The basic plot of Predator: Badlands is mostly revealed in the latest action-packed trailer, but an increasingly popular theory indicates that the movie could actually be a stealth reboot of the Alien vs. Predator franchise cross-over. Set for a wide release on November 7th, 2025, Predator: Badlands will be the seventh film in the main continuity of the Predator franchise.

The new stand-alone sci-fi action movie from writer/director Dan Trachtenberg (Prey) follows a young outcast Predator (Dimitrius Schuster-Koloamatangi) on his first hunt, which is also the last chance to prove himself to his clan. On what is described as “the most dangerous planet in the universe”, he allies with a Weyland-Yutani android named Thia (Elle Fanning) to hunt and kill an unkillable creature.

Ever since the Weyland-Yutani connection revealed that Predator: Badlands takes place in the same universe as the Alien franchise’s main continuity, theories have flown about when we might see a proper cross-over in which a Predator well and truly clashes with a xenomorph. If the latest theory is to be believed, that battle is coming much sooner than most think.

Predator & Alien Have Both Been Teasing A Crossover This Year

Predator: Killer Of Killers And Alien: Earth Both Have Hidden Potential Clues

Aside from Predator: Badlands, there have been (or will be) two other major projects released between the Alien and Predator franchises. The first was the animated anthology movie Predator: Killer of Killers, and the second is the FX series Alien: Earth. While there has been very little confirmation, both projects have left slight clues or Easter eggs referencing the other franchise.

Predator: Killer of Killers saw three warriors from across human history brought to the Yautja home world to compete in an arena for the entertainment of a Predator warlord and his cheering mᴀsses. That warlord, as proof of his accomplishments as a killer, was draped in a cape that appeared to be made from xenomorph tails.

Likewise, the latest trailer for Alien: Earth featured a group of survivors trying to contain five invasive alien species. In the trailer, the species are described as “predatory”, which is hard to believe could be construed as anything else but a Yautja tease with so many other threads tying the two franchises together lately.

We haven’t gotten a confirmed indicator that xenomorphs will be fighting Predators right away, but the coincidences and clues are starting to pile up. The latest trailer for Predator: Badlands certainly exacerbates the issue for any hopeful theorists out there.

Theory – Predator: Badlands Is Hiding A Xenomorph

The Trailer Mentions An Apex Predator

In the most recent trailer, we get the best evidence yet that there might be a xenomorph hiding in Predator: Badlands. There haven’t been any sightings of the creatures themselves in any of the teasers, trailers, or marketing materials, but clues have been dropped all the same.

The first key clue is that the trailer mentions Dek, the young outcast Predator, going after an “apex predator”, who will make him the prey in the situation. While the trailer sets things up like it’s referring to the gigantic beast we’ve seen in multiple trailers now, that could be one giant misdirect.

In the extended Alien and Predator canons, it’s recognized that the Yautja consider the xenomorphs to be the ultimate test of a hunter. Therefore, the warlord from Predator: Killer of Killers wearing a cloak of the tails of xenomorphs is the best possible indicator of his skill as a hunter: it’s literally a cape of trophies from his most dangerous hunts.

It would also make sense that Dek, a runt of his clan out to prove himself once and for all to be accepted into Yautja society, would be targeting a xenomorph. If he can prove he is capable of hunting and killing a xenomorph with the limited armor and weaponry we’ve seen in the trailers, then his skill can not be questioned regardless of his relative size.

To top everything off, the most recent Predator: Badlands trailer ends with Thia saying that they “might not be alone in this hunt” right before a P-5000 Powered Work Loader, or more simply a Power Loader, is shown battling the large carnivore that we’ve seen before.

The Power Loader was the large mechanized exoskeleton that Ripley fought a xenomorph queen in at the end of Aliens. Its appearance in Predator: Badlands makes sense given the significant Weyland-Yutani presence in the movie, but the fact that it’s introduced with Thia talking about them not being alone in the hunt clearly points to the goal of the hunt being a xenomorph.

While this is still all unconfirmed evidence of an Alien vs. Predator cross-over, the sum total of the Easter eggs and clues is compelling. Predator: Badlands clearly won’t be entirely focused on that clash, but it seems perfectly reasonable to think that a Predator and xenomorph confrontation could act as the movie’s climax, or even as a coda to the movie’s narrative.

Whether its first skirmish is hidden in Predator: Badlands or not, a large-scale Alien vs. Predator reboot is imminent. With both franchises experiencing a renaissance in quality and audience interest, it could be the biggest event in sci-fi cinema in recent memory.​​​