Director Dan Trachtenberg's latest film, Predator: Badlands, has swiftly achieved significant success at the global box office, surpassing the $100 million milestone just ten days after its theatrical release. This impressive performance allowed the movie to recover its reported $105 million budget, securing the future of the beloved franchise. Trachtenberg's prior success with the 2022 prequel, Prey, which many argued deserved a theatrical release over its Hulu streaming debut, established a strong foundation for Badlands. Prior to its theatrical bow by Disney-owned 20th Century Studios, Trachtenberg also co-directed the warmly received straight-to-streaming animated spin-off, Predator: Killer of Killers.

With over $60 million earned domestically, Predator: Badlands has officially become the highest-grossing installment in the franchise, surpassing its predecessors including the original Predator, Predator 2, the 2010 reboot Predators, and the 2018 reboot The Predator. While the film has a journey ahead to match the $350 million global success of Fede Álvarez's Alien: Romulus, it has already outgrossed several notable science-fiction titles such as Transcendence, Chappie, and Life. The Predator series has a history of crossovers with the Alien movies, and there are indications that the studio is planning another similar cinematic merger.

Predator: Badlands has garnered a "certified fresh" 85% score on Rotten Tomatoes, a significant improvement over the 68% held by films like Life, which featured a star-studded cast including Ryan Reynolds, Rebecca Ferguson, Jake Gyllenhaal, and Hiroyuki Sanada, and grossed $101 million globally. Even more impressively, Badlands boasts a near-perfect 95% audience score. The film, which stars Elle Fanning as Thia/Tessa and Dimitrius Schuster-Koloamatangi as Dek/Father, is currently playing in theaters with a listed release date of November 5, 2025, and a runtime of 107 minutes.

Adding an intriguing layer to the film's production, director Dan Trachtenberg revealed a unique Easter egg involving Matt and Ross Duffer, the creators of Netflix's hit series Stranger Things. The Duffer Brothers lent their voices to the Yautja ship's computer in Badlands, heard by audiences as the Yautja computer voice of Kwei's ship. This cameo occurs during a pivotal moment when Kwei (Mike Homik) initiates a launch sequence to jettison his brother, Dek (Dimitrius Koloamatangi), off-world, saving him from their murderous father.

Trachtenberg explained that he "roped them in" while the Duffer Brothers were simultaneously mixing Stranger Things. To create the high-tech, alien effect, their voices were heavily processed and computerized. The challenge for the Duffer Brothers was not just delivering lines, but speaking actual Yautja words from a language specifically created for Badlands by Trachtenberg and his team. Trachtenberg himself admitted to struggling with the guttural and clicking sounds of the language, making the Duffer Brothers' fluent delivery a remarkable feat.

The reason behind this unique collaboration stems from a prior scheduling conflict. Trachtenberg disclosed that he was initially slated to direct an episode of Stranger Things but was unable to due to his commitments to Badlands and Predator: Killer of Killers. This revelation highlights the interconnected nature of Hollywood projects and presents a tantalizing