Predator: Badlands looks like a hit after it secured the biggest global opening ever for a Predator movie — including the Alien vs. Predator films — at the box office.
Dan Trachtenberg, who revitalized Predator with 2022’s back to basics Prey and this year’s animated anthology Killer of Killer, has continued his hot streak with the PG-13 Predator: Badlands, which has enjoyed strong reviews from critics. (IGN’s Predator: Badlands review returned an 8/10.)
Disney said Predator: Badlands opened to $40 million domestically and $40 million internationally for a global opening weekend total of $80 million. That’s the biggest debut for a Predator movie ever at current rates. For context, 2018’s The Predator opened to $73.5 million.
Predator began with 1987’s much-loved Predator, starring Arnold Schwarzenegger. Predator: Badlands is a very different film; less sci-fi horror, more mainstream sci-fi action. For the first time ever the Predator is the protagonist, with a Yautja called Dek (Dimitrius Schuster-Koloamatangi) out to prove himself to his father by killing a monster on a death planet. Along the way, he meets a Weyland-Yutani synth called Thia, played by Elle Fanning, in an Alien / Predator crossover.
It’s a big swing for Predator and for Dan Trachtenberg, but he was uninterested in essentially remaking prior Predator movies for this new sequel. In a recent interview with IGN, Trachtenberg said he was inspired by Terminator 2 when it came to making Badlands. “Terminator 2: Judgment Day was like a movie my mom could watch,” he said. “So that was a part of it for me, like how to make something that was bold and visceral but also emotional.”
It’s a strong start, then, and hopefully a sign that Trachtenberg will be able to continue making more Predator movies, fleshing out his fledgling Predator cinematic universe and perhaps making good on that Dutch tease at the end of Killer of Killers. Could we perhaps see an all-star team up at some point?
Certainly, Predator: Badlands sets things up for a direct sequel. Check out IGN’s Predator: Badlands Ending Explained to find out what’s next for the series.
Wesley is Director, News at IGN. Find him on Twitter at @wyp100. You can reach Wesley at [email protected] or confidentially at [email protected].
