Prey connects to 1987's original Predator in a mysterious way, with director Dan Trachtenberg namechecking Sonny Landham's mercenary Billy.
Trachtenberg, who boasts 10 Cloverfield Lane and Black Mirror among his credits, got talking to Time Out ahead of the prequel's release next month on Disney+.
"My friends went to see Predator and told me about the scene in which Billy fights the Predator on a bridge over a waterfall. But when I saw the movie, that wasn't in it, and I wanted to see that movie. Spiritually, Prey is connected to that moment," he teased, before adding: "We'll find out if there's any further link".
What to Read Next
Related: The Predator star has a blunt reason why the reboot flopped
Aside from harkening back to the Predator's first cinematic hunting ground, the director aims to leave audiences shaking in their boots more than ever when the laser-beam wielder comes on screen.
"I wanted [it] to be scarier than we've seen it before. It's intelligent and it has advanced technology, and that makes it even more difficult to take on.
"But because the movie is set 300 years in the past, those things need to feel a little bit older than we've seen before, but also still far more advanced than what we think our earthlings would be able to handle," explained Trachtenberg.
Related: The Predator alternate endings featured two major Alien characters
Further to that, expect some significant visual updates to this beast in a helmet.
"I wanted to make sure the head was more proportional to the body. This Predator is much slimmer and less armoured than it's ever been. It's more 'creature'. It's still hulking and ferocious."
Prey streams on Disney+ in the UK from August 5, and Hulu in the US.
Best Entertainment and Tech Deals
Coronation Street X Joanie - Gilroy Retro Newton And Ridley Sweatshirt
Reporter, Digital Spy
Dan is a freelance entertainment journalist. Beginning his writing career in 2014, Dan's work first graced the pages of cult publications Starburst magazine and Little White Lies before moving onto Total Film, Digital Spy, NME and Yahoo Entertainment.
In the film and TV universe, he kneels at the altar of Jim Carrey, Daniel Plainview, Mike Ehrmantraut and Paulie Walnuts.
