Episode IV – A New Hope’

March 17, 2026

40

Warning: Spoilers ahead for 2026’s War Machine on Netflix!Known only as 81 throughout War Machine, Alan Ritchson’s Ranger Regiment candidate goes through a grueling yet familiar series of events to survive the new Netflix movie’s events. However, while many are pointing out that War Machine feels like an unofficial entry from the Predator franchise, I feel like they’re missing the glaringly obvious Star Wars parallel. Granted, it only becomes quite so evident right near the end of the movie, but it feels impossible to miss after that.

First of all, I do agree that War Machine and Predator have some startling similarities. Both movies feature a protagonist on the run through the wide-open wilderness as a deadly, extraterrestrial antagonist tracks them. There are enough differences to make War Machine unique, but the core concept is undeniably inspired by Predator. Then, just before Ritchson’s new Netflix hit concludes, 81’s story transforms via his method of victory over the movie’s titular automaton. Rather than serving as a stand-in for Arnold Schwarzenegger’s Dutch, 81 arguably becomes far more comparable to Mark Hamill’s Luke Skywalker.

Why ‘War Machine’ Is Secretly a ‘Star Wars’ Homage as Well as a ‘Predator’ One

For the handful of people who’ve never seen 1977’s Star Wars: Episode IV – A New Hope, let me briefly break down the plot for you. A protagonist, haunted by loss and desperate for a chance to prove himself, ends up taking down a seemingly unstoppable instrument of death by attacking a weak spot in its exhaust port. That exact synopsis can also be taken and applied to War Machine. The part about both Luke and 81 taking down their respective mechanical enemies by identifying their vents as their biggest and/or only weakness feels far too poignant to be a mere coincidence. I think it’s reasonable to assume that War Machine writer/director Patrick Hughes is a fan of how Luke took down the Death Star in A New Hope.

Obviously, War Machine is more heavily inspired by 1987’s Predator, although it’d be unfair to Ritchson’s movie to say it’s little more than a shameless rip-off. War Machine offers fresh storylines, character dynamics, and emotional hallmarks that don’t appear in the 1980s classic. Combine this with the fact that the twist that sees War Machine‘s bad guy taken down is clearly a nod to A New Hope, and War Machine actually becomes one of the more original movies to have been made in recent years. I’m not saying it’s anything too groundbreaking, but in a cinematic landscape where almost every release seems to be a remake or sequel in an established franchise, War Machine is something of a standout project in this respect. Plus, it’s actually pretty good.

‘War Machine’s Borrowed ‘A New Hope’ Twist Creates a Problem for a Potential Sequel

Alan Ritchson as 81 in Netflix’s War Machine (2026)

Netflix

War Machine ends with clear signs that a sequel would be the desired route forward, although a follow-up hasn’t yet been confirmed. That being said, the movie has performed well on Netflix so far, and it quickly shot to the top of the platform’s rankings soon after release. It’s not a masterpiece by any stretch, but it’s solid, and people are watching it in huge numbers. That’s often enough for Netflix to approve a sequel. However, if War Machine 2 does happen, then borrowing so heavily from one specific part of Star Wars lore could make penning the next script tricky.

In A New Hope, locating the weakness in the Death Star meant pulling off the same thing two movies later was far easier, and less of a surprise for the audience. The heroes had already taken down one intimidating space station, so they could do it again. They even used the same tactic when The Force Awakens softly rebooted the franchise in 2015. In War Machine, the gargantuan robot of death appears equally unbeatable for most of the movie, until it isn’t. Just as Luke took to his X-Wing to end A New Hope, 81 hopped into a bulldozer to fill his enemy’s exhausts with rocks, causing it to overheat and explode. After spending well over an hour wondering how the thing could possibly be stopped, it was a welcome revelation for the audience.

The problem here is that 81 then made it back to base and told his superiors exactly how the other War Machines that had landed could be stopped. So, in a potential sequel, the mystery of how to pull it off just isn’t there anymore. Block the vents, watch them go ka-boom. So, in many ways, it would make more sense for War Machine to remain a standalone effort, ending with the implication that 81 has saved the day, and that humanity will win out with the precious intel that Ritchson’s character was able to acquire.

On the other hand, 81 was just about able to defeat a single War Machine, and in very specific circumstances. It’s very unlikely that all the others will be successfully lured into quarries to have rocks dumped on them. Therefore, the issue becomes exactly how the military can act on the information supplied by 81. It’s one thing knowing exactly how the invaders can be destroyed; it’s another to find a way to pull it off on such a large scale. This is the question that War Machine 2 could focus on.