Iron Man 3 director to pen Predator remake

Los Angeles  - Shane Black is to direct a reboot of Predator.

The Iron Man 3 director has been called in to pen the treatment for the movie and will oversee the screen writing after handing it over to his friend Fred Dekker - with whom he co-wrote the comedy-horror Monster Squad in 1987.

Black will be joined on the project by the original picture's producer John Davis, according to The Hollywood Reporter.

The action sci-fi - which originally starred Arnold Schwarzenegger, Carl Weathers and Jesse Ventura - follows a group of commandos through the jungle as they are stalked by a vicious alien.

Black himself had a minor role in the 1987 film after producers attempted to persuade him to take a look at the script and improve it.

Meanwhile, the Lethal Weapon creator is currently in the process of casting his latest flick The Nice Guys, a 1970's crime drama, with Hollywood legends Russell Crowe and Ryan Gosling rumoured to be set to appear.

Black is also developing a movie version of the 1930's Pulp magazine character Doc Savage for Sony and recently met with Thor actor Chris Hemsworth to discuss the starring role.