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Predator: Badlands Kicks Off Comic-Con with Action and Surprise
Jul
While Marvel skipped this year’s Comic-Con, Disney still drew big attention. They showcased two major projects from 20th Century Studios: Predator: Badlands and Tron: Ares.
Predator Warrior Shocks Hall H Audience
The Badlands panel started with an unexpected entrance. A Predator warrior came on stage and scanned the Hall H crowd using his signature multi-color vision. The audience could see the scan projected on the big screen. He quickly spotted moderator Kevin Smith.
Smith joked, “I don’t speak Yautja, but I’m pretty sure he said something about the Jeffrey Epstein files!”
He also teased the possibility of director Dan Trachtenberg taking on a future Alien vs. Predator project, which earned cheers from the crowd.
Cast and Director Take the Stage
Director Dan Trachtenberg joined Elle Fanning, Dimitrius Schuster-Koloamatangi, and visual effects expert Alec Gillis on stage. They introduced Predator: Badlands — the first film in the franchise with a Predator as the lead character.
“This story is full of heart and emotion,” Fanning said. “Prey had that too, but Badlands is unique because there are no human characters. I play a synthetic android. Dimitrius plays the Predator. There’s an unlikely friendship between our characters.”
Fanning revealed she plays two roles in the movie. She also noted that the film was shot in New Zealand using practical effects. “You’re not acting with a tennis ball,” she said. The crowd cheered when she mentioned this was her first time in Hall H.
A Glimpse at the First 15 Minutes
The preview opened with two Predator brothers: Kwei and Dek. They fought in a desert canyon. Their tribe sees Dek as weak, and their father demands to know why Kwei hasn’t eliminated him yet.
Their father traps Dek in laser chains, but Kwei steps in to save him. He launches Dek in a ship to a hostile planet called Kalisk. There, Dek must face a terrifying apex predator — one that even their father fears.
A Damaged Android Joins the Hunt
On Kalisk, Dek meets Thia — or what’s left of her. Thia, played by Fanning, is a broken android with only half her body intact. Her face is stitched together. Dek straps her to his back. Together, they set off to hunt the unkillable beast and bring back a trophy.
Trachtenberg Returns After Prey
Dan Trachtenberg previously directed Prey, released on Hulu in 2022. Fans and critics praised it, though it didn’t get a theatrical release due to Disney’s streaming-first strategy at the time.
Now, Predator: Badlands is heading to theaters. It opens exclusively on November 7.
A Legacy Franchise Evolves
The Predator series began in 1987 with a film starring Arnold Schwarzenegger. Though he never returned to the franchise, Predator has continued for nearly four decades. It has even crossed over twice with Ridley Scott’s Alien universe.
