Predator: Badlands (2025) is directed by Dan Trachtenberg, who also wrote the film alongside Patrick Aison. It stars Dimitrius Schuster-Koloamatangi, Elle Fanning, Ravi Narayan, Michael Homik, Stefan Grube, Reuben de Jong, Cameron Brown, and Alison Wright. The film follows Dek (Schuster-Koloamatangi), a young Yautja/”Predator” who’s cast aside by his father for being the smallest and weakest member of their clan. To prove his worth, Dek travels to Genna, an alien planet home to the Kalisk, a deadly creature even his elders fear. There, he soon encounters Thia (Fanning), an immobile Weyland-Yutani (Alien franchise) android who offers to aid him in his quest. Accepting her offer under the rationalization that she’s simply a kind of tool, the two set out on a dangerous journey. When they encounter harsh challenges, this odd duo soon begins to shift their perspectives in ways neither of them could’ve predicted. 

Schuster-Koloamatangi gives a serviceable physical performance as Dek, but the character’s heavy prosthetics hinder his ability to connect on an emotional level. It’s a similar problem found in a handful of Disney’s “live-action” remakes, such as The Lion King (2019)—the lack of recognizably ‘human’ expressions hurts our ability to understand the character(s) in a more holistic, nuanced, and empathetic way. This is disappointing, considering the film’s desire to portray “Predator” as a more traditional action protagonist this time around, a radical/risky direction for the franchise. All that said, Dek is a very likable character overall. Learning about Dek’s species is consistently engaging for fans of the IP, and his odd-couple dynamic with Thia is both funny and occasionally thought-provoking. He’s the kind of protagonist we come to understand through his actions, which puts a ceiling on the complexity of his characterization, but feels appropriate for this type of slam-bang action-adventure experience. 

As both Thia and her sister/duplicate android, Tessa, Elle Fanning joins the oddly long list of actors who’ve taken on dual roles in 2025. For the most part, she nails the roles despite initially coming across as a grating annoyance. That said, she fits the upbeat, friendly Thia much better than she does Tessa, who’s a more serious-minded, militaristic presence. Thankfully, Thia gets a bulk of the focus. To be clear, she isn’t terrible as Tessa, just a tad unconvincing. Similar to Dek, the best part of Thia’s character (and even Tessa to some extent) is how she works to foil the personalities of those around her. There’s endless fun in the various misunderstandings between the two protagonists, but also a lot of satisfaction in the ways they learn from one another. 

As the first PG-13 Predator installment, I was dreading that the film would most likely dial back its brutality and gore. Thankfully, the film uses its lack of human characters to earn a PG-13 rating while keeping its violence on par with that of other installments. Unfortunately, the experience’s overarching tone is distinctly geared toward younger audiences, ultimately resulting in a film that’s more accessible and crowd-pleasing but that abandons much of what serious fans have come to love about the franchise. This is balanced by an equal number of fresh elements that those same fans should welcome with open arms, but I’m not sure if the trade is worth it. Besides all the new insight into Yautja culture, it only feels like a Predator film in name. For Pete’s sake, we don’t even really get to see the character wear his iconic mask. The choice is baffling; it doesn’t even achieve its explicit intention of helping the character to communicate through facial expressions. 

On one hand, I appreciate the film’s desire to try something new and expand the franchise. On the other hand, I wish they had found a way to do so without sacrificing so many of the key elements I associate with the IP. If this is a one-time deviation for the franchise, I’ll be more willing to accept the film’s unfamiliar directions. Unfortunately, I have a sneaking suspicion that this is where the franchise is headed for the foreseeable future, so I won’t be able to help but consider this nothing more than a disappointing precedent for the IP. 

Overall, this is an entertaining, action-packed, and visually exciting sci-fi action-adventure film that should easily satisfy anyone who doesn’t have particularly strong feelings about what they want and/or expect from the Predator franchise. It’s essentially just a very well-executed genre blockbuster that chooses to appeal more to the broadest audience possible instead of its more niche core fandom. Even so, I expect that even the more open-minded sect of die-hard fans will lovingly accept this new direction. I don’t appreciate that it feels like the most corporate and childish entry in the franchise, but it’s consistently fun and engaging. It’s not a fantastic Predator film, and I hope the franchise returns to its horror roots, but it’s a pretty great sci-fi action-adventure movie nonetheless. B