Predator: Badlands Teaser Reveals Predator as the Protagonist

The last live-action Predator film was Prey, released in 2022 and starring Amber Midthunder as a young woman of the Diné who’s hunting the eponymous aliens in the 18th century in what would become the American Southwest. While it was received well by critics and audiences, 20th Century Studios was smart enough to call director Dan Trachtenberg back for the upcoming Predator: Badlands.

Badlands introduces Dimitrius Schuster-Koloamatangi as Dek, a Predator cast out from his tribe who teams up with a woman of the Weyland-Yutani corporation — the android Thia, played by Elle Fanning. This time, however, the iconic monster movie hunter plays the protagonist, with the trailer promising a familiar and “unkillable” foe that can’t be killed.”

The Next Generation of Predators

Fans have been calling for a live-action movie about the family life of the Predators since 2010’s Predators, and it looks like Badlands will be at least partially about that. The teaser includes brief glimpses of a Predator homeworld — or at least a planet with similarities to their native planet, Yautja. Dek’s world seems larger than life, with vast, towering alien plants and some very busy Predator cities. The Predator himself is also quickly shown with his tribe, hinting at a broader conflict between himself and the other Yautja.

It also means there will likely be further worldbuilding in the Predator universe, expanding on past lore established in films. A look into Predator life has been called a dream project for the studio since 2019, with many fans clamoring for a film showing the creatures in their native habitats. With Trachtenberg and actress Elle Fanning on board, there’s reason to believe the new film will show Predators as a more complex civilization with their systems of honor and etiquette.

Early on in Prey, for instance, the titular character is shown to be as vicious and competent a hunter as any of the alien Predators are. Dek, then, will likely be part of a much larger movie about the Yautja, their rituals, their beliefs, and — to stay spoiler-free — his conflicts with his kind.

Humans of the Weyland-Yutani Corporation

It also would not be a Weyland-Yutani film without a cameo or at least passing reference to the Alien movies’ fan-favorite megacorporation. Fanning’s character Thia is not only a humanoid robot, but specifically a Weyland-Yutani one. Seeing an android explore and learn the ways of a tribal Predator society while carrying the signature pistols from the Weyland-Yutani logo will likely be a treat for Alien enthusiasts.

On the other hand, while Fanning and Trachtenberg are at the head of the project, the film may be entirely self-contained within the larger Predator and Alien universes. With Badlands taking place before or after the events of the last Predator film, audiences may expect flashbacks or conversations related to specific moments or lore only hinted at before.

20th Century Studios has a good sense of when to mix these parts up for the big screen and just how long and how many Predator movies audiences would be down for. They haven’t set a sequel in stone yet, but with just over 8 months to go until November, it seems like the chances are good that a follow-up could come soon, and Trachtenberg himself has Predator: Killer of Killers, an anthology series slated to launch on Hulu on June 6.

Predator: Badlands Trailer – Teaser

That’s not to say Badlands will just be a series of Predator-and-Android adventures in different corners of the universe, mind you, but there’s no telling which ones the new film will expand on.

Of course, Trachtenberg may also be taking a page out of his book. Prey was a much smaller-scale film in many ways, with less budget and largely just one character running away from Predator drones over the dusty landscapes of the American southwest. The first trailer for Badlands hints at a much larger story, with not only an already-built-up, vibrant world and Predator society, but also a new species, or perhaps even an Artificial Intelligence, unlike anything seen before in either the Alien or Predator universe.

Dek has been exiled from his clan, setting up a good story if that’s his main plot: to get back his place of honor among his people. This doesn’t mean, of course, that he won’t be a brutal and remorseless killer; after all, as seen in Prey, the alien Predators can be just as vicious and relentless when cornered as their human namesakes.

If this line of thought plays out in the film, it’ll be interesting to see which side of the Predator fence the audience will be put on.

The Reveal

This is a first, and probably not the last, teaser for Predator: Badlands. There’s only a brief shot of the new menace, the movie’s conflict hasn’t been hinted at beyond the trial Dek is on, and the ambiguous reason for his teaming with Thia. With such a sparse amount of info, 20th Century Studios has to expect some strong interest from fans as well as more casual audiences who just want to see Dek and Thia go hunting together.

The first full trailer for Predator: Badlands, which 20th Century Studios has said will premiere soon, will likely address these questions in greater detail.

And so will the film. November 7 will be another important date in this season’s sci-fi movie lineup, as well as one that should be satisfying for Predator fans who’ve been waiting years for a different look at the franchise.

It’s at the tail end of a busy fall for 20th Century Studios, sandwiched by Men in Black: International and John Wick: Chapter 4 on either side. With an eye to the box office, especially after Prey’s somewhat limited but strong release on Hulu, Badlands is well-positioned to give this world-weary franchise new life.