Does Predator: Badlands have a post-credit scene? Explained

Predator: Badlands is the ninth chapter in the Predator saga, and Dan Trachtenberg is at the helm. The movie turns the franchise's concept on its head by making Yautja Dek the protagonist.

The story is about Dek's journey to accomplish a ritual hunt and get recognition in his clan. Besides that, the movie features elements of Yautja culture and the Weyland-Yutani Corporation, thus being consistent with the wider Alien-Predator shared universe.

As the recent entries in the franchise usually come up with a scene during or after the credits, fans are asking whether there is such a scene in Predator: Badlands. One of the reasons for such expectations is the stylish end-credits sequence of Prey, Trachtenberg's last installment, which hinted at later developments.

Predator: Badlands includes one brief pre-credits scene, but there is no traditional post-credits scene after the credits.

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Details explored on the post-credit scene of Predator: Badlands

Predator: Badlands is accompanied by one extra narrative scene that is shown directly after the last narrative beat of the film, and its title is displayed again. The segment is there before the full end credits roll. Thus, there are neither mid-credit scenes nor post-credit scenes after the scrolling credits.

Before the main credits, Dek comes back to Yautja Prime with Thia and Bud. To show that he has accomplished the hunt, Dek brings Tessa's skull and asks for the clan's cloaking device as the reward he is entitled to. Njohrr does not accept Dek's claim and, therefore, a fight breaks out immediately.

Dek battles and defeats the soldiers who are sent to arrest him, and later on, overpowers and kills Njohrr. With this action, he avenges the death of his brother Kwei, who had been executed by Njohrr.

After the encounter had finished, the Predator: Badlands title is displayed once more. A large spacecraft is then shown arriving. Thia wonders if the new arrival is a friend or a foe. Dek says that the ship is his mother's. At that moment, the film ends. The consequences of her arrival are not indicated by the movie.

There are no additional scenes after the usual credit sequence, so people can leave the theater after the first break if they want to.

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What happens in Predator: Badlands?

Predator: Badlands (Image Via 20th Century Studios)

Predator: Badlands is about Dek, who is played by Dimitrius Schuster-Koloamatangi. Dek is a physically smaller one among the rest of his clan members and is regarded as a person who will definitely fail in the compulsory hunt.

Before the beginning of the hunt, Njohrr, the clan leader and Dek's father, commands Dek's brother Kwei to kill him. Kwei, instead of doing that, remotely turns on Dek's transport ship and thus lets Dek go. After that, Njohrr kills Kwei.

Dek lands on Genna, where the local nature is dangerous. During his survival attempts, which also include finding his target, Dek meets Thia, a broken Weyland-Yutani synthetic played by Elle Fanning.

Thia intends to find her detached legs and then, of course, to restore her functionality. After that, Dek and Thia make a deal that is to work together. Later on, they find an indigenous creature named Bud by Thia. Bud marks Dek with a scent that becomes relevant later in the hunt.

While synthetic Thia and Tessa, played by Elle Fanning, are getting reactivated and are on the run with Thia, Dek, and Bud, a Weyland-Yutani group, on the other hand, is working for the capture of both Dek and Kalisk for research purposes.

At first, Dek manages to decapitate Kalisk, but the latter eventually regenerates. Bud, being the offspring of Kalisk, therefore, quite innocent for now, is the revelation that changes Dek's objectives.

Dek makes some weapons of the crude kind out of the Genna materials and starts a riot at the Weyland-Yutani site. The Kalisk is the one who gets freed, and later, he is involved in the destruction of the place.

Tessa, with the help of a mechanical loader and the Yautja laser weapon, which she has in her possession, confronts the last battle with Dek. Tessa is ultimately killed by Dek and Bud. During this series of events, the Kalisk also meets his end.

Predator: Badlands is a movie that, in the end, shows the trio of Dek, Thia, and Bud going back to Yautja Prime with Tessa's skull. The footage of the confrontation between Dek with Njohrr is followed by the pre-credits scene featuring the arrival of Dek's mother.

Read More: Where was Predator: Badlands filmed? Complete guide to all filming locations and other production details

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Predator: Badlands had its world premiere on November 3, 2025, at the TCL Chinese Theatre and was released in the United States on November 7, ‍‌‍‍‌‍‌‍‍‌2025.

Edited by Sakshi Singh