Prey has the distinction of not only being the best Predator film in thirty but also the first major motion picture to have a Comanche dub. But the dub, which is available to watch on Hulu, wasn’t always a dub. Early plans for the film featured a script that was to be performed in the language. But as the development went on, the idea was scrapped.
We spoke to Prey director Dan Trachtenberg and he gave insight as to why it was changed during development
The initial concept was for all of it to be in Comanche. But as the story evolved, we found that there was a great mixture of languages and made this decision to not have subtitles. As new characters and languages come into the story, you’re always linked to Naru and her experience of it. What sounds foreign to her, will sound foreign to the viewers as well.
Dan Trachtenberg
When asked about whether the Comanche dub is the essential version of the film, producer Jhane Myers had this to say.
For me, yes. But this is the type of movie you should watch twice. So I recommend you watch it in Comanche and English.
Jhane Myers
Even though Prey is amazing as it is, a version of the film with the actors performing in Comanche would be a totally immersive experience. Nonetheless, the Comanche dub is described by Trachtenberg as “a little more sophisticated than perhaps our memory of watching dubbed movies.” So even the dubbed version is already going to be a lot more special than generic dubs.
