The Predator franchise keeps surprising fans by refusing to stay in one lane, and director Dan Trachtenberg is making sure of that.
While many are still hoping for a sequel to Prey, the next chapter, Predator: Badlands, is set to deliver something totally different with the franchise.
This year has already been busy for the Yautja, with the animated anthology Predator: Killer of Killers giving us a fresh spin on the mythos. But Badlands is aiming to push things even further by making the Predator himself the hero of the story, teaming up with a synthetic character from none other than Weyland-Yutani, played by Elle Fanning.
In a new interview with Empire, Trachtenberg explained that he wanted to explore something only this movie could do.
“In general, I’m always looking for: what could happen only in this movie?”
That unique approach leads to what he describes as “a kind of buddy-comedy” between Dek, the Predator, who for the first time has an actual name, and Fanning’s android, Thia.
As Trachtenberg puts it, “Prey was a solo survival tale; this is a relationship story.”
Of course, the film isn’t just about banter and bonding. Trachtenberg promises:
“It is also, of course, a crazy adventure against monsters and the elements—only this time it’s a badass Predator against those things.
“We wanted Dek to be relatable, but without turning him into Luke Skywalker. He’s still a Predator—we had to allow him to be a dick. But a dick you can root for.”
That’s a pretty cool direction for a franchise built on humans running for their lives from an unstoppable hunter.
But that’s exactly why Predator: Badlands feels so intriguing. It’s shaping up to be a mix of action, survival, and unexpected heart, with a Predator at the center who might just be more than a faceless hunter in the trees.
We’ll see how Dek and Thia’s unlikely partnership plays out when Predator: Badlands hits theaters on November 7.
