Predator: Badlands (4K UHD Review)
- Review Date: Feb 26, 2026
- Format: 4K Ultra HD
-
Director
Dan TrachtenbergRelease Date(s)
2025 (February 17, 2025)Studio(s)
20th Century Studios/Davis Entertainment/Lawrence Gordon/Hulu (20th Century/Sony Pictures Home Entertainment)- Film/Program Grade: B+
- Video Grade: A-
- Audio Grade: A+
- Extras Grade: B-
Review
Dek (Dimitrius Schuster-Koloamatangi) is a young Yautja (read: “Predator”) male, who’s eager to hunt the dangerous kalisk—feared by his father, Njohrr—in an effort to become a full warrior and prove his worth to the clan. But undersized for his age, Dek only evokes his father’s scorn. And when Njohrr demands that his eldest son kill Dek for his weakness, Kwei defends his younger brother instead and is himself killed for disobeying.
Escaping by spacecraft to Genna, the kalisk’s home, Dek crashes on arrival. Dangers abound on this world—even its plants will try to kill you—and Dek has no idea how to find the kalisk, much less how to defeat it. But just when all seems lost, Dek finds a pair of unlikely allies in the form of a damaged Weyland-Yutani android named Thia (Elle Fanning) who offers to help and a strange creature that seems determined to follow their every move.
All right, let me just say this like it is: Predator: Badlands is better than it has any damn right to be. Seriously. Keep in mind, this is a franchise that’s buttered its bread for years by having its mysterious extraterrestrial namesake stalk and slaughter an assortment of weary human characters. But now it’s delivered an entry where the mysterious extraterrestrial is actually the protagonist and an underdog, he’s accompanied by a chipper girl-bot and a comic creature sidekick, and there are no human characters at all! That isn’t just a creative risk, it’s a possible “jump the shark” moment.
Yet I’ll be damned if the film doesn’t work! Director Dan Trachtenberg (10 Cloverfield Land, Prey, and the animated Predator: Killer of Killers), screenwriter Patrick Aison, the film’s producers—hell, even 20th Century Studios president Steve Asbell—put the whole Predator franchise on the line here and they rolled a hard six. Ballsy, people. And well done.
Predator: Badlands is a fresh and entertaining sci-fi actioner, once you get used to its unexpected tonal shifts. Thia’s constant monologue is somewhat jarring initially, but Fanning’s charming delivery lends her character a naive yet sympathetic quality that earns Dek a bit of sympathy too—you can’t help rooting for him because she’s rooting for him. What makes Thia interesting is that in the process of being damaged, she’s evolved empathy and has seen enough of the planet to begin appreciating its beauty. Dek is both fearsome and somehow refreshingly expressive as well. And there are a host of unlikely character moments between Dek, Thia, and “Bud” that are completely unique to this particular film, and make each of them more compelling and interesting.
Genna’s various lifeforms—and there are many—are all believable and well executed. The film’s production design is competent, and its world-building expansion of both the Predator and Alien mythologies largely works too. The battles are all well staged, and the score by Sarah Schachner and Benjamin Wallfisch (who also worked with Trachtenberg on Prey and Predator: Killer of Killers) is effectively edgy and otherworldly—even playful at times—adding a pleasingly alien choral and drum accompaniment to the proceedings.
What’s also impressive is the writing, which breathes life into the characters while never slowing down the action. Yet when you get to that action, again and again it manages somehow to be clever and original, but still allows for little moments of levity that again enhance the characters and their bond. One does worry that the filmmakers might be demystifying the Predators and their culture a bit too much and too quickly, but then this franchise does need to grow beyond its iconic tropes. And Goddamn it, those concerns notwithstanding, Predator: Badlands just works and from start to finish.
Be sure to watch for a few Easter egg references as you’re viewing. (I’m pretty sure the trophy wall aboard Kwei’s spaceship includes skulls from Independence Day, Planet of the Apes, Prometheus, and perhaps Cloverfield.)
Predator: Badlands was captured digitally in the ARRIRAW codec (at 4.5K) by cinematography by Jeff Cutter (10 Cloverfield Lane, Prey, Daisy Jones & The Six) using Arri Alexa Mini LF cameras with Xelmus Apollo anamorphic lenses. It was finished as a native 4K Digital Intermediate framed at the 2.39:1 scope ratio for theaters. For the film’s Ultra HD release, the image was graded for high dynamic range compatible with both Dolby Vision and HDR10, and encoded for release on a 66 GB disc with data rates averaging about 60 Mbps. Image quality is very good on the whole, though the nature of the film—dark, moody environments, overcast skies, lots of fog, mist, smoke, and assorted atmospherics—means that it never really looks incredibly crisp or sharp. It does, however, have a smooth clarity that impresses in its own way, likely due to the anamorphic glass. And the shot design and cinematography are frequently striking and effective. The HDR grade deepens shadows and lends a little extra zest and sizzle to energy weapons, explosions, and holographics. The film’s palette is accurate and nuanced, but not overly saturated. This is definitely a solid 4K image, but not so much a dazzler.
The English Dolby Atmos soundtrack, on the other hand, is absolutely phenomenal. The soundstage is fully hemispheric and immersive, with abundant and aggressive use of the overhead channels, lively directional effects, smooth panning, and muscular bass. Dialogue is clear, while the sound effects mixing is impressively layered to create depth and dimensionality. And the score is presented in excellent fidelity, adding to the sonic experience without overwhelming it. This is reference quality surround sound. Additional audio options include English 2.0 Descriptive Audio and French and Spanish 7.1 Dolby Digital Plus, with subtitles available in English of the Hearing Impaired, French, and Spanish. (Note that the Blu-ray audio options include English 7.1 DTS-HD Master Audio, English 2.0 Descriptive Audio, and French and Spanish 5.1 Dolby Digital, with the same subs.)
20th Century’s 4K release is a 2-disc set that includes the film in 4K on UHD and also Blu-ray. (Separate Blu-ray and 4K Steelbook SKUs are also available.) Both discs include the following special feature:
- Audio Commentary by Dan Trachtenberg, Ben Rosenblatt, Jeff Cutter, and Jacob Tomuri
To this, the Blu-ray adds the following:
- Embodying the Predator (HD – 5:43)
- Authentic Synthetics (HD – 6:41)
- Building the Badlands (HD – 6:53)
- Dek of the Yautja (HD – 6:11)
- Deleted & Pre-Visualization Scenes with Optional Commentary (HD – 6 scenes – 27:37 in all)
- Sand Trap (HD – 3:18)
- Squirt Canyon (HD – 3:08)
- Tessa vs. Abe (HD – 3:21)
- Razor Grass (HD – 6:12)
- The Outpost (HD – 9:29)
- Super Power Loader Extended (HD – 2:16)
The audio commentary is excellent, and includes the director, producer, cinematographer, and stunt coordinator. Trachtenberg and Rosenblatt in particular have a lot to say, but everyone makes worthy contributions—which is impressive when you consider that the participants were on three different parts of the globe during the recording (LA, London, and Australia). It’s immediately clear as you listen that Trachtenberg has thought very deeply about this franchise and its lore, and that attention to detail pays off again and again. The filmmakers are also very conscious about the risks they’re taking, and finding the right balance between being bold while also not going too far. They’re certainly threading a needle here but, to their credit, they’ve really pulled it off. A great deal of information is shared during this track—so much so, in fact, that the participants keep talking right through the credits. And every bit of their discussion is worth listening to.
The video content amounts to about 80 minutes’ worth of material, and while it isn’t exactly comprehensive, it is certainly interesting (and none of it is boring). Predator: Badlands was shot in New Zealand and what’s impressive is how much of it was done practically. One of the key challenges here was how to make the Predator a more expressive character—something we certainly haven’t seen before in this series. There are good looks at not only the process of bringing Dek to life, but also the half-damaged Thia and her “sister,” as well as the various lifeforms and environments of Genna. One thing that’s apparent is how much enthusiasm both lead actors have for their roles, and that energy definitely comes through in the final project. Another highlight is the chance to see costume designer Ngila Dickson detail her approach to the Predator armor and clothing. We also get to see a host of deleted scenes in various stages of completion. And of course, there’s a Movies Anywhere Digital code on a paper slip in the packaging.
Now, you might be wondering—given the overall positivity of this review—why I didn’t grade the film even higher. And that’s because how I ultimately feel about Predator: Badlands is going to depend in large measure on what happens next. We are most definitely not in Kansas anymore—this is new territory. But holy shit, we’re in new territory! I didn’t think this franchise could surprise me again, and it has. So a big tip of the Weyland-Yutani cap from yours truly to everyone involved. I can’t wait for the next one.
And hey: Let’s get the animated Predator: Killer of Killers out on 4K Ultra HD and Blu-ray in the meantime!
- Bill Hunt
(You can follow Bill on social media on X, BlueSky, and Facebook, and also here on Patreon)