Please note: this article contains major spoilers for “Predator: Badlands”.
If this is any indication of where the “Predator” franchise will be heading in the years to come, consider us fully and completely in the bag for whatever comes next. Starting with 2022’s “Prey,” director Dan Trachtenberg put on a clinic on how to successfully revitalize and reinvent a classic property for modern blockbuster cinema – simply by instantly introducing fan-favorite characters that audiences would eagerly follow from one story to the next. It’s an incredibly forward-thinking approach that challenges most conventional thinking these days, often prioritizing lazy sequel-bait writing or “expanded universe” bullet points aimed at conference rooms full of suits. Then came this year’s animated film “Killer of Killers” and especially “Predator: Badlands,” the latter of which could not be a more ideal example of crossover ambitions well-realized.
On the surface, “Badlands” doesn’t really seem interested in setting things up for the inevitable “Alien vs. Predator” reboot that’s reportedly in the cards…and that’s exactly what makes it so effective. The only real setup for crossing the alien streams is limited to what has already been shown in the marketing. The Weyland-Yutani synths of Elle Fanning, Thia, and Tessa, along with the rest of the company’s intrusive presence on “death planet” Genna, constitute the extent of any real bridge between the two sides of the franchise divide. No Xenomorphs, no visible eggs, no teases that Michael Fassbender’s murderous David is lurking around corners. It’s as counterintuitive a decision as we’ve seen in any recent genre film.
It’s also the right one. By doing more with less, Trachtenberg proves that not all brand expansions are built the same way. And, thanks to a surprising amount of studio restraint, “Badlands” has us more excited than ever for the future.
Predator: Badlands is a rare example of creativity trumping commerce
Although “Predator: Badlands” is the furthest thing from a superhero film, the temptation to release an “Iron Man 2” or “Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice” must have been overwhelming. The two misbegotten sequels have entered fanboy lore as two of the most misguided attempts to rush into a shared universe. Where the Marvel film introduced superfluous characters who would later play a role in the 2012 crossover for the ages, “The Avengers,” Zack Snyder’s 2016 DC film made its intentions known right from that clunky subtitle and the infamous exposition dump that stopped the film in its tracks to show us various teasers for the Justice League.
There’s an alternate universe in which “Badlands” could have done much the same thing with its “Alien” connections, taking advantage of the generally positive reaction to last year’s “Alien: Romulus” and forcing unnatural crossovers where they don’t belong. Fortunately, it doesn’t appear that 20th Century Studios pressured Dan Trachtenberg into making one of the biggest mistakes of either franchise to this point (aside from, you know, those disastrous “Alien vs. Predator” films). From a purely corporate perspective, this would have made a lot of sense. The groundwork was already laid with “Prey” and “Alien: Romulus,” two very different films that nonetheless reignited interest in both properties and left plenty of room for sequels. So why not kill two birds with one stone and create a single crossover merging the two stories?
Instead, Trachtenberg managed to emerge unscathed from the big-budget quagmire and realize the (mostly) self-contained adventure he had always envisioned – a rare victory for creativity over commerce.
Dan Trachtenberg wisely keeps alien connections to a minimum in Predator: Badlands
Some fans may be disappointed that what they see of “Badlands” is what they ultimately get, but there is a method to the “madness” of keeping this particular “Predator” story focused on, well, the “Predator” of it all as opposed to the “Alien” side of the equation. The film’s first teaser raised many eyebrows when it revealed Elle Fanning’s disembodied synth Thia rolling her eyes back and showing off that unmistakable Weyland-Yutani logo. If his appearance in the film had been such, these fears would certainly have been justified. But rather than existing simply to make “Alien” fans gape at something familiar, Thia continues to play a vital role as one half of an unlikely duo with Dimitrius Schuster-Koloamatangi’s Yautja Dek.
Thia’s entire existence as a Synthesizer explains why Dek even gives her a second look in the first place, establishing a nuanced and comprehensive arc for both characters. It almost becomes a running joke at first that the determined Yautja only sees this synth as a “tool”, agreeing to save her life during their first encounter only because it might prove useful during his hunt for the alien kaiju Kalisk on this world of monster-eat-monsters. Not only does their bizarre dynamic benefit each mutually, but it also helps anchor the film’s thematic message in the most powerful idea of all: an alien conditioned to act as a machine-learning empath of a machine that behaves more humanly than anyone else.
Could Trachtenberg and writer Patrick Aison have included even more overt references to “Alien”? Sure, but this minimalist approach only makes us more excited for the true “Alien”https://www.slashfilm.com/”Predator” crossover to come. “Predator: Badlands” is now playing in theaters.
