The ultimate hunter and the perfect organism are making a comeback! Predator jumped back onto the scene properly when the fan praised film Prey debuted. The movie brought the creature back to its violent tendencies within a natural landscape as it made trophies of top of line targets. Alien: Romulus did the same for the Xenomorphs. The newest movie brought back the terror of being stuck with the creatures inside a tight room and displayed the terror they create. In addition to expanding some of their lore. It’s success that both franchises needed since they are two of the biggest names in science fiction. And because of the success, it has Alien: Romulus’ director, Fede Alverez, thinking of crossovers. The only way these beautiful, terrifying creatures clash again is if Prey’s director, Dan Trachtenberg, takes Alverez’s offer to partner up to pit the monsters against each other again. With love for the franchises still intact, with a resurgence of popularity and success it does make sense. But is it the right thing to do?
Team up movies are seeing some success. Earlier this year Godzilla and Kong shared the same territory yet again. That movie was accepted among many fans as being one hell of a fun time. A movie that was made to be silly fun and it delivered on the silly fun. It did well enough at the box office and most importantly among fans to continue the Monsterverse and make room for perhaps another Godzilla/Kong movie. Just recently, Deadpool and Wolverine teamed up on the big screen finally. With different styles of personality, history in the books, similarities of losing loved ones, the pairing of the characters was well worth the wait. Deadpool & Wolverine has a high bar to pass and it cleared easily with the help of fans. The film, as of time of writing, continues its success. So, an Alien vs Predator movie does have some of the path cleared for it. Movie goers have proven that they are willing to see a team up movie. These types of movies have recent success. Because of that, it could make it ideal for another, properly done Alien vs Predator movie.
These two icons find their success and popularity in the 1980’s when Alien, Aliens and Predator were released. Aliens took the franchise away from its horror roots and made it an action barrage. A huge difference but the execution made the sequel iconic in its own right and became one of the few sequels that were better from the original. When Predator debuted, it took this slow burn approach to reveal the titular monster. The film started as a war movie but as the movie progressed, it added breadcrumbs that slowly allowed the sci fi genre to blossom. So, by the time the climax happened, it was easily accepted that the movie is a hard sci fi movie. That slow, worthwhile progression to reveal the Predator helped make that film iconic as well. These movies have lasted the test of time. Still praised for their monsters, actors, portrayals, scenes, and one liners. Yet, that success didn’t last past those films. Ever since those movies, both franchises struggled to find success again. More films did come out but did not get to the level of Alien, Aliens and Predator. Even when both monsters clashed in two movies, they did not live up to the legacy, expectation, and passion. But now, both franchises have regained some fire again. Enough momentum to make Fede Alverez and perhaps fans thinking of another Alien vs Predator film.
With a new wave of interest for the franchises and success, it’s no wonder why a new Alien vs Predator movie is on the minds of many. Is it the right move though. The answer is no! For one, these two franchises have enough lore behind that could be used and expanded. It seems every Alien movie their lore is furthered. The species’ history is told and goes back into more layers. And although the Aliens are the perfect organism due to their anatomy and reproduction, they are always evolving in some way. As for the Predators, there’s still much that needs to be scene. Prey made it know that it’s captivating to see a Yautja hunting down warriors at different times of history. Due to similar systems, there’s a small movement that wants the Predators to clash with feudal Japan Samurai. Plus, the Predator home world has been glimpsed but not fully revealed. That’s a story ready to be told. If that is put into an Alien vs Predator movie, it won’t give those moments room to breathe. And second, both franchises are seeing success that they haven’t had since their first movies. It’s really fresh. It’ll be premature to jump to a crossover movie when each creature is doing well on their own. At least, each franchise needs to have more projects. And not just projects but well done, well made, and respected projects. But these two franchises need to bask in their own glory separate from each other. They need time to recapture the success that the first films had. Those films were great and they did not connect until an easter egg in Predator 2 that began the link. That is important to note because it’s soft canon that Xenomorphs exist in the Predator universe but the Yautja do not canonically exist in the Alien universe. That’s something that directors and writers need to know if they go forward. The success that each franchise has right now is enough evidence to continue separate stories. The Predator movies didn’t get a proper third film. A few ideas were left on the chopping room floor with Aliens. All that was thrown away in favor of an Alien vs Predator movie. This new found triumph shouldn’t be in jeopardy for a crossover movie.
