Predator: Badlands takes a page from Alien vs. Predator in more ways than one. Although the Alien franchise has essentially removed the AVP films from its continuity, the Predator franchise has embraced both the movies and the Xenomorphs as part of its own continuity. The two franchises have been linked for some time, with references such as the Xenomorph skull in Predator 2, a Predator mask featuring the lower half of a Xenomorph jaw in Predators, and an explicit AVP Easter egg in The Predator. Predator: Badlands might be the most explicit, as the movie will feature a Weyland-Yutani synthetic — a class of machines introduced in the Alien franchise — played by Elle Fanning.
Yet despite the hype that Predator: Badlands might set the stage for an eventual Alien vs. Predator rematch on the big screen, one bit of news has fans concerned. Predator: Badlands will be rated PG-13. Since 1987, Predator has been an R-rated franchise with one notable exception: 2004’s Alien vs. Predator. Many fans criticized Alien vs. Predator at the time for giving the two R-rated sci-fi monsters a PG-13 rating. Is Predator: Badlands making the same mistake? Will the PG-13 rating soften the Predator? Or are fans making a big deal out of nothing? Details suggest that Predator: Badlands‘ PG-13 rating is not an indicator that the film is toned down, but rather a reflection of the type of violence deemed “acceptable.”
Why and How Did ‘Predator: Badlands’ Get a PG-13 Rating?
Alien vs. Predator was rated PG-13 by the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) for “violence, language, horror images, slime and gore” (yes, slime is an actual reason listed). The reason Alien vs. Predator was rated PG-13 was done with the intended purpose of allowing more viewers to see it, specifically teenage boys who would have been locked out of buying tickets without adult supervision if it had been rated R. Alien vs. Predator manages to get away with a lot of blood, like a shot of it splattering on snow. Yet much of the impact of these hits is not shown; only the splatter after the fact. The actual on-screen violence is shared between the Predators and Xenomorphs, whose blood is neon green or acid, respectively.
Predator: Badlands‘ PG-13 rating stems from the simple fact that, since there are no humans in the film, none of the blood will be red, which typically tips the MPAA towards an R-rating. Predator: Badlands will likely be just as violent as the R-rated entries in the series, but because the blood will range from the Predator’s signature bright green to the Weyland-Yutani synthetic milky white goo, and the trailers hint at many of the beasts having purple blood, the filmmakers can get away with large-scale violence without tipping off the MPAA. The MPAA is more lenient with stylized, over-the-top violence but stricter with realistic or gory scenes.
A good example of how the MPAA handles violence and bloodshed can be seen in films like X2: X-Men United and Iron Man 2. X2: X-Men United originally received an R-rating due to the level of violence, including Wolverine cutting up Styker’s soldiers, and a few seconds were cut to secure a PG-13 rating. Iron Man 2’s final set-piece, featuring Tony Stark and James “Rhodey” Rhodes laying waste to a series of Whiplash drones, can get away with a lot of violence and gunfire because the drones are automated, not piloted by humans. War Machine at one point shoots into one drone’s body, cutting it in half, and oil splatters on his helmet. If that had been red blood, it could have earned a brutal R-rating, but oil and non-human combatants earned it a PG-13 rating.
The idea of a PG-13 rating also doesn’t mean a movie is being downplayed or is any less brutal. The Dark Knight famously pushed the boundaries of a PG-13 rating. Meanwhile, an R-rating doesn’t always necessarily mean better. Aliens vs. Predator: Requiem tried to make up for fans disappointed by the PG-13 rating of the previous film by going extreme in the sequel, as the shortened title AVP: R let audiences know its rating upfront. The result was grotesque violence and the worst entry in both the Alien and Predator franchises.
The PG-13 Rating Might Help ‘Predator: Badlands’ at the Box Office
Predator is an iconic film franchise, but that has not always translated into box-office success. 1987’s Predator was a hit, grossing $59 million domestically against a $13 million budget and ranking as the 12th-highest-grossing film of the year. All theatrically released films in the mainline Predator film series have capped out at $50 million domestically, except for Predator 2, which grossed $30 million domestically.
Despite being considered a bomb, 2018’s The Predator is the franchise’s highest-grossing film worldwide, with $160 million. This might have been why Disney, after purchasing 20th Century Studios, opted to send the Predator franchise to streaming with Prey, as the series’ theatrical box office numbers have never reached the heights of the Alien films. Yet following a brief exile to streaming, Predator: Badlands marks the franchise’s return to theaters.
Prey and Predator: Killer of Killers‘ positive reception certainly bodes well for Predator: Badlands, but there’s likely still some trepidation on Disney’s part. As of this writing, no budget has been reported for Predator: Badlands, though rumors suggest a $100 million budget, making it the franchise’s most expensive film. With that being the case, Disney and 20th Century Studios might have wanted a Predator pitch that could be more easily slotted into a PG-13 rating to maximize the audience it can reach.
Dan Trachtenberg seems to have been willing to abide, coming up with a concept that would appease the higher-ups, himself, and Predator fans. Predator: Badlands isn’t sacrificing violence to secure a PG-13 rating; instead, it has found a clever workaround for the MPAA rating system, securing Trachtenberg the budget he needs to tell what looks to be the most ambitious entry in the franchise.
Making an accessible Predator film is not a bad idea, and it worked for Alien vs. Predator. Despite all the initial criticism before its release, Alien vs. Predator grossed $80 million domestically back in 2004, easily outgrossing every entry in the Predator franchise, not adjusted for inflation. With a worldwide total of $177 million, it is the highest-grossing entry in the Predator franchise worldwide. While a lot of that was the novelty of seeing Alien and Predator on screen together (one that wore off, judging by the disappointing box office of Aliens vs. Predator: Requiem), it is hard to deny that the PG-13 rating might have helped.
It drew a younger audience into the theater and likely served as their entry point into the Predator franchise, as for some, it was the first Predator movie released in their lifetime, since Predator had not been seen on screen in 14 years since the release of Predator 2 in 1990. After Alien vs. Predator, audiences might have gone back to watch the previous two entries and have seen the following films.
Predator: Badlands is now poised to attract fans of the original Predator, those who saw Alien vs. Predator in theaters and are now grown up, and a new generation of young filmgoers drawn to the iconic monster’s latest big-screen adventure. Predator: Badlands doesn’t mean the franchise will be stuck in PG-13; it just means this one film landed the rating, and it can use it to its advantage. Predator: Badlands premieres in theaters on November 7, 2025.
