Director Dan Trachtenberg is bringing not one but two Predator films to audiences this year, expanding the sci-fi franchise in exciting new directions. Following the success of his 2022 prequel Prey (which you should definitely watch), Trachtenberg has created both an animated anthology and a live-action theatrical release.
The first to arrive will be Predator: Killer of Killers, an animated anthology premiering on Hulu on June 6. Co-directed by Trachtenberg and Josh Wassung from The Third Floor animation company, this anthology features three distinct historical settings, including
- A Viking-era story following a female warrior guiding her young son on a revenge quest
- A feudal Japan narrative about a ninja who turns against his samurai brother
- A World War II segment featuring a pilot investigating an otherworldly threat to the Allied forces
The trailer reveals the Predator aliens engaging in bloody battles across these three time periods, continuing the franchise’s tradition of pitting the hunters against humanity’s most skilled warriors.
The voice cast includes Lindsay LaVanchy, Louis Ozawa (who previously appeared in 2010’s Predators), Rick Gonzalez, and notably Michael Biehn, known to sci-fi fans for his roles in The Terminator and Aliens.
The second Predator project, Predator: Badlands, will hit theaters on November 7. While details are more scarce, this live-action film apparently takes the franchise in a different direction from Killer of Killers. According to reports, Badlands will be set on a remote planet and follow a young woman (played by Elle Fanning) who finds an unlikely ally in an outcast Predator alien.
After Prey became a breakout hit for Hulu as the platform’s biggest premiere at that time, 20th Century Studios president Steve Asbell revealed that Trachtenberg didn’t want to simply make Prey 2. Instead, the director pitched several “crazy but really cool” ideas, two of which became these upcoming films.
At a press event, Trachtenberg explained that the animation project gave him a new avenue of creativity, stating, “In thinking about the different time periods, I honed in on the idea of, what if we made an animated movie where we could express ourselves in a way that we don’t get to see?” He added, “The other side of the coin that I love in Predator movies is that hard-R, crazy carnage. Wouldn’t it be cool to see that in a different medium?”
Clearly, Predator fans have much to look forward to this year, with both projects exploring different aspects of the franchise’s appeal while (hopefully) staying true to its core premise of humanity’s greatest warriors facing off against the galaxy’s ultimate hunters.
