Kevin Peter Hall (May 9, 1955 – April 10, 1991) was an American actor who portrayed the Predator in the 1987 film Predator, replacing Jean-Claude Van Damme, and the Predator in the 1990 film Predator 2. He also played an unnamed helicopter pilot in Predator,[1] and portrayed the Elder Predator in Predator 2,[2] although he was not credited for these roles. Aside from his work on the Predator films, Hall is known for his starring role as the sasquatch Harry in the first season of the television series Harry and the Hendersons (1991).
While working on Harry and the Hendersons, Hall announced that he had contracted HIV from a contaminated blood transfusion, given to him following injuries sustained in a car accident.[3] He died from AIDS-related pneumonia on April 10, 1991 at the age of 35.[4]
Work[]
Predator[]
The Predator suit weighed over 200lbs and even though Kevin Peter Hall was a large and powerful man he had to be connected to a "bungie" rig to enable him to move believably.
Kevin Peter Hall had to wear a custom made "cool suit" which circulated cold water to keep him cool while wearing the Predator suit in the Jungle. Even with the cool suit he could only wear the Predator suit for about 2 hours before overheating and having to be quickly but carefully extricated from the suit.
Filmography[]
| Year | Title | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 1979 | Prophecy | Uncredited; with William H. Burton, Jr. |
| 1980 | Without Warning | |
| 1982 | One Dark Night | |
| 1984 | The Wild Life | |
| 1986 | Monster in the Closet | |
| 1987 | Harry and the Hendersons | |
| Predator | ||
| 1988 | Big Top Pee-Wee | |
| 1990 | Predator 2 | |
| 1991 | Highway to Hell |
Documentary Appearances[]
- If It Bleeds, We Can Kill It: The Making of Predator
- The Hunters and the Hunted: The Making of Predator 2
Trivia[]
- Following Hall's death, the role of Harry in the television series Harry and the Hendersons was eventually taken over by actor Brian Steele for the show's third and final season, who would himself go on to play the Predator creature in the 2010 film Predators.
- Additionally, the anthology novel Predator: Eyes of the Demon included a short story titled The Monster about a Predator coming into contact with a bigfoot, or Sasquatch. Though, it is unknown whether the Sasquatch in this short story is a reference to Kevin Peter Hall and Brian Steele or not, bigfoot will forever be a part of the Predator film franchise's history.
- The real-life goblin spider species Predatoroonops peterhalli is named after Hall; every member of the Predatoroonops genus has a name that references Predator, due to the perceived similarity between the spider's mouthparts and the Predator's mandibles.[5] Additionally, one of the two recognised groups in the Predatoroonops genus is also named peterhalli.[5]
See Also[]
- Bolaji Badejo — An actor who played the Alien in Alien.
- Tom Woodruff, Jr. — An actor who played Xenomorphs in Alien3, Alien Resurrection, Alien vs. Predator and Aliens vs. Predator: Requiem.
External Links[]
- Kevin Peter Hall at the Internet Movie Database
- Kevin Peter Hall on Wikipedia
References[]
- ↑ John McTiernan, John Davis, Carl Weathers, Bill Duke, Shane Black, Stan Winston. If It Bleeds, We Can Kill It: The Making of Predator (2004), 20th Century Fox [DVD].
- ↑ Stephen Hopkins, John Rosengrant. The Hunters and the Hunted: The Making of Predator 2 (2005), 20th Century Fox [DVD].
- ↑ Douglas Snauffer, Joel Thurm. The Show Must Go On: How the Deaths of Lead Actors Have Affected Television, p. 201 (2008), McFarland.
- ↑ "Kevin Peter Hall, Actor, 35", The New York Times, April 13, 1991. Retrieved on [[August 1, 2014]].
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 Brescovit, Bonaldo, Santos, Ott & Rheims, 2012: The Brazilian goblin spiders of the new genus Predatoroonops (Araneae, Oonopidae). Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History, n. 370, pp. 1–68 (whole text).