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Well nobody saw this coming.

The star of Nimrod Antal's Predators is not a Rock or a Vin or an undiscovered new Arnie.

It's the willowy Adrien Brody!

Brody has won the role of the main alien killer in the Robert Rodriguez produced reboot of "Predators." Variety reports Brody will play a heroic mercenary who takes on the alien hunters.

We have, of course, seen Brody hacking through the jungle before, as Jack Driscoll in Peter Jackson's King Kong. But he's still best known for dramatic roles in films like Polanski's The Pianist, or quirky indie fare like Hollywoodland and The Darjeeling Ltd.

He's clearly looking to add some more mainstream strings to his bow however, since Brody and his agents apparently lobbied hard to get the role of "a heroic mercenary who battles to keep his team alive when its members are hunted by the aliens".

Perhaps Brody sees a steady check in what Fox hopes is a new franchise?
Maybe he's been a fan of the original series or just wanted to work with Rodriguez and director Nimrod Antal?
It's unclear at this point.

That team also includes Danny Trejo, Alice Braga (I Am Legend), Walton Goggins (Detective Vendrell from The Shield), Ultimate Fighter Oleg Taktarov, and Mahershalalhashbaz Ali, who was Tizzy in Benjamin Button.

Brody has also signed up for sequels.

He isn't the first surprise leading man of the Predator franchise: we probably wouldn't have predicted Danny Glover back in 1990 either.

Unconventional action heroes have become almost a staple of the last decade with Tobey Maguire, Johnny Depp and Robert Downey, Jr. all making the jump.

Can Brody duplicate their success?

Moviegoers will be able to decide for themselves when 20th Century Fox opens "Predators" nationwide on July, 9, 2010.

Shooting will take place in Hawaii and Texas, and starts shortly.