Although 2022’s prequel Prey was a standalone success, the same thing that made the Predator movie work also ironically caused a big issue for the series going forward. The Predator franchise has never really known how to expand on the original 1987 movie’s story. Predator is a perfect standalone story but, unlike 1979’s Alien, the original movie doesn’t establish much lore that could be expanded upon by subsequent sequels. 1990’s Predator 2 transplanted the action to Los Angeles for a flawed but fun follow-up, while 2004’s Alien Vs Predator was a misfire for both franchises.

While the original remains the best movie in the Predator franchise, 2010’s Predators and 2018’s The Predator took opposing approaches to fixing the series. The former was set on an alien planet while the latter returned to Earth, this time landing the Predator in suburbia. While not outright terrible, neither movie could recapture the simple joys of the original. That task fell to 2022’s Prey, a prequel that was set in the Northern Great Plains in 1719. Directed by 10 Cloverfield Lane’s Dan Trachtenberg, Prey followed Amber Midthunder’s Naru as she battled the franchise’s famous monster.

Prey’s Standalone Approach Made A Sequel Very Difficult

Prey’s Satisfying Ending Doesn’t Necessarily Invite A Sequel

Prey was by far the best Predator followup in the franchise’s history, as the prequel was the first movie to do something new with the series that still recaptured the original movie’s appeal. Predator 2’s urban setting gave it a much bigger cast, thus making the story far less tense and self-contained. Predators changing its setting to an alien planet expanded the franchise’s world, but this made it feel more like a Riddick movie than a direct Predator sequel. Meanwhile, The Predator’s convoluted story owed little to the stripped-back simplicity of 1987’s original hit, unlike the intense Prey.

However, the same quality that made Prey’s ending perfect made the movie a problem for the series as a whole. Prey was a simple, satisfying standalone adventure with a beginning, middle, and end, much like 1987’s original Arnold Schwarzenegger vehicle. Prey’s end credits included a fun sequel tease, but nothing about the movie demanded a sequel. If anything, Naru’s story was so perfectly self-contained that a sequel seemed unnecessary. This means that, although Prey reignited interest in the series, the prequel ironically left the Predator movies with no way to build on its success.

Predator Is Moving Forward With Another Standalone Film

Predator: Badlands Takes A Completely Different Approach

Prey introduced the concept of placing the Predator in different settings in subsequent new movies, which was an exciting way to make the franchise feel vital once more. The upcoming sequel Predator: Badlands, starring Elle Fanning, seems to be following this approach. Not a lot is known about this mysterious follow-up, but one thing that does appear to be clear is its time period. Unlike Prey, this standalone franchise outing will seemingly be set in the future. This means that Badlands can bring back the technology and weaponry that made Predators exciting, but it also poses a problem.

The
Predator
series can continue to make standalone outings set in various time periods.

If Predator: Badlands proves as successful as Prey then, like the 2022 prequel, the outing is likely to spawn demand for a follow-up. The Predator series can continue to make standalone outings set in various time periods, but each of these is likely to leave viewers wanting more and, paradoxically, none of them are necessarily likely to facilitate sequels. It is understandable that viewers wanted a Prey sequel after the prequel’s exciting action, and the same may prove true if Trachtenberg’s next Predator outing is equally enjoyable. The broader problem is that these standalone stories don’t set up sequels.

Why Prey 2 Should Happen (Regardless Of Predator Badlands)

Prey 2 Is Too Good An Opportunity To Waste

Prey 2 should happen even though Prey didn’t set up a sequel, since the opportunity is too good to waste and this could set up a new norm for the franchise. Prey 2’s story could bring back Naru as a supporting character, or it could pick up on her community’s story years later as the franchise’s monster returns to hunt once again. Either way, this would establish that the series can come back to time periods explored in earlier outings. This would bode well for Badlands and subsequent movies, allowing the series to expand while still updating its best stories on occasion.

Predators: Badlands
is set to be released on Hulu.

Prey felt like a fresh start for the series, but it still wouldn’t exist without the original Predator. Similarly, Prey 2 could be an entirely original story that builds on the world of its predecessor while offering viewers something unique and new. This would mean that, as movies like Prey and Badlands tell new, standalone stories in the franchise’s fictional universe, Predator fans could rest easy knowing that these movies were still able to receive potential follow-ups of their own.