The Predator – Leaking Spinal Fluid

Fans of the franchise, like us, now doubt had high hopes for Shane Black's The Predator. Black, who'd appeared in the original as Hawkins and even served as a script doctor on set, is a legend of action movie scriptwriting.

The Predator, unfortunately, fails in almost every way. The humor is overwritten and overstuffed; the characters are thin and generally unlikeable; the plot makes no sense; and the scars of tumultuous reshoots are painfully evident.

The third act seems to connect to an entirely different movie. That makes sense because they did have to reconfigure the whole thing after poor test screenings. But, it renders The Predator a film with no identity.

Hence why it failed to reignite the franchise. It earned just $160.5 million on a budget of $88 million; and its reviews were scathing. At 33% on Rotten Tomatoes with 296 of them, this was not the return to form fans were hoping for.

It is gory, though, so that's a plus.

Now, sit back, evolve your tastebuds with a Summer Love Ale from Victory Brewing, and never play fetch with the Predator's dog! I, the Thunderous Wizard (@WriterTLK), Capt. Cash, and Chumpzilla are on prison transport bus to the loony bin.

This Week’s Segments:

• Introduction/Plot Breakdown – You'll never see him coming. (00:00)
• Lingering Questions – After a word from our brothers in beer at Hop Nation USA, we discuss ideas for a better Predator sequel. (41:32)
• The "Apex Predator" Trivia Challenge – The Double Turn Podcast goes toe-to-toe with the Upgrade, and then I challenge the field to trivia about the movie. (58:45)
• Recommendations – We offer our picks for the week and next up: We continue "Hops and Hunting Ground Flops" with 2010's Predators. (1:08:27)

And, as always, hit us up on Twitter, Facebook, or Instagram to check out all the interesting factoids—how this movie was hacked to pieces and more—from this week’s episode!

You can find this episode of Hops and Box Office Flops on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Stitcher, Podbean, Spotify, Acast, TuneIn, iHeartRadio, Vurbl, and Amazon Music!

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