hunter franchise, I'd definitely be down with Marshall.

He has three features to his credit: The Descent is the best and most widely-acclaimed, a feverish nightmare in which a group of women explore a cave and discover deadly denizens, to their dismay. I got a huge kick out of the bloody, funny, pulse-pounding Dog Soldiers, featuring Scottish soldiers on a training run who encounter werewolves, and, though I was decidedly in the minority, really enjoyed the post-Apocalyptic action epic Doomsday. The latter was his first with a Hollywood studio (Rogue Pictures). Upcoming is his "old-style swords 'n' armor action epic" Centurion, which looks promising but doesn't yet have US distribution.

Read the rest at Cinematical

Discuss: Is Neil Marshall the right man to breathe life back into this sci-fi franchise?