Predator: Badlands Director Revealed How Much James Cameron’s Comments Influenced Him, Even If The Filmmaker Didn’t Necessarily Remember Saying Them

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Often, a single word of encouragement can be enough to move a daring idea forward. That was the case with the upcoming 2025 movie, Predator: Badlands. Director Dan Trachtenberg recently shared that some casual remarks from James Cameron—the director of Aliens—gave him the confidence to pursue what could be the most ambitious Predator film to date. Interestingly, Cameron may not even recall the conversation that inspired him.

Director Dan Trachtenberg recalls a dinner with James Cameron while preparing for his film Badlands in New Zealand. Trachtenberg had just finished an eight-hour drive to visit Cameron on the set of the new Avatar: Fire and Ash. After explaining his idea for Badlands to the Terminator director, they shared a meal during which Cameron offered a piece of advice that stayed with Trachtenberg throughout the entire production, as he recently told The Hollywood Reporter.

He joined us for dinner and shared that he’d been thinking about our project and felt confident it would succeed. He was so excited, he immediately sailed back to Auckland to tell the team. He was particularly impressed by the support of someone who consistently overcomes huge challenges – their encouragement meant a lot.

Several months later, after Cameron saw a nearly completed version of the film, he shared some unexpected thoughts. The director of Prey explained:

I had some questions for him and was hoping for his advice. He’d seen the movie a couple of months earlier, and he told me he initially doubted our project would succeed, but was amazed we actually pulled it off. Either he’d forgotten how much his earlier skepticism bothered me, or he genuinely knew what we needed to hear to stay motivated. I believe it was the latter. He offered encouragement at key moments, and we made sure to thank him for it.

In Badlands, director Dan Trachtenberg offers a fresh take on the Predator story, focusing on a single Predator named Dek (Dimitrius Schuster-Koloamatangi). The film takes place on the dangerous planet Genna, where Dek teams up with a synthetic human named Thia (Elle Fanning) to hunt a legendary creature. This is a significant and bold change for the series. Despite the risk, Trachtenberg continued with his vision, encouraged by James Cameron’s support—perhaps even without Cameron fully realizing it.

It’s possible James Cameron doesn’t recall initially supporting Predator: Badlands. However, whether he meant to or not, his encouragement was exactly what director Trachtenberg needed, and Cameron rightfully received a thank you in the film’s credits.

The risk of trying something different with the latest Predator movie, Badlands, seems to be working. It’s receiving positive reviews from both critics and fans, with an 85% rating from critics and a remarkable 95% audience score on Rotten Tomatoes. This is especially impressive for the ninth film in the Predator series (including the Alien vs. Predator movies).

Ultimately, even if James Cameron doesn’t recall the specific experience, his impact is clear in Predator: Badlands. Like many great sequels—including his own Aliens and Terminator 2: Judgment Day—this film isn’t afraid to take the story in new directions. Predator: Badlands is currently playing in theaters, so check local listings for showtimes.

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2025-11-09 21:08