PREDATOR: BADLANDS Director Talks Possible Xenomorph Cameo And Confirms Talks With Arnold Schwarzenegger

PREDATOR: BADLANDS Director Talks Possible Xenomorph Cameo And Confirms Talks With Arnold Schwarzenegger

Predator: Badlands director Dan Trachtenberg has addressed the chances of us seeing a Xenomorph in his upcoming Prey and Killer of Killers follow-up, and teases plans for Arnold Schwarzenegger's Dutch.

By JoshWilding - Oct 01, 2025 03:10 PM EST
Filed Under: Predator
Source: Empire (via SFFGazette.com)

While Arnold Schwarzenegger has repeatedly returned to the Terminator franchise (for better or worse), he has yet to play Dutch again in one of the many Predator sequels and remakes that followed the 1987 classic helmed by John McTiernan. 

In the animated Predator: Killer of Killers, it was revealed that Dutch is being held in stasis, alongside Prey's Naru. That sets the stage for the character to appear in a future Predator project, meaning Schwarzenegger could finally return to another of his most iconic roles. 

Talking to Empire (via SFFGazette.com), filmmaker Dan Trachtenberg confirmed he's spoken with the screen icon and that the door is now open to some very exciting storytelling possibilities moving forward. 

"I met Arnold, and he said, 'You’d think I get, 'l’ll be back,' yelled at me most, but it’s actually, 'Get to the chopper!' So, he’s well aware of the franchise’s staying power," the director explained. "He was excited to talk about what else we could do."

"Because there’s so much more story to tell now — you could tell how [Dutch and Naru] were captured," Trachtenberg teased, "or what happens when they’re de-iced. Many possibilities."

Beyond Arnie, it seems like Trachtenberg is also laying the groundwork for an eventual Alien vs. Predator crossover. Predator: Killer of Killers teased previous clashes between the Yautja and Xenomorphs, while the upcoming Predator: Badlands will see Elle Fanning play Thia, a Weyland-Yutani android.

That's led to fans wondering whether a Xenomorph could make a surprise appearance in the movie, and Trachtenberg has now set the record straight on rumblings about us seeing one of those iconic aliens in the movie. 

"There’s no Xenomorph in this movie," he confirmed. "But to me, that makes it more exciting. We’re not involving [the Alien franchise] just to smush the action figures together. There are great, organic story reasons for Weyland-Yutani to be in this film."

"Thia has been on Genna a while, seeing things she wouldn’t normally see," Trachtenberg continued. "She’s absorbing all this new information, and she’s broken too, so she’s become very different from the other synths."

So, a clash between Alien and Predator is off the table for the time being, but that doesn't mean Predator: Badlands won't set the stage for one. As for Schwarzenegger's possible return, only time will tell when, where, and indeed if it ever happens. 

The movie, which stars Elle Fanning and Dimitrius Schuster-Koloamatangi, is set in the future on a remote planet, where a young Predator (Schuster-Koloamatangi), outcast from his clan, finds an unlikely ally in Thia (Fanning) and embarks on a treacherous journey in search of the ultimate adversary.

Dan Trachtenberg directs and produces Predator: Badlands alongside John Davis, Marc Toberoff, Ben Rosenblatt, and Brent O’Connor.

Predator: Badlands opens exclusively in movie theaters on November 7 in IMAX, Dolby Cinema, Cinemark XD, 4DX, ScreenX, and premium screens everywhere.

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narrow290
narrow290 - 10/1/2025, 3:54 PM
I'm here for it! Alien Earth was awesome! so was Prey and Killer of Killers
JabbaTheSus
JabbaTheSus - 10/1/2025, 3:55 PM
Prey was really solid. I have yet to watch Killer of Killers, but I'm very much looking forward to Badlands. I think Arnie coming back beyond just an "oh shit" cameo would be lame at this point. The franchise has moved on a ton without him.
FinnishDude
FinnishDude - 10/1/2025, 4:08 PM
"... many Predator sequels and remakes"

There hasn't been a single Predator remake.
MarvelZombie616
MarvelZombie616 - 10/1/2025, 4:31 PM
5 weeks from now watch for the after credit scene. ;-)
TheVisionary25
TheVisionary25 - 10/1/2025, 4:36 PM
Given Dutch was in stasis at the end of “Killier of Killers” then that likely means he hasn’t aged since he still seemed young so I would assume that character having a bigger role aswell as Arnold’s return to it would be done in animation rather then live action , regardless of whether they do a story of him being de iced or his capture right?.

Also interested in seeing Elle Fanning’s Thia in Badlands aswell as the “great , organic story reasons” she is included into the film as a Synth from Weyland Yutani (my guess is to contrast/compare her with our lead Predator hero as 2 inhuman figures who maybe more human then we thought).

Anyway , I liked Prey & Killer of Killers so looking forward to this movie!!.

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