*Small spoilers ahead, please be careful.*
Yesterday we got on the horn with “Predators” director Nimród Antal (“Kontroll,” “Vacancy”) and given how his new Robert Rodriguez-produced film ends… let’s say somewhat open ended, we had to ask, is there a sequel on the horizon?
“Yeah. Well, listen,” Antal said. “I’m down. Are you?”
Another, taut, economic thriller that revives a once maligned franchise? Hell, why not. We asked point blank: has a sequel been discussed?
“Yes,” Antal admitted. “Between Robert [Rodriguez ]and I, but no one else so far. We’ll see what happens this next weekend.”
So the box-office is a consideration then? “I couldn’t care less about the box office,” he said. “But clearly Fox and the people hiring me do. I just want to make a good movie, and we’ll see what happens. I certainly hope people come and see it.”
Big fans of his 2005 debut, “Kontroll” — a Hungarian comedy-thriller that Antal co-wrote, set in the subways of Budapest that you should see if you haven’t already — we asked the filmmaker if he had any more original projects on the go and indeed he does: a dystopian, thriller called, “Parraffin” (an chemical alkaline that can be used for waterproofing, and a verb meaning to cover or impregnate)
“Yeah, I have a passion project that I’ve been writing for a few years called, “Paraffin.” I’m going to try to get that going. But at the same time I’m just keeping my options open and trying to appreciate the moment. Just open up and see what happens.”
Evidently, it’s a project that’s been kicking around for a few years. “It’s actually the one I wanted to write and direct right after ‘Kontroll.’ So that’s what I’m doing next.”
“I can’t quite give you a storyline yet,” Antal said when pressed for details, but did reveal a little. “I can give you a teaser: men and women will build a boat out of plastic bottles in Cuba to escape oppression, right? So imagine if our world has become that [kind of] oppression. You aren’t building plastic bottle boats anymore, you have to build something else to get out of here.”
And as for any other potential and future Rodriguez collaboration, Antal says his “Predators” experience was blessed and he’d be game if the opportunity arose. “Definitely. He was graceful. He treated me like a partner, an equal,” he said. “And for that I’m grateful.”
More from this interview next week. “Predators” opens up in wide release on Friday, July 9 via Fox, and Troublemaker Studios.
