Warning! This post contains SPOILERS for Predator: Badlands
Predator: Badlands has finally been released in theaters, featuring a wide collection of epic Easter eggs and references to the wider Predator franchise. However, there are just as many ties to the Alien franchise (which is set in the same universe).
The latest Predator entry from director Dan Trachtenberg, Badlands is a truly unique feature where a Yautja warrior serves as the movie’s protagonist for the very first time. This warrior, named Dek (Dimitrius Schuster-Koloamatangi), is joined by Thia (Elle Fanning), a synthetic from the Weyland-Yutani Corporation. Learning to work together, the pair become an unlikely duo by Predator: Badlands’ ending.
Facing a world full of lethal dangers, Predator: Badlands is also ripe with several cool Easter eggs, references, and ties to both the Predator and Alien franchises (and beyond). Here are 20 of the biggest ones we found.
Every Easter Egg, Reference, and Connection in Predator: Badlands Explained
The Yautja Codex – Predator: Badlands opens with an entry from the Yautja Codex, a strict code of honor held by every clan of the warrior race.
While this new entry confirms that “Yautja are friend and prey to none“, the animated anthology Killer of Killers was the first Predator project to open with a Codex entry of its own: “Go forth among the stars and seek only the strongest prey. They shall be your trophy. Become the killer of killers.“
Yautja Prime – While it’s not the first time we’ve seen the planet, it’s always exciting to see more of Yautja Prime, homeworld to the Predators and its various warrior clans in the established franchise lore.
Hover Bikes – Both Dek and his father are shown driving hover bikes that appear to be the same design as those first featured in the animated Killer of Killers series.
Skulls in the Trophy Room – Aboard the ship of Dek’s brother, a wall of skull trophies is featured. Most look to be generic alien beasts, though a human skull and spine is notably featured, as well as a T. Rex skull. Likewise, one of the central alien skulls looks to belong to a Harvester from Independence Day.
The Predator’s Signature Plasmacaster – First shown used by Dek’s father with the classic tri-laser targeting systems, the plasmacaster/shoulder cannon is arguably the most signature Predator weapon in the entire franchise. However, Predator: Badlands gives the weapon a unique organic upgrade by the movie’s end, with Dek using a living, acid-spitting lizard creature to serve as an improvised plasmacaster.
Yautja Language – While Thia implements a universal translator to communicate with Dek in English, the language spoken by Dek is a fully developed Yautja language, as director Dan Trachtenberg hired linguist Paul Frommer, who also developed the Na’vi language for James Cameron’s Avatar franchise.
Weyland Yutani Corporation – Thia confirms her status as a synth employed by the Weyland-Yutani Corporation, the major company first introduced in the Alien franchise as key antagonists (beyond the deadly alien Xenomorphs themselves).
Thia’s Eyes – When deactivated, the back of Thia’s eyes are shown with the classic Weyland-Yuyani logo imprinted on them. The same was featured on Andy’s eyes, a predominant synth who first appeared in 2024’s Alien: Romulus.
“Haven’t Cracked Sublight Speed” – Questioning Dek about his ship and its ability to achieve sub-light travel, Thia confirms that humanity has yet to crack the technology, connecting to the Alien franchise’s frequent use of cryostasis for its deep-space crews, and its use of synths to manage ship operations during long expeditions.
Predator: Badlands’ Chewbacca & Threepio Inspiration – Dek creates a means to carry the legless Thia on his back, and the parallel to Chewbacca carrying a disassembled C-3PO in The Empire Strikes Back is no coincidence, having been a key inspiration for the movie as confirmed by Trachtenberg himself.
Likewise, Thia’s bottom and top halves of her body operating independently of each other could also be considered another fun nod to the classic Star Wars droid, like when Threepio’s head and body were separated in Attack of the Clones.
XX0552 – This is the species designation given to the dangerous beast known as the Kalisk by the Weyland-Yutani Corporation. As such, it’s not unlike the designation for the classic Xenomorph, which is XX121.
MU/TH/UR – Giving instructions to Thia’s darker synthetic “twin” Tessa, MUTHUR 6000 is the classic supercomputer that gives orders to various crews and Weyland employees in the Alien franchise.
However, we also see the number 062578 next to MUTHUR’s name in Badlands, which may indicate that this is an upgraded model of MUTHUR, considering the movie is set the furthest in the connected franchises’ respective timelines.
Bio-Weapons Division – It’s also confirmed that Thia and Tessa are part of Weyland’s Bio-Weapons Division, the same division that made capturing and experimenting Xenomorphs its top priority. However, it looks as though harnessing the regenerative properties of the Kalisk has become another goal for the department.
Ripping Skulls and Spines – A classic victory move celebrating the end of a hunt, Dek is shown ripping skulls and spines from bodies, most notably with the Bone Bison he split in two with his sword as it charged toward him and Thia.
However, the end of the movie also sees the young Kalisk named Bud doing the same move to Tessa’s remains, having humorously replicated many of Dek’s actions and mannerisms throughout the movie.
Classic Weyland-Yutani Equipment – Several pieces of Weyland-Yutani equipment are quite familiar from the Alien franchise, like the pulse rifles and the classic sound of their gunfire (though the guns themselves do look like new models). However, many of the vehicles look very similar to ones we’ve seen in previous projects (including one in particular).
“Building Better Worlds” – The classic Weyland-Yutani slogan is also featured in Predator: Badlands, having been first featured in 1986’s Aliens from director James Cameron.
A Classic Preparation Montage (A Nod To Dutch) – Before the final battle, Dek is shown preparing various pieces of armor and weapons, mirroring the same preparation montage included in 2022’s Prey with Amber Midthunder’s Naru, which in turn was a nod to Arnold Schwarzenegger’s Dutch in the very first Predator movie, preparing various weapons and traps to take on the Predator hunting him in the jungle.
Weyland Doesn’t Learn (A Nod To Alien: Earth) – By the end of the Predator: Badlands, it’s revealed that the Weyland team was planning on taking the Kalisk, Dek, and also a sample of the living tree branch creature that first attacked Dek shortly after crash-landing on Genna.
This brings to mind the disastrous failure of the Weyland-Yutani crew aboard the USCSS Maginot in 2025’s recently concluded Alien: Earth series from Noah Hawley, which similarly had multiple deadly specimens on board before all hell broke loose. In the case of Badlands, Tessa’s team even made it off the planet.
Tessa’s Big Yellow Loader vs The Kalisk (An Epic Aliens Homage) – The ending of 1986’s Aliens saw Sigourney Weaver’s Ripley taking on the Xenomorph Queen in a large yellow work loader mech, one of the most memorable sci-fi battles of all time.
Remarkably, Predator: Badlands takes that battle to the next level while also inverting who we’re rooting for, as Tessa operates a far larger yellow loader to fight Dek and the powerful Kalisk (who’s also much larger than a Xeno Queen).
Dek’s Mother’s Ship – Seen at the very end of Predator: Badlands, after Dek kills his father, the Yautja warrior confirmed his mother was aboard the imminent ship on the horizon. Additionally, the ship itself looks to be the same design as the ships seen at the end of Trachtenberg’s animated Killer of Killers series.
Predator: Badlands is now playing in theaters from 20th Century Fox
- Release Date
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November 5, 2025
- Runtime
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107 minutes
- Director
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Dan Trachtenberg
- Writers
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Dan Trachtenberg, Patrick Aison, John Thomas, Jim Thomas
- Producers
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Brent O’Connor, John Davis, Marc Toberoff, Dan Trachtenberg, Ben Rosenblatt
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Elle Fanning
Thia / Tessa
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Dimitrius Schuster-Koloamatangi
Dek / Father
