W2TCH

Predator: Badlands (2025)

2025 • 1h 47m • Adventure, Action • PG-13
On September 23, 2026
#451▼ 114
451st by Pulse movie online
55.4PULSEPulse MeterOur daily Pulse Meter measures public activity and popularity signals across the web.How it works →

All reviews

CinemaSerf on Predator: Badlands

6/10 · Nov 20, 2025

The film centers on "Dek," a young member of the “Yautja” clan considered weak by his father, who tasks his older brother “Kwei” with eliminating him. However, his brother isn’t inclined to be harsh and so, needing to demonstrate his value, "Dek" flees to another planet where he intends to claim "Kalisk" as a prize. Unfortunately, this world is teeming with dangerous creatures and carnivorous plants, making his survival precarious until he meets “Thia” (Elle Fanning), who’s essentially just the upper portion of a synthetic being, and she decides to help him accomplish his goal while also staying alive herself. It becomes clear that both she and another individual named "Tessa" have their own reasons for being on this planet, and getting "Dek" home isn't part of their agenda, especially not alongside a creature possessing remarkable healing abilities. The question is whether the young “Dek” can succeed in his mission or perhaps even surpass expectations by demonstrating cooperation—something his people rarely do—and forging connections. While it’s somewhat improved, the movie largely felt like Adam Driver’s "65" (2023), because the core concept of "Predator"—the fearsome and dominant hunter—is set aside for this visually appealing but unoriginal story about survival against monsters and vegetation that might have been noteworthy in “Star Trek” back in the 1960s. By subverting the familiar storyline, director Dan Trachtenberg seems to want viewers to feel empathy for "Dek" instead of fearing him, which unfortunately makes him seem too human—though he doesn't express himself much—and minimizes any sense of threat. I have to say, I wasn’t impressed with it overall.

Source on TMDB