PREY: Ending Explained, Breakdown, and SEQUEL

PREY is the new chapter of the PREDATOR franchise, and it’s easily the best Predator film since 1987. In this video we breakdown the ending to the new film, how it connects to the original movies, and offer some theories on where the franchise goes from here.

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Written and Edited by Colton Ogburn (   / @coltonhere  )
Hosted by Ryan Arey (  / ryanarey  )

#Prey #EndingExplained

We’re going to break down the parallels between this film and the original Predator. But we’re also going to dive into the surprising social commentary this film had to offer regarding the horrible treatment of Native Americans by European colonists. As well as breaking down the barriers on societal gender roles. [clip, Naru wanting to hunt.]

And then we’re going to talk about that epic ending and what it could mean for the future of the Predator franchise. [clip]

Now while this film is technically a prequel to the 1987 Predator. It’s not a prequel in the sense that it shows the origins of the Predator. Some fans had speculated that Prey would be to Predator what Prometheus was to Alien. [clip, Prometheus showing origins of Alien.]

But it’s not that at all. Prey is really your standard Predator film. Predator comes to earth, Predator kills some humans, Predator and the humans fight, the end. [clip, Predator laughing.]

But one of the things that makes this film stand out amongst the other Predator films is the era it takes place in, 1719. That’s two hundred and sixty eight years prior to the first film. That means no machine guns or helicopters [clip, “get to the choppa!”]

And instead of the Val Verde jungle, we’re in the Northern Great Plains.

The film follows Naru, a young Comanche woman who lives with her mother and brother. Naru doesn’t long for the life assigned to her based on her gender. She doesn’t want to be a gatherer, she wants to be a hunter. [clip]

This is a situation we find in many stories with young protagonists. They want to be something more. They want to take a different path than the one that has been laid out for them–typically by their elders.

Take Luke Skywalker for example. He’s a farm boy from Tatooine who is expected to farm for the rest of his life like his uncle before him. But Luke longs for more than being a moisture farmer, because he is more than a moisture farmer. He has dreams and aspirations that aren’t just mere desires, they’re his destiny. [clip]

Same goes for Naru. She doesn’t just want to hunt, she has to hunt, it’s who she is. And she’s damn good at it too. [clip, Naru being a badass]

Naru’s refusal to fall in line with the role that is expected of her causes friction in her life. Both with her family and with her tribe as a whole. She’s looked at as different and not a team player. [clip]

Naru being born to hunt shows a direct parallel to the Predator. Creatures that we as fans know to basically be intergalactic gamehunters. [clip]

When the Predator arrives on earth, Maru sees its ship flying through the clouds. [clip, ship flying through the clouds creating thunder and lightning.]

She thinks that the ship is a thunderbird. [clip]

A thunderbird is a creature of legend in many indeingonous cultures. The thunderbird is said to create lightning and thunder as it flaps its wings while flying in the sky. The same way the Predator’s ship did.

Naru takes this supposed thunderbird sighting as a sign that she is ready to be taken on her first big hunt. When she tells her brother this, he says to her– [clip, “if you’re wanting to hunt something, it’s hunting you.”]

This of course foreshadows that the two master hunters, Naru and the Predator, will soon be hunting one another. [clip]

And speaking of Naru’s first big hunt and the parallels between her and the Predator. I think that the Predator in this film may in fact be on its first big hunt. You’ll notice that the ship it comes in doesn’t land, but simply drops off the Predator and then flies away. [clip]

This makes me think that the Predator has been dropped off on earth by its fellow Yautja (YAWT-SHAW), that’s the Predator’s species, for its first big hunt. And it’s mission is to find the strongest and most formidable opponent on earth, kill it, and bring back its skull when the hunt is over. [clip, Predator spraying down the wolf skull and keeping it.]