Thermal Imaging Scope

Lore & Background

The Predator's thermal vision was first developed for the original 1987 film. The filmmakers used a low-resolution thermal imaging camera to capture heat signatures. The camera's output was reflected through a beam splitter onto a monitor, which was then filmed alongside the optical background using a standard film camera. Because high temperatures reduced the visibility of human figures, portions of the jungle were cooled with ice water to maintain contrast. The final effect combined the heat-sensor imagery with the filmed background to produce the Predator's thermal vision. For the 2018 film The Predator the effect was achieved by digitally manipulating the camera footages colour instead of with a thermal camera.

In Their Own Story

The jungle air was thick with humidity, but to the Yautja, it felt like walking through a river of fire. The scope flickered to life, bathing the world in shades of violet and charcoal until a sudden burst of crimson caught his attention. A human soldier, sweating and terrified, huddled behind a rotting log, his heat signature pulsing like a dying star. The hunter raised his wrist-mounted device, the thermal crosshairs locking onto the trembling figure. There was no sound, only the silent language of temperature as he prepared to strike.

Reader's Guide

The thermal vision effect for the Predator's point of view was achieved using a low-resolution thermal imaging camera. The camera's output was reflected through a beam splitter onto a monitor, which was then filmed alongside the optical background using a standard film camera. Because high temperatures reduced the visibility of human figures, portions of the jungle were cooled with ice water to maintain contrast. The final effect combined the heat-sensor imagery with the filmed background to produce the Predator's thermal vision. For the 2018 film The Predator the effect was achieved by digitally manipulating the camera footages colour instead of with a thermal camera.

Did You Know?

• The thermal vision effect was achieved using a low-resolution thermal imaging camera, not CGI.
• Portions of the jungle were cooled with ice water to maintain contrast because high temperatures reduced the visibility of human figures.
• For the 2018 film The Predator the effect was achieved by digitally manipulating the camera footages colour instead of with a thermal camera.
• The camera's output was reflected through a beam splitter onto a monitor, which was then filmed alongside the optical background using a standard film camera.