20th Century Studios has dropped the first trailer for Predator: Badlands (2025), and it looks like director Dan Trachtenberg, who helmed Prey (2022), the last film in the series, has found another surprising angle on a franchise that began almost four decades ago.
Instead of Comanche warriors, the new story zeroes in on Dek (actor Dimitrius Schuster-Koloamatangi), a young Predator exiled on a remote world. His only ally is Thia (Elle Fanning), a Weyland-Yutani android whose presence re-threads the link between the Predator and Alien franchises, as seen in the comics and the two Alien vs. Predator films.
“Predator: Badlands, which stars Elle Fanning and Dimitrius Schuster-Koloamatangi, is set in the future on a remote planet, where a young Predator (Schuster-Koloamatangi), outcast from his clan, finds an unlikely ally in Thia (Fanning) and embarks on a treacherous journey in search of the ultimate adversary,” the official synopsis from The Walt Disney Company reads.
But the teaser underscores another bold choice: the Predator redesign. See it for yourself in the official trailer for Predator: Badlands from 20th Century Studios below:
Related: The Untold Story of the Now-Canceled Disney Alien vs. Predator Land
As you can see, Dek’s head crest sits tighter to the skull, the jawline is cleaner, and the traditional dreadlocks have been trimmed to sleek cables—an aesthetic shift from previous Predator designs that span five live-action movies (seven if you include the Alien vs. Predator spinoffs). But this new look has instantly divided fans of the franchise.
Initial comments on X (Twitter) start with measured curiosity. “Hybrid Predator?” one fan asks. However, the tone nosedives into hostility, from accusations that the studio has “DEI-ed the Predator” (meaning “Diversity Equity and Inclusion”) or made them “woke,” to outright racial slurs and jokes about the Predator appearing to have a disability.
The backlash is an ugly reminder that progress in long-running franchises often meets resistance from toxic fans.
Either way, can a more humanized Predator retain the menace that made the 1987 Arnold Schwarzenegger-starring original iconic? Trachtenberg pulled off a tonal pivot with Prey, so giving him another shot seems wise. For purists, the redesigned hunter is a risk; for newcomers, it’s a fresh entry point. But we’ll find out where the balance lands when Predator: Badlands hits theaters this summer.
When Are the New Predator Movies Available To Watch?
Predator: Badlands will be the seventh live-action entry in the Predator franchise by the time it arrives in theaters on November 7, as yet another new film, Predator: Killer of Killers, will premiere on Hulu in the US and on Disney+ internationally on June 6.
Watch the trailer for Predator: Killer of Killers from 20th Century Studios Canada below:
“The anthology story follows three of the fiercest warriors in human history: a Viking raider guiding her young son on a bloody quest for revenge; a ninja in feudal Japan who turns against his Samurai brother in a brutal battle for succession; and a WWII pilot who takes to the sky to investigate an otherworldly threat to the Allied cause,” The Walt Disney Company synopsis for Predator: Killer of Killers reads.
“But while all these warriors are killers in their own right, they are merely prey for their new opponent — the ultimate killer of killers.
Predator: Killer of Killers is also directed by Dan Trachtenberg, with Josh Wassung, from animation company The Third Floor, serving as co-director.
What do you think about the new look for the Predator in the Badlands trailer? Share your thoughts in the comments down below!
