The fascinating and gloriously violent story of one of sci-fi's most iconic killers – Predator: Badlands, is now available now on Digital and coming to 4K, Blu-ray, and DVD February 17. Get ready Predator fans for some awesome bonus features that take you inside the making of this film.
Predator Badlands
Dek (Dimitrius Schuster-Koloamatangi) is a young Yautja preparing for his first hunt, the one that will solidify his place within the clan. His older brother, Kwei (Mike Homik) tries to protect him because Dek has the disadvantage of being a runt. It doesn't matter how hard Dek trains though, their father, Njohrr (also played by Schuster-Koloamatangi), wants him killed. Kwei sacrifices himself, allowing Dek to escape to Genna, a planet home to the “unkillable” Kalisk, a creature even his father fears. But in order to survive in this harsh place where everything has evolved to murder you, he will need some help. Enter Thia (Elle Fanning), a damaged Weyland-Yutani synth who happens to know all about the planet. The problem is Yautja don't make alliances, so Thia markets herself as a tool not a friend and since he can have tools he takes her along. She's got her own secrets but is content to chatter away while they search for the Kalisk (who also is the reason she is missing her bottom half).
Badlands is fascinating, exciting, and gloriously brutal. Yes I said Brutal and yes it's PG-13, but that's because no humans die and Trachtenberg pushes the rating to its limits. There is not one drop of red blood to be seen however there are plenty of green, white, and other colors oozing out as foes get sliced, diced, and beheaded in various gratifying ways. This Yautja is on a hero's journey whether he considers himself one or not. One of the genius moves writers Patrick Aison and Brian Duffield deploy is the fact that he doesn't become some shining example of heroism by the end. Rather he just learns he can kill better when he has “friends” who can kill too. Effectively he becomes a better warrior by adjusting his ways and by that same token Trachtenberg proves you can make a better Predator movie by also making some much needed adjustments to the formula.
Predator Badlands Bonus Features
Deleted & Pre-Visualization Scenes with Optional Audio Commentary:
- Sand Trap – An early animatic version of Dek’s very different first encounter with Thia.
- Squirt Canyon – The full version of Dek and Thia traversing the water-filled trench while trying to survive Genna…and each other.
- Tessa vs. Abe – Tessa faces off against a superior synth in this deleted scene and storyline.
- Razor Grass – The original previsualization of Dek, Thia, and Bud’s first hunt together…sort of.
- The Outpost – Thia takes Dek to a small Weyland-Yutani field facility where they experience a few things that ended up being used elsewhere in the final film.
- Super Power Loader Extended – Special additional moments during Dek’s climactic final battle with the Super Power Loader and the Kalisk.
Featurettes:
- Embodying the Predator – Meet the talented team of designers, performers, and effects artists responsible for bringing one of cinema’s most terrifying creatures to life on screen in ways we’ve never seen before!
- Authentic Synthetics – Get up close and personal with synths Thia and Tessa as star Elle Fanning walks us through the process of crafting two characters who may look the same but have evolved in surprisingly unique ways.
- Building the Badlands – With razor sharp grass, killer trees, and terrifying animals, never has a planet been more deadly than Genna. Uncover how a team of artisans built this threatening landscape, transforming real locations into the dangerous environments seen on screen.
- Dek of the Yautja – For the first time ever, director Dan Trachtenberg has given audiences an extended peek at Predator culture. Follow the evolution as filmmakers reveal the process behind developing the Yautja’s home world, spacecraft, and family dynamics.
Audio Commentary: Watch the film with audio commentary by Director Dan Trachtenberg, Producer Ben Rosenblatt, Director of Photography Jeff Cutter and Stunt Coordinator Jacob Tomuri.
*Bonus features may vary by product and retailer.
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