Predator: Badlands’ Canceled Plan Included Returning Character Who Revitalized The Franchise

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Dan Trachtenberg’s Predator: Badlands shifted the direction of the Predator series following the success of his 2022 film Prey. Originally, that wasn’t the plan, but the ending of Predator: Killer of Killers makes this change feel even more logical.

Director Dan Trachtenberg recently shared with ScreenTime/Dexterto that he thought about including Amber Midthunder, who played Naru in the successful film Prey, in the new Predator movie, Badlands. Naru, the protagonist of Prey, famously survived an encounter with a Predator in 1719 on the Great Plains. The idea was considered before the film’s release on November 7th.

Trachtenberg explained that he initially considered pairing Naru and Dek as the central characters in Predator: Badlands. However, he ultimately chose to team Dek up with Elle Fanning’s character, Thia, instead. He decided against the Naru and Dek pairing because he wanted the Yautja Predator to be the primary focus of the story, without relying on human characters as leads.

I initially considered pairing Naru with Dek, but I realized that would change the core idea I wanted to explore. I was really interested in telling a story where the Predator was the main character and there were no human protagonists. Later on, we thought we could still do something interesting with Naru’s character.

Although Jane Midthunder isn’t the main focus of Predator: Badlands, the director has plans to bring her character back into the overall Predator story. This was hinted at in Killer of Killers, which shows Naru being held captive by the Yautja after the events of Prey, confirming she wasn’t killed at the end of that film.

I’m really fascinated by what the Predators are up to with Naru, Harrigan, and Dutch. Trachtenberg’s story in Predator: Badlands seems to hint at some clues. It’s amazing to think that even though Badlands takes place so far in the future, those original characters could potentially still be around, maybe in some kind of stasis, waiting for Dek and Thia’s time to come around. It definitely makes you wonder what the Predators’ long game is!

Amber Midthunder’s return as a character in a future Predator movie likely hinges on how well the upcoming film, Predator: Badlands, performs in theaters. Badlands, set to release in 2025, is the first Predator movie to get a wide theatrical release since 2018, and current predictions suggest it could be a major success, potentially breaking franchise box office records.

Currently, a second Prey movie starring Amber Midthunder as Naru is still in the works. It was officially announced in February 2024, but development has been put on hold while the team focuses on releasing Predator: Badlands.

We’re hoping to see Amber Midthunder reprise her role in Prey 2 and future movies in the series. However, the director made a good decision by focusing on a Predator and a synthetic human in the latest film, choosing to hold off on a full return for Naru until a larger story can be told after Predator: Badlands.

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2025-11-03 23:51