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Sci-Fi Author Ray Bradbury Had Harsh Words (And A Compliment) For The First Predator Movie

By Witney Seibold

June 14, 2026 8:00 pm EST

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20th Century Fox

Ray Bradbury is a giant in the world of science fiction and literature in general; his classics "The Martian Chronicles," "The Illustrated Man," "Fahrenheit 451," and "Dandelion Wine" are still read by high school students today. "Fahrenheit 451" in particular is often celebrated as one of the finest works of dystopian fiction ever produced. It takes place in a future America where reading books has become illegal, and citizens are encouraged to turn in their suspiciously intellectual neighbors to the authorities. The main character, Montag, works as a fireman, finding and burning books for the government. The title temperature is the minimum temperature at which books need to be before they burn.

The most chilling thing about "Fahrenheit 451" is that the anti-book crusade seems to have happened organically, driven by the will of the people. It wasn't a sudden mandate by a totalitarian government, but the result of televised media diminishing our capacity and interest in reading. Books became taboo, and then eventually illegal. In Bradbury's dystopian vision, the world became increasingly obsessed with quickly consumed video clips and screens, and people eventually preferred watching screens all day to interacting with humans. People began to hate intellect and live in a false world of endless video. It's a good thing that didn't happen_.

With that attitude, one might correctly surmise that Ray Bradbury wasn't very fond of movies and TV. He hated the TV adaptation of "The Martian Chronicles." Indeed, in 1991, Bradbury and fellow sci-fi luminary Kurt Vonnegut were interviewed for "The Cable Guide" (handily reprinted by Mental Floss), and Bradbury admitted that a recent example of sci-fi media, the movie John McTiernan's "Predator," was empty-headed trash. But he added quickly that it was really well made.

Ray Bradbury didn't find any interesting ideas in Predator

20th Century Fox

A quick reminder: "Predator" told the story of an ultra-masculine team of paramilitary tough guys (who didn't fake their bona fides), led by Arnold Schwarzenegger, who are tasked with infiltrating an unnamed Central American country and rescuing a cabinet minister whose helicopter crashed in the area. The first portion of the movie is all tough-guy combat, with guns, explosions, and raw, uncut machismo. The soldiers, however, are secretly being hunted by an extraterrestrial humanoid that can turn partially invisible. It kills humans for sport and leaves their flayed corpses hanging from trees. As in a slasher movie, the alien monster kills off the soldiers one by one, revealing that the super-tough guys are actually powerless.

Ray Bradbury found no substance in the film whatsoever. Indeed, he dismissed movies and television in general, saying:

"[Television is] mostly trash. I'm full of trash. I've watched thousands of hours of TV. I've seen every movie ever made. everything's the same. There's not a single idea in 'Predator.' It's beautifully made. But, you watch men get killed, and it doesn't mean anything. There are no philosophical concepts."

Ray Bradbury, of course, didn't see every single movie ever made, but he was stressing that he was familiar with cinema, so he had the authority to lay down his criticisms. He also quickly admitted that television, while trash, still had a few gems hidden inside. He loved the educational PBS science series "Nova" (as one might have assumed he might) and complimented the newscasting from 1991-era CNN. It should be recalled that CNN launched in 1980, and the 24-hour news cycle wasn't as incessant in 1991 as it is today.

Predator is actually about something, though

20th Century Fox

Many might want to leap to the defense of "Predator," saying that its action is impeccable and its violence sublime. As a horror movie, it's first-rate, and the unusual, high-tech machinations of the alien monster are shocking and creative. Of course, fun tech and impeccable action don't always make for a great movie; there are plenty of balletic action movies with no thoughts in their heads.

A common observation about "Predator," though, is that it can serve as a direct criticism of standard masculinity. Specifically, it lampoons the link between ultra-masculinity and military violence. The characters in "Predator" are all sweaty, muscle-bound, foul-mouthed murderers. They talk about being sexual tyrannosaurs and spit on each other. They are overblown caricatures of Reagan-era super-commandos, so ridiculous it's hard to see them as exemplars of anything positive. Then a monster appears out of the woods and murders them all with ease. Outsized masculine bluster will ultimately give its wielder no power whatsoever.

One can also easily see "Predator" as a post-Vietnam War power fantasy gone awry. Although not set in Vietnam, the film's jungle setting might evoke the site of that conflict, and one might see Arnold Schwarzenegger and his team of commandos as doing enough violence to win the Vietnam War in retrospect. Of course, even when equipped with giant guns and enormous biceps, the jungle will still produce a monster you're not prepared for. American patriotic ultra-confidence is not enough to win unjust wars in other countries. Death comes for every soldier.

So there are some ideas in "Predator," even if they're not giant sci-fi ideas about the fabric of society. Ray Bradbury may not have liked the movie, but it wasn't as empty as he seemed to think.