‘Predator: Badlands’ Breaks Franchise Record With Huge Opening Weekend

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Everyone knew the new Predator movie would be significant, but its success has exceeded expectations. Unlike the previous film, Prey, this latest installment from director Dan Trachtenberg has been a hit with both critics and audiences, and it’s on track to have the biggest opening weekend of any Predator movie yet.

The new movie, Predator: Badlands, was aiming to become the highest-grossing film in the Predator series (excluding the Alien vs. Predator movies) by earning over $24.6 million. It now looks like Badlands will make around $37 million domestically this weekend. If it gets good reviews and attracts enough extra moviegoers – about $1.2 million worth – it could even beat the $38.2 million earned by the 2004 Alien vs. Predator crossover.

The movie is currently well-received, with an 85% score from critics on Rotten Tomatoes. However, the biggest news is the audience score, which is a remarkable 96%. This is significantly higher than the score for the previous film, Prey (74%), and even beats the original 1987 movie (87%). It’s clear that the director hasn’t just brought the franchise back to life, but has actually made it better than ever before. This makes the decision to release Prey directly on Disney+ in 2022 seem like a mistake.

‘Prey’ Should Have Been Given a Theatrical Release


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Despite being well-established, major movie studios sometimes make puzzling choices. This year, Sony Pictures essentially gave away a potential blockbuster, KPop Demon Hunters, to Netflix in a content deal, possibly costing themselves billions. Similarly, in 2022, Disney unexpectedly released a Predator prequel directly to streaming.

The movie Prey quickly became popular on Disney+, earning great reviews and attracting a lot of viewers. This led many to wonder why it hadn’t been given a proper release in theaters. While the pandemic played a role, the main issue was that Disney didn’t seem to consider a theatrical release, prioritizing getting content onto Disney+ instead of focusing on what makes a film a big-screen success – a problem many studios share.

Despite his previous Predator film, Killer of Killers, going straight to streaming, Badlands is the first Predator movie to hit theaters in seven years. This success feels like a vindication for director Dane Trachtenberg. More importantly, Badlands‘ strong performance could finally make a long-discussed crossover between the Predator and Alien universes happen. The film subtly sets the stage for such a crossover, and with the recent Alien: Romulus and plans for Alien: Earth delivering exciting Xenomorph action, things are looking promising for fans of both franchises. It’s especially noteworthy considering many initially feared Disney’s acquisition of Fox would spell the end for properties like Alien and Predator.

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2025-11-08 20:50