4 Crucial Predator Mythology Questions Unanswered by Badlands (And When They Might Be Revealed)

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This weekend saw the release of Predator: Badlands, the seventh main installment and the third directed by Dan Trachtenberg. This new film is a significant shift for the Predator series – it’s the first to focus on a Predator as the central character and features no humans at all. Badlands proves the franchise is more flexible than fans realized, and demonstrates that the world of Predator continues to grow and evolve with interesting new stories.

Beyond adding to the established history of the Predator universe, Predator: Badlands also includes hints about the Alien franchise for sci-fi fans. However, the story’s conclusion is unusual, leaving the future of the series unclear and some established details unexplained. It’s prompted a lot of discussion about the mythology and where it might be going. The following contains spoilers for Predator: Badlands.

4) What Year Does Badlands Take Place?

It’s never explicitly stated when Predator: Badlands takes place, but clues suggest a timeframe connected to the Alien universe. The presence of Weyland-Yutani technology, most notably the MU/TH/UR computer first seen in Alien, points to this connection. Since MU/TH/UR appears in Alien films set between 2104 (Alien: Covenant) and 2142 (Alien: Romulus), Predator: Badlands likely takes place sometime within that period, or even later.

Usually, this wouldn’t be a major concern – it is a sci-fi movie about the Predator, after all. However, with the franchise increasingly focused on interconnected storylines, it’s an important question to answer. Because the new Predator movies have a complex and somewhat unclear relationship to each other, and potentially to the Alien universe as well, fans will likely want to know exactly where this film fits within the overall timeline.

3) How Does the Clan From Badlands Connect to Killer of Killers?

With Predator: Killer of Killers, the franchise took a big step forward by visiting the Predator’s home planet and showcasing their culture. The animated movie introduces The Grendel King, a powerful elder Predator with an impressive cape, who leads the Warlord clan. This clan is the origin of all the Predators featured in Killer of Killers, and the film reveals it to be far larger than previously thought, showing a massive group of hunters chasing after the escaping humans.

Interestingly, Dek’s father from Predator: Badlands, named Njohrr, is a significant leader on Yautja Prime – the same planet seen in Predator: Killer of Killers. Although Njohrr appears wealthy and has many weapons, the ending of Badlands suggests his clan isn’t as powerful as the Warlord Clan from Killer of Killers. His home isn’t lavish, and he has relatively few guards, which raises questions about his relationship to the Grendel King. Are they connected, with Njohrr owing allegiance to the King? Or are they completely separate? For now, the answer remains unknown.

2) Where’s the Game Preserve Planet from Predators?

Since the release of Prey in 2022, director Dan Trachtenberg has shown a clear dedication to the original Predator films. While his movies include many nods to the first two Predator movies, he’s intentionally avoided referencing the 2018 film The Predator and the 2010 film Predators (which some fans actually consider a hidden gem). Predators featured a unique premise: the Predators abduct dangerous killers from different worlds – mostly Earth – and bring them to a planet designed as a hunting ground for sport.

The game preserve planet isn’t mentioned in either Prey, Predator: Killer of Killers, or Predator: Badlands. While it’s not a major plot point, it’s still a curious omission. A possible explanation is that the game preserve’s sky shows surrounding planets, and one of them could be Yautja Prime – the Yautja homeworld featured in Killer of Killers and Badlands. However, the planet is never directly identified within the lore.

The movie Predators hasn’t been revisited in other media, and neither has the planet where it takes place, likely because the film introduced a conflict – a rivalry between a group of powerful ‘Super Predators’ and other Predator clans. Whether this storyline will be continued or if we’ll see Super Predators again is unknown, but director Trachtenberg has the opportunity to explore this unique part of the Predator universe if he chooses to.

1) What About the Ending of Predator: Killer of Killers?

The animated anthology Predator: Killer of Killers gave the Predator franchise its most promising ending in over three decades. Like Predator 2, which hinted at a showdown between the Yautja and Xenomorphs, this new installment clearly suggests where the story could go next, something fans haven’t seen in a long time.

The movie Killer of Killers ended by hinting that Naru, the character from Prey, had been taken by the Predators and put into a sort of frozen sleep, with no clear reason given. Recently, a new scene was added showing that Danny Glover’s character, Mike Harrigan from Predator 2, and Arnold Schwarzenegger’s Dutch Schaefer from the first Predator movie, have also been captured.

Dan Trachtenberg, the director, has hinted that the Predator movies are all leading to a larger story. He says the ending of Prey (also known as Killer of Killers) and the events in Predator: Badlands will eventually connect, but only when the timing and story feel right. Currently, the only confirmed link between the two is that they both take place on the same planet. How they’ll connect beyond that remains a mystery, and Trachtenberg seems to prefer keeping it that way, even though fans are eager to know.

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2025-11-08 18:41