Rastaterrestrials and Mexi-Vigilantes on Robert Rodriguez's Slate: UPDATE

Prolific auteur and redonkulous superhuman Robert Rodriguez has dropped the curtain on his next projects: Most noteworthy is a reboot of sci-fi franchise Predator for Fox, introducing a new generation to the adventures of its titular ugly muddahfucka. True, the franchise has lived on in a pair of Alien Vs. Predator films, but this news should please purists who longed for a return to the simple pleasures of a single rastaterrestrial stalking some cannily resilient Austro-Bavarian prey.

UPDATE: Rodriguez will only produce the Predator reboot, which already has its release date. More after the jump.

Before that, however, Rodriguez will co-direct Machete, a full-length feature based on the fake trailer that appeared before Grindhouse. Together with his longtime editor Ethan Maniquis, the director will expand the proposed revenge story of a Mexican ex-Federale/cleaver-wielding swashbuckler who's double-crossed by a U.S. senator into satisfying longform entertainment. Look for the trailers catchy tagline -- "This time, they fucked with the wrong Mexican" -- to grace posters at your local cineplex soon. Shooting begins this June in Austin.

UPDATE: /Film notes the Predator re-envisioning is entitled Predators, and while Rodriguez will produce, he'll neither write or direct the film. (Which might actually be good news to concerned fans worried his plans for the franchise may have involved the title Sky Kids 4: Watch Out Predators!) And Fox has already set their release date: July 7, 2010.

For the uninitiated:

· Robert Rodriguez wields 'Machete' [Variety]