Shane Black, the writer of memorable movies like Lethal Weapon, The Last Boy Scout and The Long Kiss Goodnight, has directed films like Kiss Kiss Bang Bang and Iron Man 3. In preparation for The Predator, he talks about coming back to the alien creatures as director after acting in the 1987 film Predator.
 
What brought you back into the world of The Predator?

One was a chance to work with a co-writer, Fred Dekker. We’ve worked together before and it just seemed like a chance to go be college kids again — to revisit material that we both cut our teeth on. Of course, two-and-a-half years later, it’s become quite a bit more than that. You think you’re digging a garden and then you have to bring out the steam shovel. 
 
Was there something particular that you wanted to say about the Predator universe?

There was the draw of dealing with it not strictly as a fantasy movie but grounding it in as a UFO experience film. There’s been an incursion. There’s been a visit, and gradually over the years as Predators have continued to hunt on earth, we’ve noticed that now there’s a faction on earth that understands what’s happening and is investigating these Predators. At the same time, I wanted to take the traditional tough guy unit of multi-muscled commandos and play with that a little bit.

It’s a funny movie. It’s a heroic movie. And hopefully, it’s a frightening movie as well. I wanted to write a love letter to the original, with this rough, loose-limb raw-boned male cast. Almost like a Western. 
 
Does it exist in the same universe as Predator and Predator II?

Yes, it does. In fact, there are direct references in the film and Arnold Schwarzenegger’s Schaefer. We’re very much in the ballpark of saying, “Yes, this is all mythology. This has been happening.” It’s becoming increasingly evident to the powers in charge that there’s another race that visits earth.

Is there something you are proud of bringing to the screen for this film?

The frightening quality, the brutality, and the ninja-like stealth of the new Predator. I looked at Logan as an example. You’d seen Wolverine’s claws in the PG versions of the X-Men and you think, ‘I guess he’s killing people with those, right?’ And then for Logan they just let it rip. They show that of course, they’re claws, and of course, he puts them through people’s heads. And similarly, in The Predator, we just went for it. If he’s going to knock someone’s head off, I want to see it.