Predator: Badlands director Dan Trachtenberg has revealed that while his upcoming sci-fi movie shares DNA with the Alien universe, he intentionally avoided a heavy-handed crossover approach opting instead for a subtler, more sophisticated connection between the two franchises.
Speaking exclusively to GamesRadar+, Trachtenberg explained that his goal was to build a sense of shared continuity without turning the film into another “versus” spectacle. “It was really just thinking of the VS movies; the Alien vs. Predators that came out very quickly around the same time, Freddy vs. Jason and whatever…” he said. “It just felt, to me, like there was a way to include things in cinematic universes that are already spiritually connected, and involve them in one story, in one movie. That’s cooler than it being like, ‘It’s the big thing versus the big thing from the franchise!’”
The film’s trailers have already fueled speculation, revealing Elle Fanning’s character, Thia, as a Weyland-Yutani synthetic — alongside glimpses of a Power Loader-type exosuit reminiscent of Aliens. These details sparked fan theories that Predator: Badlands could secretly serve as a stealth Alien vs. Predator prelude.
However, Trachtenberg emphasized that the connection was meant to feel “more elegant.” “We just took Weyland-Yutani, we just took the synths, and we thought there was just something a little bit more elegant about that,” he said. “Maybe further down the line, it can grow into a bigger thing. But it’s cooler, to me, that it’s just these little different touch points that make it all feel like a connected universe. And if all of it is new to you, you don’t need to have done any homework. It could just be a rad movie that makes sense on its own.”
Predator: Badlands stars Dimitrius Schuster-Koloamatangi alongside Fanning and centers on Dek, a Yautja “runt” who ventures to the galaxy’s most dangerous planet to hunt a deadly Kalisk and regain his clan’s honor. Along the way, he encounters Thia, a legless android whose upbeat personality clashes with his stoic nature before the two form an unlikely partnership.
Trachtenberg’s remarks suggest the franchise could expand further, teasing that Badlands is just one piece of a larger creative vision. “After Prey came out, and I started thinking about sequel stuff, there were three ideas that I had. [Predator: Killer of] Killers is one, Badlands is two and the third one is something else,” he previously told SFX Magazine. “The reason why I felt possessed to make them… was because I was so eager to get to the third thing.”
Predator: Badlands opens in UK and US theaters on November 7, promising a visually striking and character-driven entry into the evolving Predator universe.
Source: Gamesradar
