Since its first movie in 1987, the Predator franchise has built up a surprisingly deep mythology. Through two Alien vs. Predator movies, it’s even managed to tie itself into the deeper Alien folklore. And while we did get a couple of fun “drop a Predator into different situations” movies in Prey and Predator: Killer of Killers, the story is back to world-building with Predator: Badlands.
Predator: Badlands is about a Yautja warrior, known more commonly as a Predator, named Dek (Dimitrius Schuster-Koloamatangi from The Panthers) who is considered the weak link in his clan and is set to be culled. With the help and sacrifice of his brother, he escapes and decides that the best way to prove his worth is to capture his first trophy, a beast on a planet called Genna that even his father is afraid of – the Kalisk.
Once on Genna, Dek finds that just about everything on the planet wants to (and is able to) kill him. He finds an unlikely ally in a decimated Weyland-Yutani Corporation synthetic named Thia (A Complete Unknown’s Elle Fanning) who has her own reasons for going after the Kalisk. So, off they go. But soon into their hunt, they find that they themselves are being hunted as well.
With Predator: Badlands being his third Predator movie, director Dan Trachtenberg (10 Cloverfield Lane) has a pretty good handle on the universe. And, for the most part, this movie is a solid example of a Predator movie. Or, at least, the first half of it is. The first half has Dek hunting, fighting, and killing his way through Genna as he stalks his ultimate prey.
At some point, it shifts from being about Dek and his journey to being about the Weyland-Yutani company and their never-ending quest for developing the Ultimate Weapon. This is where it turns into being an Alien crossover. And that’s also where Predator: Badlands goes from awesome to ridiculous. Predator movies are all, for the most part, big-budget B-movies, but in this case, it really goes off the rails with the campiness in the third act.
That doesn’t mean Predator: Badlands isn’t fun to watch. The corniness does have its appeal, but there’s a definite tone shift when things start focusing on the “real enemy” of Weyland-Yutani. It stops being a serious action movie and starts being an over-the-top cartoon.
And with that cartoonish tone comes some eye-gouging visual effects. The spectacle is impressive, almost to the point of being distracting. Both the indigenous life on Genna and the Weyland-Yutani invaders are lethal, so there are plenty of opportunities for the movie to show off killer creatures and massive explosions. And the movie takes those opportunities, even when it completely blinds the audience from seeing what’s actually happening onscreen.
Which can be unfortunate, because as with all Predator movies, there’s some terrific fight choreography and stunt work in Predator: Badlands. Even doused in CG effects, the combat scenes are meticulously crafted and, quite frankly, fun to watch. Even when they get corny, as they do later in the movie when Thia’s detached legs fight independently of her torso. Silly, yes. But still pretty awesome.
By now, fans expect the Predator and Alien worlds to be ensnared, so the presence of Weyland-Yutani should not surprise anyone. Predator: Badlands just continues the same old AvP story that sets the Yautja Predators as the heroes. And all this mythology and world-building is great. Let’s just hope they don’t stop making “drop a Predator into different situations” movies. Because sometimes, simple is better. Especially when it comes to creature features.
GRADE: C
Rating: PG-13 for strong sci-fi violence
Running Time: 1 hour 47 minutes
Release Date: November 7, 2025
Studio: 20th Century Studios
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