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Podcast Episode 43 January 07, 2026

Predator (1987)

68 minutes

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About Predator (1987)

Released
1987
Runtime
107 minutes
Rated
R
Director
John McTiernan
Budget
$15,000,000
Box Office
$98,000,000

A team of elite commandos on a secret mission in a Central American jungle come to find themselves hunted by an extraterrestrial warrior.

What We Discussed on the Podcast

This week, the Dads kick off JanuArnie with 1987's Predator, and it's clear from the jump that Steve would die for this movie. As in, top ten favorite of all time, no notes, completely unhinged levels of love. Nick's right there with him, calling it the ultimate guys' guys movie and the perfect beer-chugging, high-fiving experience. They walk through the testosterone-soaked helicopter ride, Jesse Ventura's sexual Tyrannosaurus energy, and the absurdity of Arnold arriving dressed like he works at Target.

The Dads marvel at the 72 on-screen deaths during the guerrilla camp assault, Blaine's legendary "I ain't got time to bleed" followed by Poncho's perfect reaction face, and the sheer gratuity of watching Arnold bend vines over his shoulders while making a bow and arrow. They note that Carl Weathers apparently had to take his shirt off just to help pull a rope, which tracks. Nic's wife gets a few good lines in, observing that there's "not a lot of dialogue, just a lot of big puss jokes" and that the unmasked Predator has "a Dark Crystal-ass looking face." The Dads dig into the film's clever creature design, the way the Predator adapts its tactics based on circumstance, and the deeply satisfying payoff of Billy's laugh getting replayed in the alien's dying moments as it finally gets the joke.

They wrap by marveling at the fact that this movie stars two future governors, that the Predator suit actor also played Harry in Harry and the Hendersons, and that 80s action movies just hit different than anything made since. If it bleeds, we can kill it, and if it's Predator, it absolutely rules.

Cast & Crew of Predator

Directors

Composers

Cast

Arnold Schwarzenegger Major Alan "Dutch" Schaefer
Carl Weathers Al Dillon
Kevin Peter Hall The Predator / Helicopter Pilot
Elpidia Carrillo Anna Gonsalves
Bill Duke Mac Eliot
Jesse Ventura Blain Cooper
Sonny Landham Billy Sole
Richard Chaves Jorge "Poncho" Ramirez
R.G. Armstrong Major General Homer Phillips
Shane Black Rick Hawkins

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Predator poster

Film Details

Title
Predator
Release Year
1987
Runtime
107 minutes
View on TMDB

Ratings

Host Ratings

Steve 5/5
Nic 4.5/5
Total 9.5/10

Rotten Tomatoes

65%

IMDB

7.8

Siskel & Ebert

Siskel: 👎
Ebert: 👍

Box Office

Budget
$15,000,000
Box Office
$98,000,000