Dan Trachtenberg Shines with “Predator: Badlands”
Director Dan Trachtenberg emerges as a standout figure as his latest film, Predator: Badlands, revitalizes the domestic box office landscape. The film debuted at the top of Friday’s charts, earning an impressive $15.6 million and is projected to achieve a record opening between $36 million and $38.5 million, far exceeding earlier estimates of $25 million for the weekend.
Record-Breaking Potential
This success will secure it the highest opening among standalone Predator films. It also has a chance of surpassing AVP: Alien vs. Predator, which opened to $38.4 million in 2004, to become the highest-grossing title in the sci-fi franchise, excluding inflation adjustments.
Surpassing Expectations
The film, produced by 20th Century and Disney, is performing significantly better than anticipated, thanks to rave reviews and positive audience feedback. It stands as the sole Predator entry, including the two Alien crossover films, to earn an A- CinemaScore, with stellar PostTrak scores averaging five out of five stars.
Innovative Storytelling
Badlands, co-conceived by Trachtenberg and writer Patrick Aison, pioneers new avenues for the nine-film franchise that began with John McTiernan’s iconic 1987 film, Predator. Following the Fox merger, the franchise has found a new home at Disney.
Trachtenberg’s Unique Vision
Trachtenberg, known for his inventive storytelling, first garnered attention with 10 Cloverfield Lane in 2016, followed by 2021’s Prey, and the animated anthology Predator: Killer of Killers, which were released on Hulu. In this latest film, he introduces a villainous Predator, Dek, portrayed by Dimitrius Schuster-Koloamatangi, as the central character, who embarks on a perilous quest alongside Elle Fanning’s Weyland-Yutani synthetic, Thia.
Other Box Office Performers
In other box office news, Regretting You, the adaptation of Colleen Hoover’s novel, continues to perform strongly in its third weekend, expected to generate approximately $7.3 million despite new film releases. Meanwhile, Blumhouse’s sequel Black Phone holds steady at No. 3, and Amazon MGM’s Sarah’s Oil opens with around $4.4 million, boosted by positive audience reception.
