Elle Fanning as Thia, looking at Dek, in Predator: Badlands.
When Predator: Badlands hits theaters this weekend, it will be a radical departure from previous entries in the Predator franchise. For starters, it's the first Predator film to focus entirely on a Predator, specifically the young Yautja Dek who is trying to prove himself by hunting down a beast on"the deadliest planet in the universe.
" Predator: Badlands also boasts a PG-13 rating, which is unexpected for a film franchise where intergalactic hunters rip people's spines out or skin them alive. Director Dan Trachtenberg stuck to his guns, and the end result was enough to impress none other than James Cameron. During an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Trachtenberg revealed that while he was shooting Predator: Badlands in New Zealand, Cameron — who was also in the area filming Avatar: Fire and Ash — invited him to dinner, where Trachtenberg discussed his vision for Badlands. Cameron gave what seemed like a stamp of approval at the time, telling Trachtenberg that this new approach to the Predator would work."The blessing of that guy — who has taken on some pretty impossible odds and pulled them off — was absolutely incredible," Trachtenberg said. However, this turned out to be a smokescreen on Cameron's part. James Cameron Fully Approved of 'Predator: Badlands' After Seeing A Rough Cut Shortly after their dinner, Dan Trachtenberg would share a rough cut of Predator: Badlands with James Cameron to get his opinion. Cameron gave his thoughts, along with a surprising admission that he didn't think centering the film on a Predator would work, despite what he had told Trachtenberg earlier: So he saw the movie a couple months back, and he said, “I have to be honest with you. When I first heard what you were doing, I did not think it was going to work. But holy crap, you pulled it off.” He either did not remember that first conversation that meant a whole lot to me, or he really does know what someone in my position needs to hear to get things done. Predator: Badlands wasn't the first time that James Cameron had a direct involvement with the Predator franchise. During the making of Predator, he suggested to Stan Winston — who'd previously provided special effects work for Cameron's movies with The Terminator — that the Yaujta should have a spider-like mouth. Winston immediately sketched what would become the Yautja's iconic mandibles, a design feature that's shown up on every Predator. Cameron also fully introduced the Weyland-Yutani Corporation in Aliens, and the massive conglomerate plays a role in Predator: Badlands as one of its synthetics, Thia , eventually befriends Dek. Dan Trachtenberg Has Plans for More 'Predator' Movies Predator: Badlands will mark Dan Trachtenberg's third film in the Predator franchise, as he reinvigorated the franchise back in 2022 with Prey and dropped the animated anthology Predator: Killer of Killers on Hulu earlier this year. All three films have received critical acclaim, but it's Killer of Killers that was the standout, especially where its ending is concerned. It's revealed that the Yautja keep the humans who bested them in suspended animation, including Prey's protagonist Naru , Predator's Col. Dutch Schaefer and Predator 2's Lt. Mike Harrigan . Dan Trachtenberg previously revealed that he'd concocted three different ideas for the Predator franchise after Prey, with Badlands and Killer of Killers being two of said ideas. He told THR that Killer of Killers' ending offers plenty of possibilities for a future film:"Frankly, the exciting part about the ending of Killer of Killers is that the door is open to tell the in-between stories and the after stories. We’ve had several really exciting ideas about any and all of it." Whatever's next for the Predator universe, it's safe to say that Trachtenberg can reach out to James Cameron if he needs any advice. 7 10 Predator: Badlands 10 stars 9 stars 8 stars 7 stars 6 stars 5 stars 4 stars 3 stars 2 stars 1 star Like Follow Followed PG-13 Action Science Fiction Adventure Thriller Release Date November 5, 2025 Runtime 107 minutes Director Dan Trachtenberg Writers Dan Trachtenberg, Patrick Aison, John Thomas, Jim Thomas Producers Brent O'Connor, John Davis, Marc Toberoff, Dan Trachtenberg, Ben Rosenblatt Franchise Predator Cast See All
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