20th Century Studios and director Dan Trachtenberg's Predator: Badlands is now playing in theaters, and while the movie received positive reviews from critics and seems to be performing pretty well with general audiences so far (it broke franchise box office records over the weekend), not everyone has been won over.
Some fans have been vocal in their disapproval of what's been described as the first "woke, Disneyfied" Predator movie.
Some of these criticisms could be seen as valid. Badlands is indeed the first family-friendly film in the franchise, and while there is still plenty of action and violence (no humans were harmed during the making of this production), one could certainly argue that Trachtenberg's Prey follow-up does pander to a much younger audience to at least some degree.
Some spoilers follow.
The story also focuses on a "runt" Yautja teaming up with two women (the cute creature sidekick, Bud, is revealed to be the daughter of the Kalisk in the final act) as he learns to value friendship and empathy while "getting in touch with his feelings" and rejecting the more ruthless and destructively aggressive ways of his people.
Whether you happen to view any of the above as being detrimental to the overall quality of the movie is obviously going to vary from person to person (these things tend to be much bigger issues for some than others), but the notion that Dek might be queer has also been brought up a lot on social media - usually as a criticism.
This seems to have originated from a paragraph in THR's review of the film.
"That’s the joke a friend and I made as we walked out of Dan Trachtenberg’s surprisingly soft-hearted addition to the Predator canon, a movie that pushes its franchise mythology in a decidedly sweet direction. Some viewers might miss the macho brutality of Predators past, but Dek’s adventures in self-confidence and chosen family may well satisfy plenty of others. This Predator is queer and we should say it."
Critic Richard Lawson almost immediately clarifies that he was joking, but here we are.
The fact of the matter is, Badlands makes zero references or allusions to Dek's sexuality one way or the other. Some have drawn a parallel between Njohrr attempting to remove the clan's "weak link" and a father ostracizing his son upon learning that he's gay, which is fine - but it doesn't mean that's what's actually going on in the movie!
It'll be interesting to see if Trachtenberg or anyone else involved with the movie weighs-in on the topic.
Have you been to see Predator: Badlands yet? If so, what do you make of the "first gay Predator" backlash? You can check out our review here.
Predator: Badlands is helmed by returning director Dan Trachtenberg (Prey, 10 Cloverfield Lane) and marks the franchise’s highly anticipated return to the big screen with a story that expands and redefines the Predator Universe.
Set in the future on a deadly remote planet, Badlands follows a young Predator outcast (played by newcomer Dimitrius Schuster-Koloamatangi) who finds an unlikely ally in Thia (Emmy and Golden Globe nominee Elle Fanning) as he embarks on a treacherous journey in search of the ultimate adversary.
Produced by John Davis, Dan Trachtenberg, Marc Toberoff, Ben Rosenblatt and Brent O’Connor, Predator: Badlands opens exclusively in movie theaters on November 7 in IMAX, Dolby Cinema, RealD (3D), Cinemark XD, 4DX, ScreenX and premium screens everywhere.