Fans of the Predator franchise got exciting news this week when it was announced that Predator: Badlands, the next installment in the Predator franchise, would hit theaters in November 2025 but then got even better news when it was revealed that another, secret Predator film was also coming out in 2025 with it also being directed by Prey filmmaker Dan Trachtenberg That’s two Predator films from Trachtenberg next year, but now, a new rumor may be shedding some light on what to expect from that secret, second film and according to Gizmodo, it might just be an animated anthology.
Per their report, the secret Predator movie is looking like it will be an animated feature that will be anthology-like in that it will tell three different stories of different Predators fighting warriors across multiple eras. The report suggests that one could be pirates, one samurai, and a third unknown one. Again, this is being presented as a rumor at this time, but what is at least interesting about this is the idea that an animated Predator anthology type it does fit into the recent comments from 20th Century Studios president Steve Asbell who noted that Trachtenberg had offered up some “crazy” ideas after Prey as he didn’t want to do Prey 2.
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“Yes, a Predator movie will have a theatrical. I’ll tell you very simply. After Prey became a success Dan [Trachtenberg], came back and said he didn’t want to do Prey 2. And we’re like, ‘What do you want to do?’ And he rattled off a bunch of ideas that were really crazy but really cool,” Asbell said.
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He also noted that Badlands would also be “bonkers” but offered no details about the secret Predator movie. It is also worth noting that Asbell specifically referred to a “live-action Predator film with Elle Fanning that just wrapped in New Zealand” — meaning Badlands. The verbiage seems to suggest that indeed, the secret Predator film could be animated.
The ideal of an animated Predator film would be something new for the franchise. The Predator franchise has seen five total main films to date as well as two crossovers with the Alien franchise, but has also expanded into novels, comics, video games, and more. Animation would be something completely different — especially at a feature length. Additionally, an animated Predator film would also explain how the existence of this installment was kept secret for so long as arguably, it is a little easier to keep animation under wraps than filming live-action films on location or a set.
As for another entry into the general Predator franchise — specifically another Alien vs. Predator film, Asbell had a bit of a promising update on that as well. He said we’ll “probably” see another Alien vs. Predator, but it will be something different that will “be organically created out of these two franchises that we’ve continued with characters that we fall in love with and those characters will combine… perhaps. But we haven’t gotten to that point. And we’re not just going to bang it out.”
Predator: Badlands is set to open in theaters on November 7, 2025 — the date previously held for Marvel Studios’ Blade.