2025 is a stacked year for genre releases, and that’s putting it lightly…
Now, we have another release to add to the already heaving ’25 calendar, with Dan Trachtenberg’s second Predator feature, now titled Predator: Badlands.
Said to be a “high priority” for 20th Century Studios, the “stand alone” Predator tale is hoped to capitalise on the success of Trachtenberg’s 2022 prequel Prey. Released as a Hulu original movie, Prey became the highest rated original feature in the service’s history. Later, Prey would also garner the honour of being the first horror movie to win an Emmy.
Given all that success, it was theorised that 20th Century Studios would up the ante with Badlands, releasing the film theatrically.
Now, we can confirm Predator: Badlands will debut theatrically, and will release worldwide on November 7th 2025. Bolstered by the streaming success of Prey and the enormous profit turned by Alien: Romulus, Badlands stands a decent chance at the box-office, and we’re intrigued to see how it performs.
Badlands is set to “further expand” the Predator universe, opening the titular species up to a greater number of time periods and settings. Said to be set “in the near future,” the film will follow “two very different sisters.” Their familial bond will be put to the ultimate test when they both pursue a very deadly mission…
The Neon Demon star Elle Fanning will take the lead, with no further cast members announced publicly. Filming on the project recently wrapped in New Zealand, under the working title Backpack.
So, not only has the Xenomorph made a triumphant return to the big screen, but the Predator hopes to do the same. Will the studio see similar returns? Or could an oversaturated release calendar work against not only Badlands, but several films on the roster?
