Predator: Badlands Director Explains Why Dek Is The Hero

Predator: Badlands flips the script as the predator is the good guy this time around, and he happens to be the runt of the pack going by the name Dek.

A new image has been unleashed as director Dan Trachtenberg speaks with Empire Magazine and explains why Dek is the protagonist of the movie.

Dek the good guy

 “He’s a thing of few words, pretty blunt,” Trachtenberg teased. “He cuts straight to the point. Literally and figuratively.” 

Trachtenberg continued, “That feels like a big idea, not just within Predator, but in sci-fi generally. In most sci-fi universes, the ‘creatures’ are either bad guys or sidekicks. In [Badlands] it’s: ‘What if you were with the creature on this crazy mission to prove itself, seeing everything through its eyes?’”

He adds, “After Prey, I had three ideas. One was Killer Of Killers, one was Badlands and one… I haven’t done yet. So, there are other awesome ideas and time periods it’d be exciting to explore, and all that’s been part of our discussion for [what’s next].”

Regarding what’s next, rumors offer Trachtenberg is building a new Aliens vs. Predator universe, something the leaked Comic-Con poster hints at.

Release info

Predator: Badlands hits theaters and IMAX on November 7, 2025 and stars Elle Fanning as Thia, with Dimitrius Schuster-Koloamatangi as Dek. 

Official Synopsis:

“Predator: Badlands,” which stars Elle Fanning and Dimitrius Schuster-Koloamatangi, is set in the future on a remote planet, where a young Predator (Schuster-Koloamatangi), outcast from his clan, finds an unlikely ally in Thia (Fanning) and embarks on a treacherous journey in search of the ultimate adversary. The film is directed by Dan Trachtenberg and produced by John Davis, Dan Trachtenberg, Marc Toberoff, Ben Rosenblatt, Brent O’Connor.