Predator: Badlands Director Explains Why Dek Is The Hero

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.

predator badlands new dek image

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.

Disney's New Predator Is A 'Runt'

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.

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