Arnold Schwarzenegger should return to the Predator franchise after his final appearance in the Terminator franchise received mixed reviews. The Terminator was one of the best Arnold Schwarzenegger action movies, and he has appeared in all of the Terminator movies so far. While the T-800 is one of his best-known and most popular roles, the Terminator franchise lost its way, and his performance in Dark Fate received mixed reviews (though the movie became a sleeper hit.) While Arnold Schwarzenegger has acted in several different movie genres, his most iconic roles are muscular, pun-making warrior characters.

Predator‘s Major Dutch Schaefer is a typical Arnold Schwarzenegger character and one of the most memorable in the Predator movies. He is a tough and moralistic leader, whose team is tasked with rescuing a cabinet minister whose helicopter was sH๏τ down over the Central American rainforest. The mission becomes a fight for survival when the team finds themselves being stalked by an invisible hunter who is not from this world. The original movie’s success is partly due to Schwarzenegger’s performance, and his epic showdown with the Predator is one of the most tense scenes in any of his films.

Arnold Schwarzenegger Still Needs To Play Predator’s Dutch One More Time

Dutch Survived At The End Of Predator, Making A Sequel Possible

Predator shows Arnold Schwarzenegger at the peak of his bodybuilding success, but there is more to the character than an imposing physique. Dutch is the most dangerous of his team in Predator, but he is not just an efficient soldier – he is resilient, has excellent problem-solving skills, and has a sense of humor. The character plays to Schwarzenegger’s strengths and, after giving Terminator fans closure by returning to Dark Fate, it would be an exciting move for the Predator franchise if Arnold Schwarzenegger played Dutch in another Predator movie. As Dutch survived the first movie, a return is possible.

Dutch uses his wits to fight the Predator, setting up several different traps but eventually using a counterweight to crush the creature, who then uses a self-destruct ʙuттon to remove any trace of itself. Dutch just manages to escape the mᴀssive explosion and is picked up by helicopter. The ending of Predator shows Dutch bloodied and traumatized, which is unusual for many of Arnold Schwarzenegger’s movies, like The Terminator, which often portray him as indestructible. Dutch is visibly changed by his experience, and a sequel would give an interesting insight into what he did next.

Why Arnold Schwarzenegger Never Played Dutch Again After Predator

The Original 1987 Movie Is Still The Best In The Predator Series

Predator 2 was going to star Arnold Schwarzenegger reprising his role as Dutch, but he was written out of the movie, with his role given to another actor and minimized. According to the producer, John Davis, this was due to a salary dispute. Davis told Variety, “The studio was negotiating with him, and the whole deal fell apart… Joe Roth, who was the head of the studio at the time, just said, ‘I won’t go past this number’ and Arnold wanted this other number.” Predator 2 would have seen Dutch teaming up with an LAPD police officer.

Both the Predator and Terminator franchises have struggled with sequels. While Dark Fate is the best Terminator movie since Judgment Day, according to Rotten Tomatoes critics and audience scores, the other sequels have been confusing, getting mixed reviews. The Predator movies went downhill immediately after the original film, with the first sequel getting a 29% Rotten Tomatoes critics’ rating. While Prey redeemed the franchise with its exciting new take on the concept and Amber Midthunder’s excellent performance, audiences preferred Predator, giving the movie an 87% positive rating compared to Prey‘s 74%.

How Arnold Schwarzenegger’s Dutch Could Return After Multiple Predator Movies

The Predator Franchise Has An Advantage Over The Terminator Franchise

While the Predator comics teases a grim final fate for Dutch, the movies might change this, allowing him to return. If Dutch survived after the events of Predator, his view of the world and its dangers would certainly have changed. This could make Schwarzenegger’s character similar to the T-800, aka Carl, in Dark Fate, with both using their experience to ᴀssist younger characters joining the battle. An older Dutch could also resemble Dark Fate‘s Sarah Connor, becoming jaded, bitter, and determined to destroy the enemy at all costs. Either versions would be a compelling idea for the Predator franchise.

One of the problems with the Terminator sequels is the constant retcons and timeline adjustments. These changes can mean the Terminator franchise is extra confusing, undoing previous successes and even creating paradoxes. The Predator movies do not include the time travel element that is central to the Terminator franchise, and this gives the Predator franchise an advantage. Dutch could be brought back in many different capacities, without the need for unnecessarily complicated storylines and retconning canon Predator details. A simpler story similar to the original Predator might be a better idea, bringing back the best things about Schwarzenegger’s character.

Predator Doesn’t Need Schwarzenegger Right Now (But It Could Definitely Work)

Dark Fate Was Schwarzenegger’s Last Terminator Movie, But He Hasn’t Ruled Out Predator

While the Terminator franchise appeared to focus more on nostalgia than creativity, the Predator movies have been embracing new ideas. Making Prey a prequel, offering a Comanche language version, and following a female Native American warrior rather than a muscular military hero was a completely new direction, and the move paid off. The upcoming Predator movies are set to continue this, with the possibility of animated versions in the same vein as the Animatrix Matrix spin-off. While having Dutch return would be exciting, there are plenty of ideas being used in the Predator franchise, without needing to bring back Schwarzenegger.

It has been confirmed that Dark Fate was Arnold Schwarzenegger’s final Terminator movie, but there is still the possibility that he could star in a future Predator movie. Prey 2 is on the horizon, but it looks certain to be another prequel and could potentially focus on a different historical group of people. While Schwarzenegger could appear as another character or be the focus of an Easter egg, there would be no way for Dutch to appear in Prey 2. That said, Schwarzenegger has not ruled out another Predator movie, so it could happen one day.

Source: Variety