All 9 Predator Movies, Ranked According to Letterboxd
The intergalactic killer of killers known as the Predators remains as fascinating to audiences now as when they first debuted in the original Predator. Unlike some of their cinematic peers, the Yautja are intelligent, operating on a unique code of honor that doesn’t always make them humanity’s enemy. As moviegoers continue to see, there are multiple ways to incorporate such an interesting villain into new stories with different perspectives.
With Predator: Badlands making a splash at the box office, now is a great time to see how the films in the franchise stack up. The following list ranks every Predator movie according to the average Letterboxd score. Of course, ratings are always subject to change, but at the time of writing, this is how the scores compare.
9
‘Aliens vs. Predator: Requiem’ (2007)
Average Letterboxd Rating: 1.6/5
Picking up after the events of Alien vs. Predator, Aliens vs Predator: Requiem sees a Predator ship crashing into Earth after a Predalien demolishes the crew on board. While facehuggers begin finding human hosts, a Predator answers the downed ship’s distress call to avenge his own and kill any humans along the way. With a nuclear strike on the way, it’s a race against time to escape the town before certain death.
In the second battle between Xenomorphs and Predators, the humans were the big losers, and in this case, we’re talking about the audience. Visually, the movie is intentionally dark to the point where it’s difficult to see anything on the screen. The unfortunate part about Aliens vs Predator: Requiem is that there’s a fun B-movie hiding within what audiences received, but what made it on the screen is grim in a way that’s hard to enjoy, especially when the film takes a detour to a maternity ward.
8
‘The Predator’ (2018)
Average Letterboxd Rating: 2.1/5
A crash landing incites a large-scale battle between humans and Predators in The Predator. While the U.S. government acts quickly to contain the situation and study the captured Predator, a quick escape and inbound alien backup threatens to increase human casualties greatly. Caught in the middle is a group of psychologically compromised ex-soldiers who will need to fight one more time to save the planet.
Not nearly as franchise-destroying as its critics would like to believe, The Predator opened at number one for its opening weekend, but was met with a largely negative response. Expectations were high for Shane Black to write and direct a Predator movie, and while his trademark humor and banter were present, those same qualities served to undercut the stakes of the story. The cast was stacked with talent, featuring Sterling K. Brown, Olivia Munn, and Thomas Jane, but the story was spread too thin across the characters for everyone to get a moment to shine.
7
‘Alien vs. Predator’ (2004)
Average Letterboxd Rating: 2.6/5
After years of fan speculation about who would win in a fight, Alien vs. Predator pitted the two creatures against one another. After an abnormal heat signature is found near Antarctica, industrialist Charles Weyland (Lance Henriksen) organizes a group of scientists and experts to explore the location. Unfortunately, the crew walks into a temple that is used as a Predator training ground, and they use Xenomorphs as the ideal opponents to test their skills.
Even though the movie is rated PG-13, leaving a feeling that the movie could have been more extreme, the violence and action in Alien vs. Predator remain on par with the other films. The color palette of grey on grey can be visually uninteresting, but the three-way combat between the Predators, Xenomorphs, and humans more than makes up for it. The story delivers on what the title suggests, and as a battle royale creature feature, a basic premise to get the action going is all that’s needed to leave fans satisfied enough with the result.
6
‘Predator 2’ (1990)
Average Letterboxd Rating: 2.9/5
Predator 2 follows a Predator as they stalk the futuristic world of 1997 Los Angeles to hunt the ultimate threat… Danny Glover. Loose cannon Lieutenant Mike Harrigan (Glover) is a cop with a focus on taking down the drug cartels, destroying the city. However, he will soon have bigger threats to contend with when the intergalactic hunter picks Harrigan as a warrior to prove its worth against.
The opening of the movie tells audiences the year is 1997, but there’s never any doubt that Predator 2 is a movie made in the ’90s. The shift in settings from jungle to city occasionally works, such as the subway scene that captures the fear of being hunted in a claustrophobic environment. Glover is a more than capable actor, and if the script wasn’t quite so aimless, his talents would have been put to better use in an interesting concept that doesn’t fully land.
5
‘Predators’ (2010)
Average Letterboxd Rating: 2.9/5
A group of the most dangerous humans and Topher Grace land on a strange planet as prey for the ultimate hunters in Predators. Although the strangers are rightfully wary of trusting one another, they realize their chances for survival are higher if they work together to fend off the alien killers. The chances of living 48 hours seem implausible, but a chance run-in with a human who has mastered avoiding capture gives them enough hope to try.
What Predators has going for it, and a primary reason to watch it, is the fantastic ensemble cast brought together. Walton Goggins, Danny Trejo, and Laurence Fishburne provide compelling arguments to turn the movie on, even if Predators doesn’t live up to its potential. In any case, Predators is a step in the right direction in aiming to get the franchise back to its roots of survival action.
4
‘Predator: Badlands’ (2025)
Average Letterboxd Rating: 3.6/5
Predator: Badlands offers a first in the franchise with a story focused on one of the Predators as its hero. Dek (Dimitrius Schuster-Koloamatangi) is a young Predator desperate to prove himself, so he voyages to the death planet of Genna to kill its deadliest creature. After a crash landing, the hunt starts on shaky footing, and Dek comes across a damaged synthetic (Elle Fanning) that he uses to help him on his mission.
It’s somewhat surprising that it took nine films before a Predator became the anti-hero protagonist of the story. It’s a harder sell for a Xenomorph to be fighting for honor, but the motivations for a Predator, and a deeper look into the alien culture, make sense when accounting for the creature’s fan favorite status. In a back-to-basics approach, Predator: Badlands puts the focus on the action, where it belongs, while continuing to push the boundaries of what the franchise can achieve.
3
‘Prey’ (2022)
Average Letterboxd Rating: 3.6/5
Before colonization changed the expanse of the Great Plains, a Predator hunts members of a Comanche tribe in Prey. Amber Midthunder stars as Naru, a smart and resourceful young member of the tribe who seeks to prove herself as a hunter. When a Predator armed with futuristic weapons comes across her hunting grounds, Naru will face a test unlike any her tribe has ever faced.
After numerous false starts at revitalizing the Predator franchise, Prey introduced fresh ideas via a clever story by screenwriter Patrick Alson and director Dan Trachtenberg. Naru is a capable and compelling protagonist who stands out as one of the most memorable, as her lack of advanced weaponry makes her survival more impressive. Prey manages to balance character development and fantastic action sequences that are sure to be rewatched a few times before allowing the movie to continue.
2
‘Predator: Killer of Killers’ (2025)
Average Letterboxd Rating: 3.8/5
Predators get the animated treatment in the original and action-packed Predator: Killer of Killers. The anthology film gives viewers three stories set in different time periods that highlight an epic encounter with a human opponent and a skilled Predator. Although the stories take place in different centuries, the climax sees all three wrapped together in a thrilling conclusion.
Predator: Killer of Killers will easily rank near the top for the most action-packed animated films. The feature uses animation to ramp up beautifully choreographed scenes of battle that leave you wanting more the second the film is over. The animation is crisp, the fight scenes are glorious, and it’s the best a Predator has looked during a hunt in many years.
1
‘Predator’ (1987)
Average Letterboxd Rating: 3.8/5
A rescue mission in the Central American jungle pits a group of mercenaries against an alien hunter in Predator. Arnold Schwarzenegger stars as Dutch, an ex-military special ops expert tasked with leading a crew of the most elite soldiers. However, all of their skills seem underwhelming when an alien that can turn invisible dispatches them one by one with ease.
The genre mashup of action, science fiction, and horror has gone on to make Predator a quintessential ’80s popcorn classic. The film ingeniously presents itself as a familiar action flick that throws audiences a curveball with an unexpected sci-fi twist. The action stars that once looked untouchable are now fighting for their lives, flipping the action genre on its head and introducing an iconic movie monster in the process.
