Romulus makes too many references to past movies, though Prey is a little more strategic in its callbacks, including reintroducing the pistol seen in Predator 2.

In this 1990 sequel, Danny Glover's Harrigan is awarded a flintlock pistol engraved with "Raphael Adolini 1715" for defeating the City Hunter. Prey introduces both Adolini and his pistol, with protagonist Naru (Amber Midthunder) later taking it for herself. Not only was this reference a nice surprise for devotees but it helped tie the universe together even more, considering most Predator sequels tend to start fresh. Indirectly, using the pistol tied into the Alien saga too.

Prey’s Predator 2 Pistol Is A Reminder That The Xenomorph Exists In The Predator Universe

This Predator 2 easter egg was a game changer for both franchises

Followers of the Alien and Predator movies just about lost their minds during one key sequence from the 1990 sequel. When Harrigan uncovers Predator 2's trophy room, he sees an assortment of human and alien skulls on display - including the distinctive dome of the Xenomorph. This skull easter egg essentially set up the entire Alien vs Predator concept, which encomed comics, video games and eventually, movies. Having the Xenomorph skull in the same film as the pistol also confirmed that Alien is canon within the Predator universe.

Outside of the poorly received Alien vs Predator spinoff duology, the main series hasn't done much with these links. While The Predator featured Lex's (Sanaa Lathan) Xenomorph spear from Alien vs Predator in the background of a scene, the main entries rarely give a shoutout to their biggest sci-fi rival. Still, the inclusion of the Raphael Adolini pistol in Prey confirms the ties between them still exist.

Does The Predator Exist In The Alien Universe? It’s More Complicated Than It Seems

It appears Ridley Scott isn't a huge Predator fan

Predator 2's trophy room made it clear Xenomorphs exist within that franchise, though it's unclear if the hunters themselves exist in the Alien saga. It would seem the answer is yes due to the Alien vs Predator films, which - once again - were acknowledged in 2018's The Predator. That said, Prometheus pretty much kicked the AvP films out of continuity with the introduction of Guy Pearce's Peter Weyland. In the original Alien vs Predator, Lance Henriksen played Charles Bishop Weyland, the billionaire founder of Weyland Industries, and the template for the Bishop androids introduced in Aliens.

Charles was seemingly wiped from continuity with Prometheus, which set up Guy Pearce's Sir Peter as Weyland's founder instead. Ridley Scott is no fan of the Alien vs Predator series, and screenwriter Damon Lindelof once claimed to have mentioned the Weyland continuity issue with the director - who only offered an incredulous look in response. Now, enterprising fans have offered their own perspective on this issue (via Alien Theory), claiming Peter might be Charles' son, who later revived Weyland Industries when he came of age.

Guy Pearce played Sir Peter Weyland in both Prometheus and Alien: Covenant.

There is nothing to confirm this reading one way or another, though it was seemingly Scott's intent to revive Alien under his own . In general, the filmmaker has shown little interest in what other sequels or offshoots have established. The Predator series has always been considered the B-movie flipside to Alien, so while the acclaim that greeted Prey afforded the franchise some overdue respectability, it doesn't look like the Alien franchise is rushing to embrace it either.

New Alien Movies Have Made It Even More Difficult To Consider Alien Vs. Predator Canon

The Ridley Scott sequel era of Alien is moving further and further away from Predator

Alien: Romulus is incredibly reverential to previous entries, but featured no shoutouts to Predator. In fairness, it would be hard to sneak one in, given the premise of the 2024 sequel. While he handed the director's chair to Fede Álvarez, Scott was still heavily involved as a producer and had a hand in shaping the final product. It's unlikely he would have vetoed a Predator shoutout if one had been included, but he would probably prefer the two properties stay in their own lanes.

If anything, the last three entries have drifted further and further away from Alien vs Predator. In Covenant, Scott even posited that it was android David (Michael Fassbender) who created the Xenomorph, with his "perfect" creations being intended to destroy mankind. Covenant's reveal would utterly conflict with AvP's notion that the Predators brought the creatures to Earth millennia ago and constructed an elaborate temple to hunt them within.

Alien and Predator keeping a little distance between them was wise, but while the latter has still shown Alien some love, that respect is a little one-sided...

It should be noted that, regardless of Scott's distaste for Alien vs Predator, the Alien movies have naturally drifted in a different direction. The critical perspective on 2004's AvP has softened over time, but the 2007 sequel Requiem is still regarded as the nadir of both properties - and with good reason. Alien and Predator keeping a little distance between them was wise, but while the latter has still shown Alien some love, that respect is a little one-sided right now.

Modern Alien And Predator Movies Could Still Have A Proper Crossover

Alien vs Predator 3 isn't as impossible as it sounds

Alien vs Predator: Requiem may have been a critical disaster that was largely despised - but it still made money. There were even plans for a third entry, but perhaps sensing they were diluting two important franchises, Fox canceled the threequel. During a 2024 chat with THR, 20th Century Studios head Steve Asbell opened up on the futures of their biggest properties, including Alien and Predator. Asbell even said there would "probably" be another Alien vs Predator film somewhere down the road.

It wouldn’t be in the way you think. That’s the thing. Not in the way that it will just be called Alien vs. Predator or anything like the original movies. If we do this, they’ll be organically created out of these two franchises that we’ve continued with characters that we fall in love with and those characters will combine…perhaps.

The two Alien vs Predator films that exist might not have lived up to audience expectations - but that's not to say there isn't a great (or at least solid) movie to be made from the concept. An Alien vs Predator screenplay penned by writer Peter Briggs was acclaimed during the early 1990s, before being shelved in favor of a cheaper alternative. Perhaps if that draft was dusted off and reused for the next AvP, this spinoff property could achieve some manner of redemption.

It could even be cool to see Alien's titular beasties making a surprise appearance in the sequel Predator: Badlands, which would be an unconventional way of tying the brands together. Prey's flintlock pistol is a good reminder that the two iconic sci-fi monsters share the same universe, and it would be good fun to see them reunited onscreen again - and in a crossover worthy of having them.

Source: Alien Theory/YouTube, THR

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  Prey

  R

  Horror

  Drama

  Action

  

  7/10

  35

  8.6/10

  Release Date

  August 5, 2022

  Runtime

  1h 40m

  Director

  Dan Trachtenberg

  Writers

  Patrick Aison, Dan Trachtenberg

  Prequel(s)

  Predator 2, Predator

  Cast

  See All

  • 
    Dane DiLiegro
  • 
    Michelle Thrush

  Serving as a prequel to the entire Predator series, Prey is set in the world of the Comanche Nation 300 years ago. The action-thriller follows Naru, the skilled warrior who fiercely protects her tribe against a highly evolved alien predator. The film will also reveal the origin of the Predator warrior race's descent to Earth for the first time. Naru will have to utilize the tools of her time to combat a threat with skills and weapons that exist far beyond her time.

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  Predator

  Predator is an action sci-fi franchise created by Jim and John Thomas, beginning with the original film released in 1987. The franchise follows a warrior alien race known as the Yautja who travel the far reaches of space looking for worthy prey to hunt, constantly bringing them to Earth due to the sheer amount of conflict harbored on it. The series has spun off into comic books and animated features and has even enjoyed several crossover events via film and video games with the Aliens franchise.
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  Alien

  The Alien franchise, which began with Ridley Scott's 1979 film, is a Sci-Fi series comprised of several horror films, games, and comic books centered on humanity's encounters with a hostile extraterrestrial species known as Xenomorphs. Characterized by their lethal prowess and capability to reproduce at an alarming rate, these creatures pose a profound threat to human existence. The primary series protagonist, Ellen Ripley, acts as the voice of reason as she seeks to keep the creatures out of the hands of greed-driven corporate scientists.