Predator: Badlands is taking the bold step of making the Predator its protagonist

In an interview with Empire magazine, director Dan Trachtenberg teased that his upcoming film will feature the creature in a very different role than he’s taken in the franchise’s previous outings. “The creature is front and center, leading the charge,” he said of his plans for 2025’s Predator: Badlands. “He’s still badass, but there’s something there that touches you emotionally, too. Creating a character you connect with, but are also super-intimidated by, has been challenging. But exciting.” 

According to the outlet, Predator: Badlands will be a “future-set tale taking place on an alien planet” that isn’t quite a followup to Trachtenberg’s well-received 2022 effort, Prey, but seeks to tap into a similar tone. According to the director, the decision to center the gnarly people-hunter came out of a desire to “find another essential piece of cinema that does what Prey did spiritually—pushing the franchise’s boundaries, letting us root for a hero we rarely get to root for—but in a different way. And that transformed into this big idea of rooting for the Predator.”

This shifting focus does call Elle Fanning’s role into question. The actor will play “more than one character,” the outlet explains, but it’s unclear whether those characters will be for or against the Predator (or how the audience will be asked to empathize with them versus the creature). Either way, the actor apparently faced “intense challenges on this movie—dramatically, physically, logistically.” Guess that’s what happens when you take on an extraterrestrial super-soldier, and he’s the one hailed as a hero.