Dan Trachtenberg's "Predator: Badlands" could be mistaken for a coming-of-age teen drama in space. Rejection, tragedy, doubt, and self-efficacy – it's all here. To completely butcher a Britney Spears song, our Yautja protagonist, Dek (played by newcomer Dimitrius Schuster-Koloamatangi), is not a boy, not yet a trophy hunter.
Seen as the runt of his clan, Dek has something to prove. He wants to assert himself as a top hunter and be accepted by his father, who is also his chief. As Schuster-Koloamatangi said in a press Q&A, hunting is how the Yautja gain status, much like how humans acquire money on Earth.
