5 Ways The Predator Franchise Has Been Made Better Than Ever by Dan Trachtenberg

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Filmmaker Dan Trachtenberg has given a new lease of life to the Predator movie series with great enthusiasm, and here’s why the science fiction franchise is experiencing a comeback after its initial launch in 1987 with Arnold Schwarzenegger’s Predator. The Predator movies have experienced ups and downs throughout their journey. The original movie, which introduced an exciting new alien monster through action-packed scenes, remains a timeless classic. However, the Predator series hasn’t consistently matched the success it initially achieved. Some films, like 2010’s Predators, successfully followed in the footsteps of the first movie, while others, such as 2018’s The Predator, fell short of recapturing the same charm.

The fortune of the Predator franchise significantly shifted with the 2022 prequel, Prey, where the Predator (also known as “Yautja”) was sent back in time to the 18th century for a confrontation against a young Comanche warrior named Naru, portrayed by Amber Midthunder. Dan Trachtenberg’s 2025 animated anthology titled Predator: Killer of Killers continued this winning streak for the once stagnant series. The return of Predator to movie theaters in 2025 with Predator: Badlands indicates a rejuvenation for the franchise that rivals its glory days in the ’80s. Here are five crucial ways Dan Trachtenberg’s work on the Predator franchise has brought it back from obscurity to such impressive success.

1) Trachtenberg’s Predator Movies Do Phenomenal World-Building

Just as in many ongoing science fiction series, creating rich worlds and intricate mythologies are crucial aspects of the Predator franchise. The handling of Predator by Trachtenberg has taken this to a higher level. It started subtly, like the appearance of the flintlock pistol from Predator 2 in the tale of Prey, also featuring its user, Raphael Adolini (Bennett Taylor). Initially seen as an amusing Easter egg, Trachtenberg has since propelled the world-building of Predator to new heights with his subsequent installments.

The flintlock pistol reappears in the movie “Predator: Killer of Killers,” and this film delves deeper into the warrior culture of the Yautja, a aspect that is particularly evident when Predators are shown freezing humans who have previously bested them and transporting them to an arena on another planet for a fresh battle royale. The movie’s closing credits scene hints at Amber Midthunder’s character Naru being among those frozen. “Predator: Badlands” revolves around an outcast Predator, Dek (played by Dimitrius Schuster-Koloamatangi), and incorporates elements of the “Alien” series that could significantly impact the storyline. In summary, since Trachtenberg has been overseeing the “Predator” franchise, each new installment expands and deepens the universe’s scope.

2) The Predator Culture Is an Essential Element of the Franchise Again

The reason why the Predator franchise and its characters have become so beloved is due to their unique culture. Valuing battle skills and hunting abilities above everything, the Predators are not just one kind, as shown by the Super Predators in 2010’s ‘Predators,’ who were at odds with the Classic Predators in a tribal conflict. This aspect brought an additional layer of complexity to the Predator lore, but it was not fully developed in ‘The Predator’ from 2018. However, Trachtenberg has emphasized this element during his work on the Predator franchise.

As a dedicated fan of the Predator saga, I can’t help but marvel at how both “Prey” and “Predator: Killers of Killers” have expanded upon the diverse Yautja factions introduced in “Predators.” These films have unveiled an array of unique Predators, hinting at the vast number of tribes that exist within this alien species. Looking ahead, “Predator: Badlands” seems primed to further this trend, promising even more intriguing insights into these elusive hunters.

Moreover, each subgroup of Predators exhibits distinct hunting methods in the mythos created by Trachtenberg. This diversity is then reflected through various human cultures, who interpret these encounters within the context of their own mythologies, legends, and religions. This portrayal underscores how humans have perceived Predators differently across the ages, thereby enriching the cultural depth of the Predator universe in Trachtenberg’s “Predator” franchise.

3) Trachtenberg’s Predator Movies Span Radically Different Settings, Time Periods, & Cultures

Through his passion for the Predator lore, Trachtenberg has also emphasized the cultures of the human adversaries they face, giving them a more prominent role than ever in the Predator series. Intriguingly, both “Predator 2” and “Predators” subtly hinted at the Predators’ long history on Earth – the flintlock pistol from the former and Hanzo, a Yakuza enforcer, unearthing a Samurai sword in the latter’s game preserve planet. These details, along with the flashback to Predators being worshipped as gods among an ancient Antarctic population in “Alien vs. Predator,” form the foundation of Trachtenberg’s approach to the Predator movies.

In both “Prey” and “Killer of Killers”, the stories unfold in historical settings and feature protagonists hailing from diverse cultures and time periods. These characters engage in battles against the Predators using their unique tactics, tools, and warrior traditions. This is all set prior to the Predator’s hunts on Earth as we know it today. Similarly, “Predator: Badlands” ventures the Predator series into the future for the first time, with a new cast of human characters contributing to the narrative. The creator, Trachtenberg, acknowledges that while Predators are the central figures in the franchise, the humans and the eras they come from are equally crucial to the development of the Predator universe’s setting and dynamics.

4) Trachtenberg’s Predators Are Both Scary & Three-Dimensional Characters

The 1987 film “Predator” is frequently hailed as the quintessential representation of ’80s action heroism, yet it also excels as a chilling horror movie. In its debut, the Yautja, a previously unknown movie monster, made the 7-foot tall alien hunter with an invisibility cloak truly terrifying for even a well-equipped and skilled military team. The recent films “Prey” and “Killer of Killers,” directed by Trachtenberg, have effectively rekindled the fear factor associated with the Predator, with the ferocious Feral Predator from “Prey” being particularly frightening and reminiscent of a horror movie slasher in the Predator franchise.

In a novel twist, Trachtenberg is attempting to present the Yautja in a remarkably compassionate and valiant light for the first time through Dek’s character in Predator: Badlands. For the first time, a Predator takes center stage as the main character in a Predator film. Trachtenberg is guiding Dek on a journey of redemption to regain his warrior status within Predator society after being exiled. In this revamped version of the Predator series by Dan Trachtenberg, the Predators are not only capable of instilling fear as terrifying monsters, but they also display characteristics that resonate with us as human beings.

5) The Predator Franchise Has Its First Recurring Protagonist

Although Arnold Schwarzenegger’s role as Dutch in the 1987 film, “Predator,” significantly contributed to his career, unlike how the “Terminator” franchise revolves around him and the T-800, the “Predator” series does not have a similar focus on Dutch. Each “Predator” movie has featured a different human lead battling their movie’s Yautja hunters. However, in a significant shift for the “Predator” franchise, director Dan Trachtenberg introduced Amber Midthunder’s character, Naru, in “Prey,” and she also reappears in the end credits scene of “Predator: Killer of Killers.

Midthunder’s character Naru significantly enhanced the reboot of the Prey franchise with her impressive portrayal. Even in a brief appearance where she is frozen by Predators in Killer of Killers, Naru has become a groundbreaking Predator character as the first recurring one. This twist suggests that we might see more of Naru in future Predator movies like Predator: Badlands. Furthermore, this development could pave the way for other Predator protagonists to make a comeback too. If Dutch, played by Arnold Schwarzenegger, is to return and fight the Predators again, it’s largely due to Trachtenberg setting up Naru as the first Predator hero or heroine to reappear.

The movie titled “Predator: Killer of Killers” can now be streamed on Hulu, while the film “Predator: Badlands” is set to hit theaters on November 7th.

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2025-06-25 21:42