When Singaporean comic book artist Elvin Ching was contacted by Marvel Comics earlier this year, he could barely believe it. The famed publisher behind the X-Men and Avengers comic books was considering him for their prestigious Art Atelier artist training program – an invitation that could change the trajectory of his career. But what came next was something the self-professed sci-fi and creature feature fanatic couldn’t have anticipated – a chance to take on “one ugly motherf***er”.
“With so many Marvel characters and titles, I did not expect my first Marvel job to be a Predator movie tie-in book,” Ching laughs, recounting the moment he was offered the project to draw the prequel comic for the upcoming Predator: Badlands film.
“It worked out because I am a Predator fan too and when I think about it now, it was actually an ideal choice as a first project for me.”
After being contacted in early 2025 about the Marvel Art Atelier program, where he was one of five artists from around the world flown to Paris Disneyland for the intensive workshop in June, Ching, who created his The Woodsman comic in 2021, wasn’t sure what was next for him, since there was no guarantee of work after completing the program.
But it was right after that Marvel Comics invited him to submit sample pages for critique and by late July, an offer for Predator: Badlands was put in front of him.
“I wasn’t given other options, but the fact that the one choice on the table was Predator was more than enough,” Ching says. In hindsight, he’s grateful he didn’t have to agonize over multiple projects. “This specific book being handed to me decisively helped me be hyper-focused on how I could do the best for it.”
And four months later, the Predator: Badlands one-shot, set for release on 12 November, is set to become Ching’s debut Marvel Comics project, working alongside editors Martin Biro and Austin Hatch, writer Ethan Hunt, inker Oren Junior, and colorist Juancho Velez – creatives who were equally passionate about delivering exceptional work.
“They are incredible in their roles, but they also elevated my work,” he emphasizes, pointing to the collaborative nature of making a comic book.
But even though Ching is a fan of the franchise that has produced six main movies and a slew of video games, the upcoming film, by Dan Trachtenberg (Prey, 2022) and starring Elle Fanning (Maleficent, 2014) doesn’t feature a conventional Predator that travels to Earth to hunt. Instead, the young Yautja aka the name of the species features a visual departure, with a much younger hunter not wearing the iconic Predator helmet, Instead, the film takes place the Predators’ home-world and focuses a lot more on their culture, giving Ching a chance to put his own stamp on an iconic race.
“I was given access to movie materials for reference when I started work on the book, which was around early August. And as much as I do love the conventional Predators, I also love that I was tackling this new Predator! It was definitely challenging drawing this version as it felt more advanced with more detailed gear and outfits,” explains the 48-year-old.
“Even after drawing him over 20 to 30 times, I still had to constantly look at the reference to get his gear and unique facial features right,” he admits but he embraced the challenge.
The creative approach came down to understanding the character’s physicality. This Predator is smaller than most, so Ching depicted him as more agile – compensating for size with speed and precision.
“I settled on “Wolverine” as a good example to play on – fast and tough. The other thing that stands out for this predator is in the way he wields his sword, so at some point it was fun to switch him from hunter mode to swordsman.”
What Ching didn’t realize until he started was how perfectly the project aligned with his background. Years of drawing his own fighting comic, The Woodsman, and choreographing fights during his storyboarding days suddenly became invaluable such that a friend who saw early drafts called it the perfect “monster book” for him.
“All the action played into my previous comic and storyboarding experiences,” Ching reflects. “I hope in that way, I managed to give it a new edge while keeping it true for fans.”
And as a fan himself, Ching did what was expected and slipped in a couple of Easter eggs for the eagle-eyed fans, though neither are Predator related. And while there’s an X-Men nod and a Star Wars reference, both are so subtle, he’s not even sure they counts.
What Comes Next?
For now, Ching doesn’t have his next book lined up, but he’s keeping busy. The coming months will be spent promoting Predator: Badlands, catching up on overdue commissions, and finally creating some fan art for his Instagram (@elvching), which he admits has been “starved” while working on the Predator project.
As for dream projects? Ching would lose his mind over an Aliens vs Predator series, given that Predator: Badlands has revealed a link to the massively popular Alien franchise as well. All he wants is a chance to capture the horror aspect of the Xenomorphs, and to depict the savage fights that would inevitably follow.
“All Hell would break loose and I am HERE for that,” he says with genuine enthusiasm.
And what about adding Terminators to the mix, especially since the film includes artificial lifeforms, though Ching clearly thinks the synthetics from Alien are nowhere near the killer machines in the Terminator series.
“That would be insane and I love it,” he says, but is also quick to note that “Terminators are a lot tougher with their endoskeletons, while the androids seem to keep getting split apart. Also, any three-way crossover of the film giants, which were a staple in comic books, would need a cohesive, engaging story – not just cool fan service.
Character-wise, his Marvel wishlist includes the X-Men (particularly Archangel, Iceman, and Longshot), Cloak & Dagger, and Doctor Strange, but is also open to the unexpected – after all, Predator: Badlands was proof that sometimes an editor sees something in your work that you didn’t see yourself.
“Just the opportunity of drawing for Marvel keeps me happy and excited,” Ching says. “Maybe someone else sees something in my work that I didn’t see before, and that challenges me to broaden my perspective.”
Hsals needs more space in his house, and more money in his bank account to pay for all the toys, collectibles and other geek related items that companies are churning out. Free-time? Girlfriend? Who’s got time for those?
Kevin Low
Si Jia
