Predator: Badlands is the Future of the Franchise

I caught Predator: Badlands over the weekend, and if you’re a fan of the films, the comics, or any of the franchise’s deep-cut lore, you’re in for something special.

Director Dan Trachtenberg has already proven he knows how to breathe new life into established worlds. With 10 Cloverfield Lane, he reshaped what a Cloverfield film could be. And in 2022’s Prey, he reimagined the Predator formula with stunning restraint and cultural depth, anchoring it in Amber Midthunder’s powerhouse performance and the lived-in world of the Comanche Nation.

Badlands takes that reinvention even further. Instead of revisiting the historical past like Prey, Trachtenberg rockets us into the far future, farther than Alien: Resurrection even dared to go. And with that time jump comes a completely different angle on the Predator mythos.

A Predator Story From the Predator’s Perspective

The film tells the story of Dek, a young yautja (yes, the film fully embraces the species’ canonical name from the Aliens vs. Predator novelization). Betrayed by his clan and cast out, Dek sets out on his first hunt to reclaim his honor.

It’s the first time the franchise has committed this deeply to the yautja perspective, and it pays off.

A Standout Cast and a Surprising Heart

Elle Fanning and Dimitrius Schuster-Koloamatangi lead the film with a surprising emotional pull.

Schuster-Koloamatangi brings more expressiveness and humor to a Predator role than we’ve ever seen without tipping the film into self-parody. Fanning, playing a synth, becomes the emotional anchor of the story, quirky, endearing, and compelling. And then there’s Bud, a creature companion who becomes a scene-stealer in all the right ways.

Trachtenberg has mentioned that he pulled inspiration from video games, and it shows. The synth–yautja dynamic feels reminiscent of iconic pairings like Master Chief and Cortana, and the film’s sprawling sense of scale and creature encounters evoke vibes of Shadow of the Colossus and Monster Hunter. In fact, I struggled to think of a movie this reminded me of, but I easily thought of a dozen games.

That’s not a complaint.

Expanding Predator Mythology Without Diluting It

One of the richest elements here is the exploration of yautja culture. While xenomorphs thrive on mystery, the yautja have always been ripe for deeper world-building: hierarchies, rituals, honor codes, and a complex warrior culture inspired by Spartans and tinged with Conan the Barbarian intensity.

Trachtenberg leans into all of it. The harsher the world, the sharper the story feels.

Australasia as an Alien World

Filmed in Australia and New Zealand, Badlands makes incredible use of its landscapes. The flora alone feels dangerous in the best way, a reminder that alien worlds don’t always require CGI when the real world is more than capable of looking hostile and mesmerizing.

Where Should the Franchise Go Next?

As much as I’d welcome more classic “underdog vs. Predator” stories, Badlands proves that the franchise can support wildly different genres and perspectives.

My pitch for the next entry?
Take us to a desert planet in the spirit of Monster Hunter World’s Wildspire Waste. Drop a yautja into a brutal environment filled with horn-charging, sand-burrowing monsters worthy of the Diablos and see what happens. New biome, new threats, new hunt.

Final Verdict

Predator: Badlands is absolutely worth seeing on the big screen. It’s bold, different, and ambitious. It’s a confident swing at expanding the universe without losing what makes the franchise iconic.

Go see it. And if this is the path the series takes moving forward, I’m fully on board.

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