Every series needs it singular visionary: Batman had Christopher Nolan, James Bond had Sam Mendes and Predator now has Dan Trachtenberg. The Predator franchise has always occupied a fascinating corner of cinematic history—part sci-fi thriller, part horror, part action-movie fever dream. What began in 1987 as a testosterone-fueled jungle hunt starring Arnold Schwarzenegger quickly evolved into one of Hollywood’s most resilient mythologies: the story of an apex alien hunter pitted against humanity’s deadliest warriors.
Predator changed a lot: the practical and VFX spaces were renovated, action films had a new benchmark and a new mythology was added to the pop culture zeitgeist. But of course—as goes with every franchise—there’s been a stumble or two along the way. Many sequels and spin-offs fell short of the greatness of the original or even undermined the previous entries before it. Then something interesting happened: Trachtenberg pitched Prey and Badlands.
The Predator franchise has never been better.
Predator: Badlands releases November 7, 2025 in theaters.
Review – A Sensory Feast on Belief and Friendship
Predator: Badlands follows a Predator-in-training—for a rank called Yautja—named Dek (portrayed by Dimitrius Schuster‑Koloamatangi). Considered the weakest of the clan, Dek is spared from execution at the hands of his father by his brother Kwei, who sacrifices himself in the process. Dek swears an oath to seek out and return with an indomitable monster called a Kalisk—a fabled creature no Predator has ever killed—in order to prove his worth to the clan.
We have to pause here, because, when I tell you I was worried! Hollywood has a relationship with masks that, in my opinion, has harmed rather than helped it. Whereas in the past a character’s identity could remain hidden and masked for three consecutive films over a decade (a la Darth Vader in the original Star Wars trilogy), the common practice these days is to reveal faces in the first hour of a film (think Kylo Ren in Star Wars: The Force Awakens). Once the masks came off the Yautja in the first 10 minutes, I felt like we were on the road of removing the fear and legacy already. Now, this wouldn’t be as much of a disappointment in my mind had these been human characters, but the Predator species are notoriously ugly. I feared that watching their fanged, textured, alien faces, raw and unmasked for nearly two hours—combined with the potential of relying heavily on questionable CGI—was going to make this a pain to sit through. I could not have been more wrong.
WetaFX (the masterminds behind the aesthetics of James Cameron’s Avatar series) have placed another jewel in their crown with the visuals of Badlands. And before we talk about the gorgeous environments, I have to praise the intricacy, the detail and the soul they managed to embed into the faces of the Yautja. They turned fierce and fearsome features into expressive and relatable faces, and that is a metaphor for the entirety of the movie. On top of that, this makes the trajectory of wearing the mask of the Predator feel incredibly earned.
Ultimately, Dek crash-lands on a remote planet teeming with hazardous native life. While he holds his own for a while, he quickly finds out that he might need a companion. Enter Thia (played by Elle Fanning): a synthetic created by the infamous Weyland-Yutani company (a clear connection to the Alien franchise), who gets separated from her group and also, unbeknownst to Dek, came to scout the planet and bring back the Kalisk herself.
What ensues after that is a textbook heroes journey, and for all intents and purposes, the story of Predator: Badlands is extremely simplistic. But that is precisely its strength. Free from the clutter of side quests, the film hones in on both the action that makes the Predator a certified badass of cinema, but also the drama that surprisingly humanizes him to the audience. And that is the primary conundrum for Badlands that I was curious to see Trachtenberg would resolve. The film plays on our heartstrings just enough that Dek becomes a sympathetic hero, but never loses sight that, as the mantra goes, “Yautja are friend to none.”
Predator: Badlands takes a very minimalist approach to its cast of characters, centering on Dimitrius Schuster-Koloamatangi as Dek and Elle Fanning playing dual roles as two androids: the jovial Thia and the cold-hearted Tessa. There’s a mix of CGI and practical costuming—and that signature blend of WetaFX CGI—that makes Dek and the rest of the Yautja feel incredibly realistic. Koloamatangi emotes through the visuals with an amazing, physical performance that lets you feel the strength of his character and also the weight of the emotions he carries. It’s been absolutely fascinating watching Elle Fanning’s acting abilities grow over the years; coming from an obviously talented family (being the sister of child acting sensation Dakota Fanning), Elle has long stepped into her own. Watching her balance and play off two starkly different characters, reminiscent of Michael B. Jordan in Sinners, Fanning handles the task with such efficiency that I—perhaps even moreso than with Sinners—completely ignored that she was playing both roles.
Back to the incredible work of WetaFX – With the film boasting scenes shot on location in already beautiful locations like New Zealand, you’d think it would be impossible to improve on perfection. But WetaFX uses the real topography to craft even more imaginative worlds. And, paired with the IMAX experience, the photorealism is so masterful, I would be surprised if the CGI department doesn’t win an award for the quality of compositing and rendering.
The sound design is mind-boggling. Predator: Badlands starts with a metaphorical and literal boom and it continues throughout the film; the production doesn’t just aim to fill the world with noise, but does an amazing job at introducing us to some original and incredibly immersive sounds that make the worlds of Yautja Prime and Genna feel both lived in and completely foreign. Every roar, collision and ambient noise feels unique to Badlands.
One of the film’s many strengths is the creativity of the fight scenes. There’s man (or a proxy for man) vs nature, man vs animal, animal vs animal, animal vs machine, and just about every variation in between. At one point, Thia’s halved cyborg body (disembodied torso and legs) teams up with Dek and the baby Kalisk to clear out the Weyland-Yutani plant to rescue the Kaslisk’s mother (this all makes sense when you watch the film), and it ends up being one of the coolest stealth action sequences in recent memory. Plus, we get a boatload of Predator on Predator action to begin and close out the film. Immaculate.
Film composers Sarah Schachner and Benjamin Wallfisch do an amazing job as returning collaborators of Trachtenberg from their time scoring the previous entry, Prey and the animated anthology Predator: Killer of Killers, and they’ve done a great job creating a consistent musical language that flows into this film seamlessly as well.
What makes Predator: Badlands stand out in the franchise’s long, blood-soaked history is the subversion of expectations—where belief, friendship, and revenge replace the usual survival-of-the-fittest narrative. This isn’t your parent’s Predator: the cold, calculating apex hunter. This Predator believes he deserves a seat at the table and will take it at any cost. And despite the chaotic cinematic history we all share with a species we’ve been told to fear, somehow we cheer every second of it.
Badlands feels like a near perfect action film because it’s more than just its fight scenes and special effects. But that doesn’t mean it’s without blemish. Fans of the series will enjoy the Easter eggs and nods to past entries via some signature weaponry and its connection to the Weyland-Yutani company, but for the novice viewer, there will be a lot of questions on why all of these things are happening in the first place. If you don’t know the relevance of Thia and Tessa’s exploration—which the film more or less glosses over—the sotry can come off as an allegory for the ills of colonization, even though that’s only a part of the commentary.
There’s tension, comedy (but not too much comedy), surprisingly empowering themes, and while the baby Kalisk is very clearly a gateway into kids merchandising, it does serve to give the story another layer of heart. Predator: Badlands is exactly what the longstanding franchise has needed. And if the first two entries in the trilogy are anything to go off of, the arrival of the Mother is going to be something awesome to witness.
PROS
- Astounding design: from CGI, characters to sound design, the film is a sensory feast; WetaFX can’t be hailed enough for their work.
- The story-line isn’t sullied by a shoehorned love story, instead relying on an alliance of utility that morphs into a genuine friendship.
- Even though the Predator is shown in a positive light, he’s still as fearsome as ever.
- Director Dan Trachtenberg does an amazing job keeping the film concise and maintaining the vibe he began in the Prey film.
CONS
- The Baby Kalisk, while an integral part of the story, feels a bit gimmicky, filling the adorable sidekick role too snugly.
Rating – 4.5/5 Pocky
Elijah Isaiah Johnson is a writer/illustrator/animator. His most recently published works include the Amazon best-seller Nightmare Detective, Noir is the New Black, the Comixology Indie best-selling series Leaders of the Free World, The Formula and much more.
