‘Predator: Killer of Killers’ Review: A Weightless Restring

Following the success of Dan Trachtenberg’s Prey, the Predator franchise saw an influx of life following a four year break, and an eight year break before that. So naturally, it was only right for the folks at 20th Century Studios and Hulu to give him the reins of the franchise. And thus, Predator: Badlands was born, due out in theatres only next month. But audiences were more than surprised when it was revealed that Trachtenberg was working on another Predator film, this one animated and also to be released in 2025. Read our Predator: Killer of Killers review below.

 Whilst I watched Killer of Killers back on release day, I held myself from reviewing the project until I had finished the final film in the franchise, 2010’s Predators (dir. Nimród Antal). I am glad I went this route, as Killer of Killers heavily draws upon that film, giving me a new view of the film.

Predator: Killer of Killers serves as a type of anthology film with an overarching frame narrative, not unlike that of the V/H/S franchise. The film is split into three segments, with the fourth acting as a uniting front for the three individual stories. The first segment sees a Viking raider battle a predator. The second, a feudal Japanese warrior, and the third an American WWII pilot. In the final segment, all three of these characters are abducted by the predator species and taken to their homeworld. 

It’s this final unity of segments that makes the film so eerily similar to 2010’s Predators film. It essentially follows the same plot in a different format and medium, making this an interesting followup. Conceptually, this should work, but sadly I found the storytelling quite flat. A story this sprawling and epic should be more memorable and pack more of a punch, but Predator: Killer of Killers fails to do so.

With animation as gorgeous as this, Killer of Killers still manages to lose the audiences attentions at several points throughout the film, with only the combat sequence of the Japanese segment and the final act being thoroughly interesting. The action in that combat sequence is beautiful, even if it’s just building upon the fight scene between the predator and the Yakuza member from Predators. The sword work is masterful, and the animation is just beautiful. 

Another big reason I’m glad I held off writing a review for this film is the post credit scene, which was updated exclusively in a San Diego Comic-Con clip, which showcased even more members of the franchise in captive by the predator species, the yautja. In the scene, we of course see Amber Midthunder’s character from Prey, but now both Arnold Schwarzenegger’s Dutch (the protagonist of the first film), and Danny Glover’s Mike (the protagonist of the second film) are present in cryochambers, too. We don’t see any other characters, however, despite other characters being alive in the franchise, like Adrien Brody’s Royce, from the 2010 film which this is so heavily inspired by. 

I am eager to see where this franchise goes in the future with a crossover film and Predator: Badlands, as well as sister franchise Alien, which just aired Alien: Earth’s first season and is working away at a sequel to Fede Alvarez’s Alien: Romulus.

All in all, Predator: Killer of Killers is an excellent conceptual exploration of ideas introduced in Predators, but fails to live up to the execution of that film, lacking a sense of weight. 

Predator: Killer of Killers is directed by Dan Trachtenberg and is now streaming on Disney+ and Hulu. 

Thanks for reading this Predator: Killer of Killers review. For more, stay tuned here at Feature First.