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- “A long time ago, it is said, a monster came here.”
- ―Opening narration
Prey is a science fiction action horror film directed by Dan Trachtenberg and is the fifth film in the Predator franchise. It is a prequel to the previous films and was released on Hulu in the US and Star Disney+ internationally on August 5, 2022.
A stand-alone follow-up titled Predator: Badlands is in development, as well as an untitled "secret" film set to release before then.
Synopsis[]
The origin story of the Predator in the world of the Comanche Nation 300 years ago (1719). Naru, a skilled female warrior, fights to protect her tribe against one of the first highly-evolved Predators to land on Earth.
Plot[]
In September 1719, somewhere in the Northern Great Plains, a Comanche medicine woman by the name of Naru goes scavenging with her dog Sarii. She sneaks off to go hunting for a deer and encounters a bear trap, only to get distracted by a "thunderbird". The bird is actually a spaceship that drops off the fearsome extraterrestrial known as the Predator. While with her brother Taabe, Naru asks that she perform her kühtaamia (rite of passage), just like him and he reluctantly accepts. Later, Naru is with her mother Aruka and discusses the orange totsiyaa, a flower used for medicinal purposes that makes the body extremely cold.
While out collecting more totsiyaa, Naru learns from Itsee and Huupi that Puhi was taken by a lion and that they are going to rescue him. The party also includes Taabe, as well as the aggressive Wasape who looks down on Naru. Taabe allows her to come along due to her tracking and medicinal skills. They manage to find an injured Puhi right away, but Naru immediately senses that something is off as the tracks she has located do not belong to a lion or a bear, as the others believe. As the group carry Puhi away, Taabe decides to split to look for the lion. Naru finds a skinned snake and inhuman tracks and leaves to look for Taabe while Wasape sends Paaka to follow her. The three of them unite and, based on Naru's skills, decide to set a trap. Paaka is killed by the mountain lion while Naru is knocked unconscious.
Naru awakens to learn that Taabe carried her back to the village and went back and killed the lion, gaining glory from the Comanche Chief. While he happily shares the win with Naru, she is upset over not getting recognition, something he regrettably admits. The next morning, Naru decides to set off on her own to make her own kill and brings Sarii along. During this time, the Predator scours the plains and kills minor animals to fill its bloodlust. Naru finds hints and traces of it and decides to attach a rope to her tomahawk to make hunting easier. She soon encounters a field of skinned bison and what appears to be a left behind cigar, something that the Predator also comes across. Naru's new weapon is put to the test when she falls into quicksand and pulls herself out.
Naru eventually encounters a bear and proceeds to hunt it, only to get chased into a well-built beaver dam. The Predator, with its cloaking device on, kills the bear and scares Naru away. She is eventually found by Wasape and the rest of the party who tell her that Taabe was elsewhere looking for her and that they are to bring her back. Refusing to go, the men beat up and tie up Naru and are spooked by an opossum. The Predator arrives and kills Wasape, along with the other hunters. Naru and Itsee both attempt to flee from him, only for the latter to get killed. Naru falls for a bear trap, but the Predator does not kill her. Instead, Naru is found by French voyageurs who knock her out.
Naru awakens to discover that she is in a cage in the voyageurs' camp. One of the Frenchman, named Raphael, reveals that he can speak Comanche (English to the audience) and asks Naru if she knows about the Predator, which they have been hunting for sometime. She refuses to answer once she realizes that they have been the ones skinning the bison and leaving them behind. The lead voyageur, identified as Big Beard, reveals that they have also captured Taabe and torture him to get Naru to speak. Instead, they voyageurs tie them up to use as bait to lure the Predator out, though Naru is quick to point out that the Predator only attacks those that pose a physical threat or danger to them. The Predator arrives and proceeds to kill the voyageurs, while Naru and Taabe use the opportunity to escape.
While Taabe goes to get his horse back, Naru rescues Sarii from the camp, while also taking out the Frenchmen. Raphael, who lost his leg to the Predator arrives and asks Naru for medical help; in return, he offers to teach her how to use his flintlock pistol. Naru gives Raphael some totsiyaa just as the Predator arrives and learns that he sees based on body heat, though ironically he kills Raphael anyway after accidentally stepping on him. The Predator nearly kills Sarii with its homing device from its helmet, but is saved by Taabe. He and Naru team up to fight the Predator, but Taabe realizes that his time is up and he is killed while Naru runs away.
Upset over Taabe's death, Naru makes a plan once she sees Big Beard, the last surviving voyageur, knocks him out and severs his legs. Using him as bait, she has him mess with a rifle that alerts to Predator while she sneaks up from behind and blasts him in the head with the flintlock pistol, before stealing his mask. With the mask's homing laser and the quicksand from earlier, Naru fights the Predator and makes him bleed before tricking him into falling into the quicksand and having the mask aim straight at his head, causing his weapon to shoot and kill him. Satisfied and avenged, Naru takes the Predator's head back to camp along with the flintlock pistol (revealed to be the same one that Mike Harrigan receives in Predator 2) and finally gets recognition for her heroic deeds.
During the credits, Comanche illustrations retell Naru's adventure, ending with the reveal that more Predator ships arrive.
Cast[]
- Amber Midthunder as Naru
- Dakota Beavers as Taabe
- Dane DiLiegro as Feral Predator
- Peter Cullen as Predator Voice (archive)
- Tom Woodruff Jr. as Predator Puppeteer
- Alec Gillis as Predator Puppeteer
- Dave Penikas as Predator Puppeteer
- Jon K. Miller as Predator Puppeteer
- Stormee Kipp as Wasape
- Michelle Thrush as Aruka
- Julian Black Antelope as Chief Kehetu
- Stefany Mathias as Sumu (Chief Wife)
- Bennett Taylor as Raphael Adolini
- Mike Paterson as Big Beard
- Nelson Leis as Waxed Mustache
- Tymon Carter as Huupi
- Skye Pelletier as Tabu
- Harlan Kytwayhat as Itsee
- Corvin Mack as Paaka
- Samuel Marty as Puhi
- Cody Big Tobacco as Ania
- Troy Mundle as Spyglass
- Coco as Sarii (uncredited)
Production[]
The film was conceptualized in 2016 under the codename Skulls. Director Dan Trachtenberg's intent was to market the film with little to no reference to the Predators, but due to the constant leaks was unable to.[1][2] In May 2021, Amber Midthunder was cast to star in the film.[3] Later it was confirmed that the movie would be released exclusively to streaming.[4]
Videos[]
Trivia[]
- Prey is the first feature film to be filmed in both English and Comanche language.[5]
- The movie acts a retcon and reference to a comic short story titled Predator: 1718, published in A Decade of Dark Horse #1 (July 1996). The character of Raphael Adolini appeared in it, depicted as a pirate who battled the Predator.
- Taabe quote's the same line said by Dutch (played by Arnold Schwarzenegger) in the first Predator film: "If it bleeds we can kill is."
Gallery[]
References[]
- ↑ "Dan Trachtenberg Tweet". Twitter (November 20, 2020).
- ↑ Fisher, Jacob. "Dan Trachtenberg Set To Direct ‘Skulls’ For Fox/Disney (EXCLUSIVE)". Discussing Film. Retrieved on 22 November 2020.
- ↑ Fisher, Jacob. "Amber Midthunder Cast in Lead Role of New 'Predator' Film (EXCLUSIVE)". DiscussingFilm. Retrieved on 21 May 2021.
- ↑ Aurthur, Kate (November 12, 2021). "'Predator' Prequel 'Prey' to Stream on Hulu in Summer 2022" (en-US). Variety.
- ↑ Colangelo, BJ (June 7, 2022). "Prey Will Give Viewers The Option To Watch The Film In The Comanche Language". Slash Film.
External Links[]
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