11 hours ago
Director Dan Trachtenberg Confirms His Third PREDATOR Movie Will Continue Naru's Story — GeekTyrant
The future of the Predator franchise might just lie in its past… and its future.
Dan Trachtenberg, the director behind Prey , isn't done with the Predator universe, and he's making it clear that Naru, played by Amber Midthunder, still has a story to tell.
In a recent conversation with Fangoria, Trachtenberg said:
'I had a bunch of big ideas when I finished Prey, I would love to get to all of them. There's definitely a plan in mind, but the movie has to do well. So, we'll see.'
While he's careful not to reveal too much, Trachtenberg confirmed that the third movie will continue Naru's story:
'The third story, which I can't speak to yet, is what would happen with Naru.'
Naru already made an appearance In Predator: Killer of Killers , an animated anthology film now streaming on Hulu and Disney+, a reference to Naru is woven into the timeline-hopping story that spans Viking-era battles, 17th-century samurai duels, and WWII carnage.
Trachtenberg previously revealed that both Killers and Badlands were fast-tracked because he couldn't wait to get to a third project, and it seems like that project will continue Naru's story. He said'
'After Prey came out, and I started thinking about sequel stuff, there were three ideas that I had. Killers is one, Badlands is two and the third one is something else.
'The reason why I felt possessed to make them and sort of why I rushed – I did two at once because I could do, I could multitask with animation – was because I was so eager to get to the third thing.'
Trachenberg told Bloody Disgusting:
'The fun is that now we have the end of Prey set up something, and then there's this, and I love the slow play of it all. I think it's cool rather than smushing everything together inside one movie right away, we can really be elegant with our storytelling and hopefully aspire to that. So, it is not a setup for what's in Badlands, but it is a setup for what could happen afterward.'
That 'afterward' is what has fans excited. While Killer of Killers plays the long game, Predator: Badlands is taking the franchise somewhere exciting and unexpected.
Set in the far future, Badlands introduces Elle Fanning as Thia, a Weyland-Yutani android who teams up with Dek, a disgraced Yautja (voiced and mo-capped by Dimitrius Schuster-Koloamatangi), in a story that could reshape Predator lore.
So while Badlands takes us lightyears ahead, the seeds for a potential Prey 2 are quietly sprouting beneath the surface. Trachtenberg clearly has a long-term vision, and Naru's journey might not be over just yet.
'I had a bunch of big ideas… I would love to get to all of them.' Let's hope we get the chance to see where they lead.
