The Predator feels like a movie made by someone who loves the Predator franchise but also doesn’t entirely trust it. Instead of leaning into suspense, simplicity, or even dumb confidence, it constantly undercuts itself with jokes, lore dumps, and tonal whiplash. The result is a film that’s busy, noisy, and strangely insecure, like it’s afraid you’ll get bored if it slows down long enough to let tension build.
At first, The Predator almost convinces you it might work. The opening sequence has energy, the creature effects look solid, and there’s a sense that the movie wants to recapture some of that rough, R-rated edge the franchise had lost. But that confidence evaporates fast, replaced by a frantic need to explain everything, escalate everything, and joke about everything, often all in the same scene.
Quips Over Tension
One of the biggest issues with The Predator is its relentless sense of humor. On paper, a bit of levity isn’t a bad idea. Predator movies have always had swagger and attitude. But this film leans so hard into rapid-fire quips and self-aware banter that it becomes exhausting. Characters rarely stop talking, even in moments that should feel dangerous or ominous. The movie is allergic to silence, which is a problem for a franchise built on the fear of being hunted.
Instead of letting the Predator feel like an unstoppable force, the film turns encounters into chaotic shouting matches punctuated by punchlines. Any tension that starts to form gets immediately deflated by a joke, like the movie is embarrassed to take itself seriously.
Lore as a Distraction
The Predator also suffers from severe mythology overload. It introduces new Predator types, genetic upgrades, expanded motives, and sci-fi concepts that feel more convoluted than compelling. Rather than enhancing the mystery of the creatures, all this explanation makes them feel smaller and less interesting. The Predator is scariest when you don’t fully understand it. Here, the film insists on spelling everything out, often multiple times.
This obsession with lore comes at the expense of atmosphere. The movie is so busy setting up ideas that it forgets to make you feel anything. There’s action, sure, but very little suspense. Everything is rushed, loud, and cluttered, visually and narratively.
A Cast That Never Quite Clicks
The ensemble cast brings plenty of personality, but it never fully gels into something cohesive. Boyd Holbrook does his best as the lead, projecting weary competence, but the script rarely gives him space to anchor the chaos. The supporting characters are broad, aggressively quirky, and often feel like they wandered in from a different kind of movie.
There are moments where the film flirts with emotional weight, particularly involving family and connection, but these beats are handled with such clumsiness that they land more awkward than affecting. The movie gestures at depth without earning it, then quickly moves on to the next explosion or punchline.
Bigger Isn’t Better
Visually, The Predator leans into excess. The action is fast, the creatures are bigger, and the stakes are supposedly higher than ever. But bigger doesn’t automatically mean better. The upgraded Predator, while visually striking, feels less frightening than its predecessors. It’s powerful, sure, but it lacks presence. It feels like a video game boss rather than a hunter stalking its prey.
The film’s final act goes completely off the rails, abandoning any pretense of suspense in favor of noisy spectacle and sequel bait. By the time it ends, the movie feels more like a setup for something else than a satisfying story in its own right.
Almost Fun, Almost Good
I didn’t hate The Predator. There are moments where it’s fun in a trashy, chaotic way. A few action beats land. Some creature effects impress. But those flashes are buried under too many bad jokes, too much exposition, and a fundamental misunderstanding of what makes Predator work.
This franchise doesn’t need to be clever in a meta sense. It needs confidence, restraint, and tension. The Predator offers none of those consistently. Instead, it tries to be funny, scary, emotional, and epic all at once, and ends up being none of them particularly well.
I felt conflicted watching it, which is why it lands at a 2.5 out of 5 for me. It’s not the worst entry in the series, but it’s one of the most frustrating. A movie that had all the tools to succeed and chose chaos instead.