The original Predator The film is one of the most famous films in the science fiction franchise and was filled with brutal deaths. There have been many different movie crossovers involving the Predator that cover a variety of genres., from Marvel characters to classic 80s sci-fi films, as seen in the Foreigner vs. Predator films. However, 1987 Predator kicked off the franchise with the Jungle Hunter chasing Arnold Schwarzenegger’s Dutchman and his paramilitary rescue team through the rainforest landscape, using strange alien weapons to take them down one by one.
Originally starting out as a war film, Schwarzenegger’s film Predator Shifts genres as Dutch fights an unexpected Yautja in a Central American rainforest, turning into an action-packed sci-fi thriller. The alien hunter has since become a classic sci-fi character, and although the film has aged due to advances in CGI technology, Predator it was nominated for an Oscar for Best Visual Effects when it was released. It’s not hard to understand why, as the movie featured the iconic Yautja design and Predator shocking deaths are still memorable today due to their brutality.
11
Jorge “Poncho” Ramírez
Shot in the head by the Predator’s shoulder cannon
Shortly after Billy’s death, Dutch, Poncho and Anna are on the run when the Jungle Hunter approaches them camouflaged by the Predator’s cloaking device. From his position in a nearby tree, the Predator shoots Poncho in the side of the head with a plasma blastsending him to the ground. Although the explosion was previously catastrophic for other members of the team, Poncho’s head does not explode nor does it appear particularly gruesome when Predator shows him lying on the floor.
Predator Plasma blasts appear to vary in consistency of power, as some blasts can burn a hole through a person, while others appear to knock them out.
Predator Plasma blasts appear to vary in consistency of power, as some blasts can burn a hole through a person, while others appear to knock them out. Poncho’s death isn’t very brutal or bloody, despite being shot by the Predator’s alien weapon.and it ends quickly. Therefore, Poncho’s death must be the least brutal death in history. Predator, as the action quickly moves on from Poncho, even though he is the last member of the team to be killed by the Predator in the film.
10
American hostage
Unnamed CIA agent is shot by Russian advisor
While searching the guerrilla camp, Dutch spies an American hostage through his binoculars, held by a Russian counselor. After kicking the tied hostage, Russian adviser shoots unidentified hostage in the head. This action triggers the attack on the guerrilla camp by Dutch’s paramilitary team, where Mac informs Dutch that the hostage was actually a CIA agent, meaning Dillon had been lying to them the whole time.
The death of the unnamed CIA agent is not particularly gory, as the death is seen from afar and the agent falls partially out of reach. Considering this is a military mission, gunshot wounds are to be expected, and the agent’s death ends quickly, making it more human and less brutal than some of the other deaths in Predator. However, the treatment of the hostage incites Dutch’s team to launch an attack on the camp because they think it is an apparently innocent foreign minister or his aide, so it was somewhat brutal in their eyes.
9
Guerrilla Soldier “Stay Close”
Impaled in the torso by the knife thrown by Dutch
Arnold Schwarzenegger utters many harsh quotes in Predatorbut one of the most memorable quotes also involves a brutal death. When Dutch’s team attacks the guerrilla camp Dutch throws a knife behind him, pinning a soldier to the wooden wall behind him, telling him to “stick around.” Despite the numerous deaths of guerrillas in PredatorThis one stands out, not just for the comical phrase, but for showing a darker side to Dutch’s character.
Dutch’s phrases are comical to the audience and used as a way to entertain, however, in a real-life situation, someone who makes puns in the face of death is somewhat emotionless. Even considering Dutch’s previous military experience, the battle-hardened leader has a strict moral code, but the use of short sentences mitigates this. Furthermore, By impaling the guerrilla soldier in the stomach, Dutch condemned him to a slow death as it is not necessarily a fatal wound, making it a brutal way to die.
8
Billy Sole
Killed off-screen, but makes a gruesome reappearance
Billy Sole was an outsider on Dutch’s team, despite being the expert tracker. All over Predatorhe notices that there is something strange about the mission and often looks up at the trees, claiming “There’s something out there waiting for us, and it’s no man…”After the deaths of Mac and Dillon, Billy decides to discard all his weapons except the machete and face the Predator head-on.. His actions indicate that he has been trying to buy off Dutch and the others for some time, however, his fixation on the Predator may have led to some form of impulsive action without cause.
Unfortunately, Billy is killed off-screen by the Predator, and the others only hear his screams echoing through the rainforest. Consequently, Billy’s cause of death is officially unknown, although when his body later appears, it is covered in blood, suggesting that he fought for the alien hunter and his death was not quick. However, what makes Billy’s death quite brutal is the Predator’s actions towards his corpse; the Jungle Hunter rips Billy’s spinal cord and skull from his corpse to claim as a trophy.
7
Al Dillon
Arm ripped off and impaled by predator
Carl Weathers’ Dillon has one of the most dramatic deaths in Predator because it has some of the coolest visuals. Distracting Dillon by imitating voices, the invisible Predator dramatically blinks his yellow eyes before firing his plasma cannon at the CIA agent. The next scene cuts off Dillon’s arm, leading to a cool scene where Dillon’s severed arm continues to fire its weapon at the Predator in slow motion.
As Dillon screams in agony, the Predator sneaks up and grabs Dillon with one hand before impaling him with a knife. The drama in this short action sequence makes it one of the most memorable deaths in Predatorbut also quite brutal. Having a limb ripped off by an alien weapon is bad enough, but the Predator goes one step further, showing an impressive display of strength to finish off Dillon in a cruel way.
6
Several guerrilla soldiers
Shot, stabbed and blown up by Dutch’s team
The combat sequence in which Dutch’s team attacks the guerrilla camp is extremely important to Predator themes and helps offset its clever genre twist. After witnessing the American hostage being killed by a Russian advisor, Dutch launches an explosive attack on the camp. Countless guerrilla soldiers are killed in the action-packed sequelshowing the chaos of a combat situation, with several people dying in different ways; soldiers are shot, stabbed and even blown up by Dutch’s team.
The team’s killing methods range from standard methods for the situation, such as stabbings and shootings, to quite brutal methods, such as setting people on fire.
The camera angles and close-up shots of the characters make it difficult to see the scale of the attack, however, the deaths seen on screen show a brutal side to the combat. Although Dutch’s team is there to complete a mission, some of the methods used on the guerrilla soldiers are over the top. For example, after attacking the Russian advisor with a single shot, Dutch then shoots the guerrilla who was helping the counselor several times.. The team’s killing methods range from standard methods for the situation, such as stabbings and shootings, to quite brutal methods, such as setting people on fire.
5
Sergeant Mac Eliot
Head exploded by Predator’s shoulder cannon
After Blain’s death, Dillon and Mac hatch a plan to oust the Predator. However, as Mac stealthily crawls into position, the Predator’s laser target appears on his arm, causing him to stop and take a look. When your Mac scans for a gap in a registry, the Predator shoots Mac in the face and blood runs down the camera, making it look like Mac’s head exploded. Considering Blain’s death involved a hole in his body, this is a reasonable conclusion, but Dillon’s perspective tells a different story.
In the 1987 final Predator script, Mac should have his throat slit for “the Hunter’s Sharp SPUR”, rather than being shot in the face. The image of Mac’s body from Dillon’s perspective would make more sense for this death, so it has been suggested that Mac’s death was altered during the shooting.
When Dillon looks through the bushes at Mac’s body, his head is intact and only a little bloody, making it a much less brutal death than initially portrayed. Additionally, later in the film, when the Predator inspects his skull collection, there is a skull with a clear hole in its foreheadimplying that Mac was shot in the head. Mac’s bloody death was brutal due to his head exploding on camera, but the effect was lessened by the joke of his head remaining intact later on.
4
Blain Cooper
Hole hit in the trunk by the Predator’s cannon
Blain is caught off guard when the invisible Predator sends a plasma blast into his back. The Predator’s weapon changes its power level once again and the Jungle Hunter’s plasma blast blows a hole through Blain’s torso. Other shots from the plasma cannon are clearly less confusing than Blain’s gruesome death, showing variation in how the cannon affects humans. This explosion is without a doubt one of the most powerful in Predatoras the only other time we see someone explode after being shot is Mac, although Mac’s death has inconsistencies.
Blain’s death leaves the team furious as they aimlessly shoot into the trees, hoping to injure and kill their allusive hunter.
Blain’s death leaves the team furious as they aimlessly shoot into the trees, hoping to injure and kill their allusive hunter. Mac manages to spill the Predator’s glistening blood, leading to Schwarzenegger’s iconic line: “if it bleeds, we can kill it.Blain is the second member of the team to be killed in Predatorand Blain’s rather graphic means of death earns him a higher rating in brutalityespecially due to its effects on Mac.
3
Rick Hawkins
Sliced by the Predator’s wrist blades
Rick Hawkins is the first member of Dutch’s team to be killed by the Predator. Hawkins stood out from the other members due to his large glasses and thin frames; Hawkins is not as strong as the others and appears to have intelligence and stealth skills. Therefore, when Anna tries to escape, Hawkins is the first to try to capture her. While telling Anna to stop making so much noise, the camouflaged Predator quickly slashes Hawkins before dragging his corpse away to the rainforest.
Hawkins’ initial death scene isn’t all that impressive, as he is quickly dispatched by the Predator and the resulting corpse is whisked away before it can be seen by others. However, Dutch and Poncho find Hawkins’ remains a short time later. As the two look at a small clearing, Dutch and Poncho find what little is left of Hawkins after the Predator basically chopped him into cubes. So while Hawkins’ death scene isn’t particularly brutal like Billy’s, what happens to him afterwards makes it all the more disturbing.
2
Predator/The Jungle Hunter
Crushed by Dutch’s trap and self-destructed
With Dutch’s team dead at the hands of the Predator, Dutch sends Anna to the helicopter to escape. Meanwhile, he stays behind to kill the alien hunter once and for all. Using the environment to your advantage, Dutch sets several traps alone and camouflages himself in the mudshowing his ingenuity and adaptability. Interestingly, Arnold Schwarzenegger’s plan to avoid detection of the Predator in the film with mud was much debated, however, it was proven in a Corridor Crew experiment in 2023.
Although the Predator does not fall into his original trap, Dutch’s backup trap eventually stops the Predator when a tied log falls and traps the Jungle Hunter.
Although the Predator does not fall into his original trap, Dutch’s backup trap eventually stops the Predator when a tied log falls and traps the Jungle Hunter. However, just as Dutch is about to kill the elusive alien, the Predator sets his device to self-destruct, causing Dutch to flee. Having been crushed by the weight of a huge tree and then blown up by his own alien technology, The Predator’s death is definitely one of the most brutal in Predatorespecially considering how tough the Yautja are.
1
Jim Hopper and Soldiers
Killed off-screen and skinned by predator
The first death in Predator is the pilot that American soldiers find in the cockpit of a crashed helicopter, however, the most memorable deaths come a little later. Three Green Beret soldiers are found skinned and hanged a short distance away from the unidentified pilot, with one of them revealed via an identification tag as Jim Hopper, someone Dutch knew personally.
Although the actual deaths happen off-screen, the methods behind them are clearly shown and this marks one of the Predator best scenes because it sets the tone for the rest of the film. The minute the audience is introduced to this horrific scene, Predator shows that it will be something more than just a war filmlaying the groundwork for the next twist on the genre when the Predator appears. Unfortunately for Jim Hopper and his fellow soldiers, his death also marks the most brutal of all time. Predatorfor there is nothing worse than being skinned alive.