Marvel beginning to un-freeze its Predator plans

Predator #1 cover — (Image credit: Marvel Comics)

Update: Marvel Comics has re-listed Predator #1 from writer Ed Brisson and Kev Walker for a July 6 release. The issue was originally scheduled for July 2020, but the series was indefinitely postponed along with a series of accompanying reprints and variant covers (read more on the original plans below).

Marvel already rescheduled some of the previously announced collections for release in September, and now the remaining aspects of Marvel's Predator plans have been revived.

Here's a gallery of covers for Predator #1, now scheduled for a July 6 release:

Image 1 of 4

Marvel Comics July 2022 solicitations — (Image credit: Marvel Comics)

Update: 10 months after Marvel shelved plans for new and reprinted Predator comics indefinitely, some of those shelved plans are back on the schedule.

Predator: The Original Years Omnibus Vol. 1 main cover (Image credit: Iban Coello (Marvel Comics))

The hardcover Predator: The Original Years Omnibus Volume 1 has been re-scheduled for a September 14 release date, coming off the shelf after initially being announced for a July 2020 debut.

The original hiatus came seemingly not-so-coincidentally after the original writers of the first Predator film filed a copyright dispute with Disney. In January 2022, Reuters reported that the parties had amicably settled the dispute, which may have paved the way for Marvel to revive its Predator plans.

But that being said, Marvel has yet to pull its other two Predator projects - an ongoing series by Ed Brisson and Kev Walker, and a bevy of Predator vs. Marvel variant covers - back off the shelf.

Newsarama will update you as more information comes to light about Marvel's Predator plans.

Original story follows...

Marvel has been making a lot of noise over their acquisition of the comic book rights to the sci-fi franchise Predator for the past year, but it appears something is amiss.

The publisher has canceled orders for all its planned Predator products - the Predator ongoing series (announced just 15 days ago), the Predator Omnibus collection, and 20 planned 'Marvel vs. Predator' variant covers which would've run across the Marvel comic book line this summer.

Predator #1 — (Image credit: Leinil Francis Yu (Marvel Comics))

The Predator ongoing series is written by Ed Brisson, and drawn by Kev Walker.

"Hunt. Kill. Repeat. In the near future, a young girl sees her family slaughtered by the deadliest and most feared hunter in the universe: a PREDATOR," reads Marvel's description of Predator #1. "Years later, though her ship is barely holding together and food is running short, Theta won't stop stalking the spaceways until the Yautja monster who killed her family is dead…or she is."

Marvel gave no reason for this unexpected delay to its Predator line of products, however Newsarama learned that some of the people involved weren't told until April 1.

Marvel has told retailers they plan to reschedule all of these Predator products for release in November sometime - but isn't actually rescheduling them just yet.

Marvel's Predator license was part of a two-part licensing arrangement with 20th Century Studios (which owns the properties), following the acquisition of that film company by the Walt Disney Company in 2019. The other part was the Alien franchise, which Marvel rolled out a similar publishing strategy earlier this year - variant covers, collections of older Alien comics, and a new Alien ongoing comic book series.

The Predator was recently added as a skin for the popular battle royale game Fortnite.

Chris Arrant covered comic book news for Newsarama from 2003 to 2022 (and as editor/senior editor from 2015 to 2022) and has also written for USA Today, Life, Entertainment Weekly, Publisher's Weekly, Marvel Entertainment, TOKYOPOP, AdHouse Books, Cartoon Brew, Bleeding Cool, Comic Shop News, and CBR. He is the author of the book Modern: Masters Cliff Chiang, co-authored Art of Spider-Man Classic, and contributed to Dark Horse/Bedside Press' anthology Pros and (Comic) Cons. He has acted as a judge for the Will Eisner Comic Industry Awards, the Harvey Awards, and the Stan Lee Awards. Chris is a member of the American Library Association's Graphic Novel & Comics Round Table. (He/him)