Predator: Badlands looks to awaken a dormant box office when it debuts November 7th. It marks the ninth overall feature in the nearly 40-year-old franchise that began with the Arnold Schwarzenegger classic. Dan Trachtenberg directs his second pic in the series after helming the 2022’s Prey and the animated Predator: Killer of Killers back in June. Both were acclaimed and they premiered via streaming on Hulu. Elle Fanning stars alongside Dimitrius Schuster-Koloamatangi and Mike Homik.
Technically AVP: Alien vs. Predator holds the record for best start among the films at $38 million back in 2004. As far as Predator titles without an iconic sparring partner, 2010’s Predators and 2018’s The Predator experienced virtually identical openings of $24.7 and $24.6 million, respectively.
Early word-of-mouth for Badlands is solid yet some fans may choose to wait for to Disney+/Hulu. It could manage to top expectations because there’s not much else out there. I also wouldn’t be surprised at all if it sees a mid 20s output similar to what we witnessed in 2010 and 2018 and that would be considered a letdown. I’ll give it slightly more.
Predator: Badlands opening weekend prediction: $27.6 million
For my Christy prediction, click here: