Warning: Contains SPOILERS for Predator: Killer of Killers!
Theending ofPredator: Killer of Killersis shocking, with the film’s final reveal setting up the potential return of eight protagonists from previous movies inPredator: Badlands. ThePredatorfranchise rarely features recurring characters, and since the fates of each protagonist are unknown,Predator: Badlandshas the opportunity to bring these characters back for the franchise’s biggest crossover story yet.
Predator: Killer of Killersis an anthology moviethat tells the story of three different times Yautja hunters have come to Earth. The film’s three segments show Predators fighting Vikings, ninjas, and World War II pilots, with the humans killing the Yautja in each segment. However,Predator: Killer of Killersalso features a surprise fourth segment that brings the main characters of each story together.
In the film’s final segment, it is revealed that the Yautja round up individuals who kill Predators and bring them back to the Yautja home planet. There,the humans are forced to battle to the death in gladiatorial arenas, with the winner having to face the Grendel King Yautja. Those killers who are not fighting are kept on the Yautja planet in suspended animation.
8Naru
Prey
The most obvious character who couldreturn inPredator: BadlandsisPreyprotagonist Naru. At the end ofPredator: Killer of Killers, Ursa is captured by the Yautja and placed in suspended animation. When she is brought to the massive archive of champions, it is revealed that Naru has been abducted by the Yautja as well.
Outside of the characters inPredator: Killer of Killers, Naru is the onlyPredatorcharacter who is confirmed to be on the Yautja planet. Since Naru appears in a cliffhanger ending, it is entirely possible thatthis story could be continued inPredator: Badlands, turning the film into a secretPrey 2.
Since Dan Trachtenberg is the director ofPrey,Predator: Killer of Killers, andPredator: Badlands, it makes sense for him to use the third film as the conclusion to a trilogy of Naru stories. It seems thatPredator: Badlandsis taking place on the Yautja planet, so it would make sense for Dek and the Weyland-Yutani synthetic to come across Naru during their adventure.
7Dutch
Predator
One massive character who could also return inPredator: Badlandsis Dutch. Dutch is Arnold Schwarzenegger’s character from the originalPredatorfilm, with him being the first character in the franchise to kill a Yautja. However, Dutch hasn’t been seen since, withhis fate being left unresolved afterPredator.
Bringing Dutch back could finally answer the many questions about what happened to Dutch afterPredator. While there have been various explanations offered in expanded universe materials, thePredatormovies have never properly addressed what happened to Dutch after he killed the Yautja and why he didn’t tell everyone about the alien.
Having Arnold Schwarzenegger cameo inPredator: Badlandswould be a big deal,with it being a massive shock for longtime fans of the franchise. If it is revealed ahead of time, it would also have a lot of pull during the film’s marketing. WhilePredator: Badlandswould have to explain the actor’s age, this isn’t too big of a hurdle.
6Lieutenant Mike Harrigan
Predator 2
Another interesting character who could appear inPredator: Badlandsis Lieutenant Mike Harrigan. Lt. Harrigan is the protagonist ofPredator 2, with him being the LAPD city police officer who discovers the Yautja while investigating gang violence within Los Angeles.
Harrigan arguably has more knowledge of the Yautjathan any otherPredatorprotagonist, as he goes inside one of their spaceships and sees several other Yautja when they come to Earth and reclaim the body of their fallen comrade.
Lt. Harrigan’s fate has also never been explained, but based on the rules set up byPredator: Killer of Killers, he should have been abducted. So,it could be revealed that the Yautja seen inPredator 2came back to get Lt. Harrigan, taking him to the Yautja planet.
5Royce
Predators
A fan-favorite character who could return inPredator: Badlandsis Adrien Brody’s Royce, the protagonist ofPredators.Predatorstells an odd story when compared to the rest of the franchise, with it seeing several human killers who are abducted by Yautja, taken to an alien planet, and hunted.
Exactly why these humans were treated in this special way has never been revealed, butPredator Badlandscould finally explain this. It could be revealed that the story ofPredatorsis just another one of the Yautja’s human abduction traditions, as that makes more sense than for the Yautja to abduct Royce again.
Royce was last seen attempting to escape the alien planet, and if this is the same planet seen inPredator: Killer of Killers, it would make sense for him (and possibly Isabelle) to pop up again. Dek could encounter Royce during the story ofPredator: Badlands, or Royce could even be the one who frees the other killers from the archive of champions.
4Quinn McKenna
The Predator
Although it is unlikely thanks to the reception of the film, another possible returning character inPredator: Badlandsis Quinn McKenna. Quinn is the protagonist ofthe notorious 2018 entry,The Predator, with him being played by Boyd Holbrook.
At the end of the film, Quinn kills a Predator and makes it out alive. When he returns to the lab, he discovers that the Yautja have left behind advanced Predator killer suits, allowing the humans to protect themselves from larger Yautja. Quinn decides to pilot the suit, setting up a continuation of this story that never happened.
However,Predator: Badlandscould be the place for this continuation to happen. If Quinn gets abducted like the other Predator killers, it would make sense for him to be on the Yautja planet. Once he is freed, he could activate his suit and use it to help the other heroes escape the alien homeworld.
3Ursa
Predator: Killer Of Killers
Finally, the three protagonists fromPredator: Killer of Killerscould return. The first is Ursa, the protagonist of the Viking story. She sacrificed herself so that Kenji and John could escape, with her being recaptured, placed in suspended animation, and returned to the storage room.
Alive-action version of Ursa could appear inPredator: Badlands, continuingPredator: Killer of Killers' cliffhanger ending. Her appearance seems incredibly likely, and seeing her fight alongside Naru in the upcoming film would be incredibly exciting.
2Kenji
The secondPredator: Killer of Killersprotagonist who could return is Kenji, the protagonist of the ninja story.He was last seen getting in the Grendel King Yautja’s ship with John, with them flying away and attempting to escape the planet together.
However, theGrendel King orders a fleet of Yautja shipsto chase their ship down, withPredator: Killer of Killersnot revealing how this chase ended. While their escape seems unlikely, Kenji could reappear inPredator: Badlandsin order to resolve this cliffhanger.
1John J. Torres
The finalPredator: Killer of Killersprotagonist who has a chance of returning is John J. Torres, the protagonist of the World War II story. Like Kenji,John was last seen getting in the Grendel King Yautja’s ship and flying away, with the Grendel King sending other Predator ships after them.
If Kenji appears inPredator: Badlands, it would only make sense for John to appear alongside him. Having Dek come across these characters and them team up to save Ursa would be the perfect way to reintroduce thesePredatorprotagonists, setting up an incredibly exciting story forPredator: Badlands.
