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It's Too Late For Arnold To Return To The Predator Movie Franchise
While fans have long wanted original Predator star Arnold Schwarzenegger to return, but at this stage, it's too late for that to work. When Predator came out in 1987, Schwarzenegger was arguably nearing the peak of his career in Hollywood, as well as his time as an action lead. The Austrian Oak ruled the action genre during the 1980s, with hits like The Terminator and Commando, with Predator feeling like icing on an already big cake. The Running Man would be added to that list in 1987 as well, with 1991 delivering Schwarzenegger's arguable apex with Terminator 2.
For its part, Arnold Schwarzenegger's Predator is one of the quintessential examples of what some fans are talking about when they pine for the days of what action movies used to be. After the opening scenes, Predator kicks into high gear quickly and is packed full of big guys with big guns shooting things, blowing stuff up and exchanging macho banter. That style obviously won't work for all viewers, but for those it does, Schwarzenegger tends to be the master at it.
To many, a big reason why none of the Predator sequels have hit the same quality level as the original is the ongoing absence of Schwarzenegger's Dutch. While Schwarzenegger has come close to a Predator return on multiple occasions, it's just never worked out for various reasons. With a new Predator movie on the way, some are once again hoping this will finally be when Dutch comes back. Unfortunately, it's just too late to give those viewers the epic return they've wanted for decades.
The main reason a return of Arnold Schwarzenegger's Dutch for a new Predator would be too little, too late is that, while Schwarzenegger remains a legend, he's not the performer he was nearly 35 years ago. Schwarzenegger is currently 74-years-old, and while he's still in great shape for his age, his screen persona has steadily become a parody of his glory days. This is especially true for Schwarzenegger's aged T-800s in Terminator Genisys and Dark Fate. That's not to say Schwarzenegger doesn't still have a place on the big screen, but when fans think of Dutch, they don't think of him as a senior citizen, they think of him as a veritable one-man army capable of defeating a Yautja in a one-on-one battle.
Aside from Schwarzenegger changing a lot since Predator was made, as mentioned above, he came close several times to returning for prior sequels. Yet, every time he found some reason to back out, often due to not liking the script or what it had Dutch doing. Schwarzenegger seems protective of the character, and outside of lending his voice and likeness to the Predator: Hunting Grounds video game, clearly isn't willing to risk returning to Predator in a way he feels might disappoint fans. Considering how many bad sequels do end up letting viewers down, Schwarzenegger would probably just be better off letting things be and leaving series devotees with memories of Dutch in his prime.
