Prey Director Says New Predator Movie Took Inspiration from God of War

The new Predator movie Prey which just landed on Hulu recently naturally borrows parts from the overall Predator franchise to make its story work, but it also too inspiration from another surprising source: God of War. Specifically, it took inspiration from the 2018 game God of War which outfitted Kratos with not only a new personality and his son as a companion but an array of new weaponry to use. It was that equipment which viewers can see echoes of in Prey if they're paying close attention.

Prey director Dan Trachtenberg tweeted back in January that the God of War game has some influence on Prey, but since the film was months out from its release, we obviously didn't know at the time what that influence would look like. In a recent interview with Bernard Smalls of Cassius Life, Trachtenberg confirmed that not only the shield but also the tomahawk used in Prey were both inspired in part by elements of God of War.

"The answer is extremely, but it's the Predator shield, but even her Tomahawk that she makes because she throws it and calls it back," Trachtenberg said when asked about the God of War influences on the film. "It was very much inspired by playing that game."

The tomahawk reference mentioned there is a callback to the Leviathan Axe used by Kratos in God of War. While the Ghost of Sparta is typically seen using the Blades of Chaos, he picks up the Leviathan Axe in the most recent God of War game which is imbued with the power to be recalled once thrown. Amber Midthunder's character Naru outfits her tomahawk with a rope to allow it to be recalled to her, too.

The shield referenced by Trachtenberg is one used not by Naru but by the movie's Predator antagonist. It's a retractable shield used to deflect attacks but is also one that's capable of slicing with its razor edges. This is a callback to the Guardian Shield used by Kratos in the game which complimented his one-handed Leviathan Axe and allowed him to block and parry attacks.

Prey is now available on Hulu, and you can check out our review of the movie right here.