(Left) Adria Arjona stars in ‘Hit Man’. Photo: Netflix. (Right) Michael B. Jordan announces ‘Creed’ spin-off ‘Delphi’ at the Amazon Upfront on May 13th, 2025. Photo: Slaven Vlasic/Getty Images for Amazon
Preview:
Adria Arjona is the latest addition to Michael B. Jordan’s Take on ‘The Thomas Crown Affair’.
She replaces Taylor Russell, who departed over creative differences.
Amazon MGM Studios will release the movie worldwide.
Taylor Russell has left the movie, citing creative differences, leaving a key part available.
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Now we know that, after a quick search and plenty of interest from actors, the vacancy has been filled, as Variety brings word that Adria Arjona, most recently seen doing sterling work in Lucasfilm Disney+‘Star Wars’ series ‘Andor’ is joining the movie to star opposite Jordan.
(L to R) Steve McQueen and Faye Dunaway in 1969’s ‘The Thomas Crown Affair’. Photo: United Artists.
The 1968 original, directed by Norman Jewison, saw Steve McQueen as the titular bored millionaire, who concocts and executes a brilliant scheme to rob a bank without having to do any of the work himself.
When Vicki Anderson (Faye Dunaway), an investigator for the bank’s insurance company, takes an interest in Crown, the two begin a complicated cat-and-mouse game with a romantic undertone.
In an attempt to decipher Anderson’s agenda, Crown devises another robbery like his first, wondering if he can get away with the same crime twice.
Few details have emerged about Jordan’s take on the material, though we presume it’ll be a similar blend of high stakes heist action and unexpected romance.
What we do know is the script comes from ‘The Fall Guy’s Drew Pearce, with a previous draft by Wes Tooke and Justin Britt-Gibson, based on the original film.
Patrick McCormick and Toberoff Productions’ Marc Toberoff will also serve as producers, with Alan Trustman–– who wrote the 1968 original ––– serving as executive producer.
The trade site also offers word that producer Charles Roven (who recently shepherded the likes of ‘The Killer’ and ‘Oppenheimer’ to screens) will be overseeing things behind the scenes, while The Wrap has the news that Jordan’s ‘Black Panther’ co-star Danai Gurira is also aboard.
(L to R) Steve McQueen and Faye Dunaway in 1969’s ‘The Thomas Crown Affair’. Photo: United Artists.
The 1968 original, directed by Norman Jewison, saw Steve McQueen as the titular bored millionaire, who concocts and executes a brilliant scheme to rob a bank without having to do any of the work himself.
When Vicki Anderson (Faye Dunaway), an investigator for the bank’s insurance company, takes an interest in Crown, the two begin a complicated cat-and-mouse game with a romantic undertone.
In an attempt to decipher Anderson’s agenda, Crown devises another robbery like his first, wondering if he can get away with the same crime twice.
Few details have emerged about Jordan’s take on the material, though we presume it’ll be a similar blend of high stakes heist action and unexpected romance.
What we do know is the script comes from ‘The Fall Guy’s Drew Pearce, with a previous draft by Wes Tooke and Justin Britt-Gibson, based on the original film.
Patrick McCormick and Toberoff Productions’ Marc Toberoff will also serve as producers, with Alan Trustman–– who wrote the 1968 original ––– serving as executive producer.
As for who Branagh, Gladstone and Gurira will be playing? Still unknown right now.
Where else can we see Kenneth Branagh, Lily Gladstone and Danai Gurira?
Lily Gladstone stars in ‘Fancy Dance,’ now streaming on Apple TV+.
Finally, he was recently announced as part of the ensemble for comedy drama sequel ‘The Devil Wears Prada 2’.
As for Gladstone, the actor was most recently seen in romantic comedy ‘The Wedding Banquet’ and has thriller ‘Lone Wolf’ and comedy ‘In Memoriam’ on the way.
She’s most recently been working on ‘The Fighting Shirley Chisholm’ playing Chisholm, who became the first African American woman elected to the U.S. House of Representatives in 1968.
And she will next be seen in ‘Matchbox’, adapted from the popular toy line, starring alongside John Cena.
In addition to this new directorial job, Jordan has been keeping himself typically busy.
He has several projects in development, including a ‘Rainbow Six’ film that will see him return as special forces operative John Clark. He’s also working up a fourth ‘Creed’ movie, which he’s expressed a desire to direct following his success with the third (which made $276 million at the global box office).
Jordan told Variety last year that he felt like he had plenty of work still to do:
“I still feel like an underdog. I feel like I just got here, like I’ve just arrived, and I have the tools and the things around me to really be on the offensive a little bit.”
When will the new ‘Thomas Crown Affair’ steal its way into theaters?
The movie has a March 5th, 2027 date set by backers Amazon MGM Studios. And with the cameras already rolling, Jordan is on track to deliver.
Pierce Brosnan in 1999’s ‘The Thomas Crown Affair’. Photo: MGM.
Other Movies in ‘ The Thomas Crown Affair’ Franchise:
(Left) Michael B. Jordan as John Kelly in Prime Video’s ‘Without Remorse.’ (Right) Steve McQueen in 1969’s ‘The Thomas Crown Affair’. Photo: United Artists.
Preview:
Michael B. Jordan is directing and starring in ‘The Thomas Crown Affair.’
It’ll mark his second time directing following ‘Creed III.’
Amazon MGM Studios will release the movie worldwide.
Cast your mind back to 2016, and word arrived that Michael B. Jordan was looking to take the lead in a third interpretation of the heist caper movie ‘The Thomas Crown Affair.’
It appears he’s clearly happy with the script, which originated with Wes Tooke and has since been re-written by ‘The Fall Guy’s Drew Pearce, as Jordan is now stepping up to also direct the movie, as he did with ‘Creed III’ in 2023.
Amazon MGM Studios has the rights to this one and plans to release it worldwide.
While the storyline for the new film is being kept under wraps, we have to figure it’ll follow roughly the same plot as the previous entries. Talking of…
(L to R) Steve McQueen and Faye Dunaway in 1969’s ‘The Thomas Crown Affair’. Photo: United Artists.
The 1968 original, directed by Norman Jewison, saw Steve McQueen as the titular bored millionaire, who concocts and executes a brilliant scheme to rob a bank without having to do any of the work himself.
When Vicki Anderson (Faye Dunaway), an investigator for the bank’s insurance company, takes an interest in Crown, the two begin a complicated cat-and-mouse game with a romantic undertone.
In an attempt to decipher Anderson’s agenda, Crown devises another robbery like his first, wondering if he can get away with the same crime twice.
In addition to this new directorial job, Jordan has been keeping himself typically busy.
He has several projects in development, including a ‘Rainbow Six’ film that will see him return as special forces operative John Clark. He’s also working up a fourth ‘Creed’ movie, which he’s expressed a desire to direct following his success with the third (which made $276 million at the global box office).
Before any of that even sees a camera let alone the screen, however, there is Jordan’s reunion with longtime collaborator, filmmaker Ryan Coogler, with the pair shooting an untitled genre film in Louisiana earlier this year that has a March 7th, 2025, release date already set (so we should be seeing a teaser or trailer for that before too long.)
Jordan told Variety last year that he felt like he had plenty of work still to do:
“I still feel like an underdog. I feel like I just got here, like I’ve just arrived, and I have the tools and the things around me to really be on the offensive a little bit.”
Pierce Brosnan in 1999’s ‘The Thomas Crown Affair’. Photo: MGM.
Other Movies in ‘ The Thomas Crown Affair’ Franchise:
Available on 4K, Blu-ray and DVD beginning October 3rd is the critically acclaimed and Emmy-nominated movie ‘Prey,’ which is the fifth film in the main ‘Predator’ series and the seventh overall in the franchise, and was directed by Dan Trachtenberg (’10 Cloverfield Lane’).
What is the plot of ‘Prey’?
Set in the Comanche Nation 300 years ago, ‘Prey’ is the story of a young woman, Naru (Amber Midthunder), a fierce and highly skilled warrior. She has been raised in the shadow of some of the most legendary hunters who roam the Great Plains, so when danger threatens her camp, she sets out to prove herself a worthy hunter. The prey she stalks, and ultimately confronts, turns out to be a highly evolved alien Predator with a technically advanced arsenal, resulting in a vicious and terrifying showdown between the two adversaries.
Moviefone recently had the pleasure of speaking with director Dan Trachtenberg about his work on ‘Prey,’ the deleted scenes on the Blu-ray, reinventing the ‘Predator’ franchise, designing the primitive Predator and his weapons, casting Amber Midthunder, his original plan for the film’s dialogue to be completely in Comanche, the movie’s surprising Emmy-nominations, and his plans for a possible sequel.
You can read the full interview below or click on the video player above to watch our interview.
Moviefone: To begin with, can you talk about reinventing the ‘Predator’ franchise and taking it back to its roots with ‘Prey’?
Dan Trachtenberg: Honestly, I didn’t really come at this thinking, “I want to make a ‘Predator’ movie. I’m going to make a prequel and I’m going to do this.” I really came at it from wanting to make a period science fiction film and make a movie that could be primarily told with action, but that wasn’t just a visceral experience, and that could be a really emotional one as well. So I thought about maybe taking the engine of a sports film, of an underdog story and infusing that into this other genre. When thinking of underdogs, I started thinking about, well, what’s a protagonist that we rarely see on screen? Then I went to Native American and Comanche in particular, who have historically been so often relegated to playing the sidekick or the villain and never really the hero. Then when thinking of what that period was and what science fiction element could feel right, not like a bad mixture, but more like that peanut butter and jelly that really would go great together. The ‘Predator’ came to mind because it’s what it represents thematically and that it’s always coming hunting, searching for the alpha, seemed to make so much sense with what our protagonist story is dealing with. The period sci-fi of it all just sort of melted together.
MF: In commentary on the Blu-ray, you mention that the original plan was to have all the dialogue in the movie be in Comanche. Can you talk about that idea and when you decided to not go in that direction?
DT: Yeah, that was the initial concept. I think just as it evolved, it started to feel like that wouldn’t be possible and was certainly quite an intense undertaking as even just filming part of the movie in Comanche. As I mentioned, I think in the commentary and some of the special features, it was originally the opening sequence and then there was a transition. Because there’s a few different languages in the film already, all of that started to feel very confusing as we started to test the film. So as we moved towards English being the primary language, we luckily found a way, especially guided by Jhane Myers our producer who’s Comanche herself, and found a way to do this Comanche language dub of the film. We’ve come a long way with our ability and technology in movie dubs. It’s not like our memory of old ‘Godzilla’ films. So yeah, we got to make a movie with a version of the film that functions as a bit of language preservation in some regard, and also is the more authentic version of the movie.
MF: The Blu-ray also includes three deleted scenes including an alternate opening sequence. Can you talk about those scenes and why they were ultimately cut from the movie?
DT: So the opening sequence, it was more oriented to the dynamics of the band and less about Naru and her relationship with her brother, which we realized was the primary focus of the movie. It was very tricky also in navigating language. I really thought initially that we could pull off the thing that ‘The Hunt for Red October’ does, that a number of films do, including another John McTiernan film, ‘13th Warrior.’ It’s also worth mentioning that the original ‘Predator’ was also directed by John McTiernan. So it felt like, “Oh, we can do it,” but it just felt too heavy-handed in the language of our movie and the aesthetic of our movie to do something so aggressive. So we moved off of that. Then there’s another deleted scene with Naru and a young girl in her band that came up in the commentary that I had forgotten about until Amber had mentioned as we watched the movie together. According to the commentary, she mentions that one scene that didn’t make the final cut, that when we shot it was a moment that her character Naru really coalesced. Really what it was for me was a couple of things. One, this is a relationship between an older woman and a young girl that we don’t often see in movies like this, and there was a softness to it that we don’t often see in movies that are this aggressive, that I love aesthetically. There’s wind blowing through her hair and it was so elemental. Also, Amber’s physicality as we were still trying to figure it out as Naru, there was just something in her performance that we were able to look at and find our way through the rest of the movie after we’d shot that scene. Then there’s this awesome Previs that was meant to be a really exhilarating treetop chase sequence, and I loved that there was this very clever use of the Predator’s cut clamp weapon that Naru was turning against him. But our schedule was getting tighter and tighter, and that’s a giant sequence that I was a little bit anxious about how we could execute it effectively because so much of the movie has such a grounded aesthetic. We were building trees, we had blocked off this parking lot outside of our stage to start building trees, but the schedule was tight and I could have fought to squeeze it in, and instead I allowed it to be a bit of a negotiating chip to buy myself more time for filming other things. Then it allowed us to have a montage sequence of Nadu preparing to take down the Predator and set her traps. That made Naru in the end scene that was there in any version much more clever in that sequence and helped for some clarity issues. So ultimately I do feel confident that it was a wise decision, but I also love that it’s now available for people to see. It’s fun to see what filmmakers, we look at all the time, this animatic Previs, which now people at home can see what it looks like before we shoot the movie.
MF: Can you talk about casting Amber Midthunder, what she brought to Naru and the direction that you wanted the character to go in?
DT: All props to our casting director Renee Haynes, who had to find a lot of awesome, largely unknown actors. Amber was a little more known and when I first met her, I knew right away that she was the one, but we still put her through her paces. We had her audition and screen test performing one scene three ways in English, in Comanche, and silently, a dialogue scene without any words. She was tremendous and emotional, and so much of this movie is nonverbal so that was just such a key piece to see that she had inherently. Then there’s a physical portion of the audition, all of it, even in the physical portion, it wasn’t just, “Look at how physically capable she is.” It was like, “Oh, she’s still storytelling even when she’s just hopping over some mats and sliding under a broom.” She was great. The experience of making it, not only was it fun because she’s a good human and it easily could have been very unfun. We were in very uncomfortable places like mud and dangerous cliffs and things. A lot of opportunity to have a bad attitude and it never went there. She was amazing. Our crew was amazing. I count ourselves lucky to have had such a great experience just in the making of the movie.
MF: Since this movie is set before the original ‘Predator,’ can you talk about the specific look you wanted for the Predator character and making his weapons primitive but still advanced for the time?
DT: There was a real high wire act as we were in the development and prep phase of finding a way that we could visually tell the story that this is a creature that is prior to the ones we’ve seen before, but not letting go of the premise. The fun of the premise is here’s someone with very Earthly means up against something that is beyond, the “David versus Goliath” of that. So we found a way to blend more analog weaponry, but still with tech infused. So there’s a shield and there’s bolts, but the bolts are laser guided and the shield is deployed in a very advanced way. He’s less armored, the creature, than we’ve seen before, but still has some tech and the mask is a piece of technology, yet it is made of bones and embraces more the ethos, the sort of guiding principle of the predator, which is a trophy hunter, so it’s wearing its trophy on its head, and on its face. We definitely crossed lines over and over in prep, of is this too far forward, is this is too advanced, and on the other side, what I feared was in making it less advanced, I never wanted to make it easier. Like, “Oh, that’s why this character can take down the Predator. We made it easier for them,” and that’s not what we wanted to do. So I think in the end we struck a nice balance.
MF: Do you have ideas for more films in this series, and would they be direct sequels to ‘Prey,’ or would you continue to examine the Predators visits to Earth in different time periods?
DT: I definitely can’t speak to any specifics, but to answer your first question, yes, I have had lots of ideas about what to do. I think there’s so many awesome things and the primary focus when I was thinking of all the cool things to do and all of my collaborators thinking of what more could we do was not just to merely tell the next minute of the story that was established in this film. That this movie I think does something special, and the idea would be in going forward, if we were to ever make a sequel, that it also could be special. What else is there in ‘Predator’ fiction in any of the universe or even this genre of movie that hasn’t been done before? Those are the things that excite me the most. So those are the kinds of things we were thinking about.
MF: Finally, congratulations on the film’s Emmy nominations. Since the movie was originally intended to be a feature film, were you surprised to be nominated for an Emmy?
DT: Sure was. Definitely. Certainly you go in making a movie and you don’t think an Emmy is in your future, is part one of that. Part two of that is you make a ‘Predator’ movie filled with spine rips and head slices and you don’t think Emmy. Obviously, we put a lot of blood and sweat into trying to make the movie much more than those things, but still it is remarkably cool of the TV Academy to recognize a movie like ours.
‘Prey’ will be available on 4K, Blu-ray and DVD October 3, with over two hours of all-new bonus features.
Premiering on Hulu August 5th is the latest movie in the ‘Predator’ franchise called ‘Prey,’ which is a prequel to the original and directed by ‘10 Cloverfield Lane’s Dan Trachtenberg.
‘Prey’ is set in the Comanche Nation during 1719 and follows a resilient and highly skilled young warrior named Naru (Amber Midthunder) as she discovers that what she is stalking is actually a highly evolved alien with a technologically advanced arsenal.
The result is a brilliant and thrilling movie that recaptures the magic and terror of the original, while featuring a career-making performance from Amber Midthunder.
Set in 1719, the film begins by introducing us to Naru (Midthunder), a young Comanche woman who was trained as a healer but dreams of being a hunter like her brother, Taabe (Dakota Beavers). She soon sees an alien spaceship dropping off someone or something, but not knowing what it really is, thinks it’s a sign from the spirits that she is ready to prove herself as a hunter. Taabe agrees to take her with him as he hunts a mountain lion that attacked their tribe.
However, as they are about to trap the lion, they are attacked by an unknown assailant, who is eventually revealed to be an alien being with technologically advanced weapons, that we as the audience know as a Predator (Dane DiLiegro). Now, with her brother injured, Naru must stop the French voyageurs who are threatening to destroy their land and defeat the alien creature in order to save her tribe and become the hunter she’s always dreamed of being.
The franchise began in 1987 with director John McTiernan’s groundbreaking film ‘Predator,’ which starred Arnold Schwarzenegger. The original saw Arnold as the leader of a military platoon who while on a mission in the jungle discover an alien creature is hunting them.
The later films in the series abandoned the idea of one person hunting the Predator in a remote location to lesser success, with ‘Predator 2’ and the more recent ‘The Predator,’ both taking place in urban cities with a large group of characters trying to kill the creature.
2010’s highly underrated ‘Predators’ was the closest of the sequels to keep the original formula, although it takes place on an alien planet and not Earth. And don’t even get me started on the ‘Alien vs. Predator’ films as I don’t really consider them cannon.
But ‘Prey’ takes the series back to its roots, crafting a compelling and terrifying story about one person alone in the woods trying to survive the Predator’s wrath. Setting the movie in 1719 was a brilliant move not only to stand-out from the other films in the series, but it also allows the audience to see something we haven’t seen in the franchise before, which is a low-tech Predator, even though his technology is still advanced for 1719.
’10 Cloverfield Lane’ director Dan Trachtenberg delivers some his finest work yet setting a somber mood and tone for the film from the opening sequence. His choice to use the Predator sparingly was also wise, as it adds to the frightening tone of the film with characters fighting a creature that we can’t even see.
It also allows the human characters to actually be the leads of the movie, as you can relate to them easier than you can a Predator, who by mistake was made the main character in some of the sequels. ‘Predator’ movies are at their best when we as an audience can root for the human characters to defeat the monster. Trying to understand the creature and relate to him has never worked in this series and Trachtenberg successfully avoids that trap.
In fact, there are times when watching this film, you actually forget you are watching a ‘Predator’ movie, and that’s a good thing! It means that the other characters, setting, and situations are compelling enough on their own that you don’t need the Predator, but you are always thrilled when it shows up!
Fans of the series will not be disappointed by the look of the Predator, which is on par with what we expect from the character but is made even more interesting by the fact that this is an older version of the creature. Trachtenberg has fun with the retro Predator weapons, and actor Dane DiLiegro gives a menacing physical performance playing the role originally intended for Jean-Claude Van Damme (Fun fact!).
Dakota Beavers gives a solid performance as Taabe, Naru’s over protective brother. At times the character can be annoying, because he keeps telling Naru she can’t be the hunter she dreams of, when we all know she’s the true hero of the film. But the character comes full circle by the end and really supports his sister in his own heroic way.
While in a somewhat limited role, Michelle Thrush is also quite good as Naru and Taabe’s mother, Aruka. Again, she is another character constantly telling Naru she can’t do what we know she can but does give her daughter the inspiration she needs to fulfill her goals.
With this film, director Dan Trachtenberg establishes himself as one of the best filmmakers working today. While Trachtenberg’s smart direction and the clever screenplay by Patrick Aison help make ‘Prey’ so great, it’s really the exceptional performance of Amber Midthunder as Naru that really makes this movie special. She is a very talented actress that you are going to be seeing a lot more of in the future.
Like Arnold in the original, you need a compelling character and an exceptional actor to make a ‘Predator’ movie truly entertaining. As seen in the disappointing installments of the series, just having a Predator kill people is not enough. You need characters that we can admire, relate to, and root for to defeat the creature and make it a great movie.
Amber Midthunder gives a tremendous performance as Naru, and I for one would love to see a sequel to ‘Prey’ following her character after the events of this film. Midthunder gives Naru an innocence and vulnerability that is essential to the character, while still possessing enough courage and strength to make us believe she is actually capable of defeating the Predator.
In the end, ‘Prey’ is a fantastic action movie and the best film in the series since the original. With fresh direction, a smart script, and a fantastic performance from Midthunder, ‘Prey’ is a surprisingly great film that both ‘Predator’ fans and non-fans alike will enjoy.
