When Predator 2 was released in 1990, there were a lot of moviegoers who were disappointed that Arnold Schwarzenegger, the hero of the first film, hadn’t returned for the sequel. There had been plans for Arnie to come back in some capacity, but they fell through – and from then on, the franchise has left him behind, moving on with Alien vs. Predator, Aliens vs. Predator: Requiem, Predators, The Predator, Prey, Predator: Killer of Killers, and this Friday’s release of Predator: Badlands (you can read our review at THIS LINK). Although attempts were made to get Schwarzenegger to make cameo appearances in Predators and The Predator, he turned the offers down because he didn’t just want to make a cameo. If he came back to the film franchise, he wanted to do something substantial in it. His character, Alan “Dutch” Schaefer, finally made an unconscious cameo in the animated film Predator: Killer of Killers – and we heard a while back that his appearance there might have opened the door to him finally getting something substantial to do in a future Predator project.

(Outside of the film franchise, Schwarzenegger did provide the voice of Dutch in the video game Predator: Hunting Grounds.)

Speaking with Collider, Trachtenberg said he met Schwarzenegger, and their exchange was promising: “I met Arnold, [he said] ‘You think I’d get I’ll be back yelled at me more, but it’s actually Get to the chopper!’ So he’s well aware of the franchise’s staying power.” Trachtenberg added that Arnold is excited to rejoin the Predator franchise, knowing that its glory is restored thanks to Trachtenberg’s additions.

Now, producer Ben Rosenblatt has confirmed to Deadline that Trachtenberg and Schwarzenegger have had more than just one meeting about the possibility. Rosenblatt said, “Obviously, the holy grail of Predator movies would be getting Arnold back in there. And it’s always been something in the back of our minds that it would be really great to see him come back to this franchise that he’s made iconic, and that’s made him iconic. So, he’s been really wonderful. Arnold and Dan have met a couple of times now. He’s been really interested in what we’re doing, he’s a real fan of what we’ve done so far, from what I understand. And we’re really excited. After Predator: Badlands comes out, we’ll see and have more conversations. Hopefully, we’ll have a chance to do something with Arnold, because that would be awesome.“

I agree, it would be awesome to see Dutch back in action in this franchise. Would you like to see Arnold Schwarzenegger and Dan Trachtenberg team up for a Predator movie? Let us know by leaving a comment below.