The Star Wars movie that inspired the creation of Predator: Badlands

Dan Trachtenberg’s first “Predator” film, “Prey,” focused on Naru (Amber Midthunder), an 18th-century Comanche girl who wanted to prove herself as a hunter and warrior. Trachtenberg’s next film, “Predator: Badlands,” also features an underdog protagonist underestimated by his peers. This time the loser is a Predator, specifically young Dek (Dimitrius Schuster-Koloamatangi).

Dek has arrived on the planet Genna (a name resembling “Gehenna,” an ancient term for hell) to hunt unkillable prey and prove his worth. This is a break from previous “Predator” films, dating back to the 1987 original, which largely depicted the Predators as villains hunting human prey.

In a new interview with Empire magazineTrachtenberg revealed a seed of his idea to turn a Predator into a hero: the original trailer for “Star Wars: The Force Awakens,” which opened on sand dunes before John Boyega’s Finn burst onto the scene in Stormtrooper armor. The shot revealed that one of the heroes in this new trilogy was going to be a Stormtrooper, previously depicted as disposable grunts for the heroes to destroy.

“I think about that moment a lot,” Trachtenberg said. “The possibilities of what it meant popped into your mind. That moment is absolutely part of my interest in looking for unique protagonists.”

Now, many (including Boyega) feel that the “Star Wars” sequels ultimately didn’t live up to that potential. boyega said that Finn’s arc should have culminated with him inspiring a rebellion of indoctrinated Stormtroopers, which was part of Colin Trevorrow’s scrapped script for the sequel trilogy’s conclusion, “Duel of the Fates.”

However, Trachtenberg has proven himself to be a reliable director, so hopefully “Badlands” can make the most of its Predator-as-hero premise.

Dek’s companion, and the human-like character with whom audiences will identify in “Predator: Badlands,” is the android Thia (Elle Fanning). Thia is a Weyland-Yutani android, making him the most blatant on-screen crossover between “Alien” and “Predator” since “Alien vs. Predator: Requiem.”

Trailers and promotional material for “Predator: Badlands” have shown that, at one point, Thia is going to be cut in half. Since she’s an android, she still works and Dek will carry her on his back. That image has drawn comparisons to another “Star Wars” movie, “The Empire Strikes Back.”

After C-3PO (Anthony Daniels) is torn apart in Cloud City, Chewbacca (Peter Mayhew) finds C-3PO and puts him back together. Due to a rush job, Chewie puts C-3PO’s head back and does not reattach his legs, instead carrying him on his back like a backpack. To reinforce the comparison, Thia is a robot like C-3PO is, while Dek is a bestial alien who communicates with roars, just like Chewie.

In his interview with Empire, Trachtenberg admitted that the “Empire” comparison is there, while also comparing Dek and Thia’s partnership to classic buddy movies like “Midnight Run” and “Lethal Weapon.” Trachtenberg, however, drew a line between the characterization of C-3PO and that of Thia.

“C-3PO is a nervous Nellie. Thia is unflappable, she’s positive, no matter what. She’s a fun character to be stuck with a (jerk).”

We’ll see if, by the end of “Badlands,” Thia’s optimism has rubbed off on Dek.

“Predator: Badlands” opens in theaters on November 7, 2025.