Predator: Killer of Killers is the latest addition to the horror, thriller, and science fiction franchise, Predator, directed by the same Dan Trachtenberg who brought us the successful Prey a couple of years ago. This new animated film, which could be considered an anthology, is based on an interesting premise about the feared but beloved alien species Yautja. With three stories from three different eras that eventually intertwine, the film explores the idea that the Yautja organize a murderous gladiatorial tournament for their entertainment and also to quench their thirst for blood. Driven by excellent art direction and intense action, Predator: Killer of Killers is a highly recommended film, especially for fans of the Predator franchise.
Predator: Killer of Killers begins in the year 841 AD, long after human civilization on Earth had already begun to plunder, rob, and steal from one another, with the inherent desire to kill or be killed reigning supreme. This first story in the new animated film centers on Ursa, leader of a Viking tribe, who undertakes a perilous journey across the seas to avenge her murdered father. When Ursa was just a child, her village was raided by an enemy faction called the Krivich, whose leader, Zoran, had been extremely cruel to her tribe. Since Ursa's father, Einar, had been the tribe's leader and had bravely fought the outsiders until his last breath, Zoran was cruel to him and devised a brutal plan to destroy him.
Directors: Dan Trachtenberg, Joshua Wassung
Writers: Micho Robert Rutare, Dan Trachtenberg, Jim Thomas
Stars: Michael Biehn, Doug Cockle, Rick Gonzalez
As the gravely wounded Einar lay on the battlefield, Zoran refused to kill him, as was Viking custom, and brought the dying man's young daughter to the scene. He ordered Ursa to kill her father, reminding Einar that otherwise he would kill the girl. With no choice but to protect his daughter's life at all costs, Einar forced young Ursa to plunge the dagger she was holding into his chest, forcing her to commit an unwanted but horrific patricide. So that the young woman would live with the guilt of this act for the rest of her life, Zoran left the village without harming her and returned to his lands with his troops. However, Ursa was forever scarred, and since then, she has been driven by only one purpose: to fulfill her father's last wish: to avenge his death one day.
Thus, Ursa sets sail in search of the Krivich, along with her band of loyal warriors and her teenage son, Anders. Although completely devoted to his mother's orders, Anders seems somewhat hesitant about the idea of going out to kill every member of the Krivich tribe, as his men have already plundered enough riches to ensure a life of abundance in their village. However, Anders follows his mother as they demolish an entire Krivich encampment, discover Zoran's whereabouts, and arrive at his fort. After a brief battle, in which all the remaining Krivich are killed, Ursa finally confronts Zoran, but is immediately affected by the villain's claims that she was the one who killed her own father. Realizing that Ursa now needs his help more urgently, Anders intervenes and kills Zoran to avenge his grandfather's death and the trauma caused to his mother.
Although the Viking tribe managed to carry out their mission, no one had noticed the Predator lurking in the distance, as it had been using its alien technology to remain invisible the entire time. As soon as Zoran is killed, the Predator attacks the humans, leading to a prolonged struggle with Ursa. Despite the alien's supernatural abilities and the variety of tools at her disposal, Ursa finally manages to kill it using her sharp combat skills and the traditional shield she always carries with her. However, tragedy awaits her when she returns to Zoran's camp, where she finds her son dying from injuries sustained in his brief battle with the Predator. After losing her son in combat, just as she lost her father, Ursa turns vengeful against the Predator, and while we don't see it at the moment, she does have the opportunity for revenge. According to a later scene, Ursa must have been boarded by a Yautja spaceship at that very moment, only to be abducted by the aliens and kept alive for centuries for their master plan.
The real reason the Yautja have been kidnapping humans and keeping them alive for centuries is because they devised the concept of a gladiatorial battle to be held on what appears to be their home planet, for the enjoyment of their species. It is purely for entertainment purposes that the Predators were sent to Earth to track down and "collect" great human warriors with exceptional courage, strength, and discipline to face them on the battlefield. This is confirmed, in fact, in a quote early in the film, in which the Yautja Predators are told to go out and find the strongest prey from across the universe. The Yautja are known for their bloodthirsty nature and their desire to be the apex predators among all living beings.
Therefore, the main premise of the gladiatorial battle is for human warriors to fight each other and wild beasts, and the winner of this battle must fight the strongest Yautja, currently known simply as the Warlord Predator. This exceptionally powerful Predator is the leader of the alien clan on this planet, and it could be that this is just a small stage of the cruel game they've devised. Perhaps if any human manages to defeat the Predator Warlord on this planet, they will also be forced to face similar beasts from other, similar planets. We'll have to wait for the sequels to see if this is true, but Predator: Killer of Killers introduces the concept of this gladiatorial battle between humans in a public arena, and this idea will surely be implemented further in the franchise.
At first, Ursa refuses to help her fellow humans and immediately begins to fight them, perhaps because, as a Viking warrior, she is so used to the idea of killing other humans to protect herself. However, she eventually changes her mind when Torres intervenes in her attacks on Kenji, and on a sudden impulse, the young man appears to her as her own deceased son, Anders. More than his physical appearance, it was Torres's repeated pleas to calm down and approach the situation more thoughtfully that allowed Ursa to see the connection between him and Anders, who often acted similarly toward her.
Thus, Ursa finally decides to sacrifice herself to protect Torres and Kenji on the spaceship, jumping to destroy the enormous chain holding them back. Even more interesting, in her final words to Torres, whom she has now accepted as a close friend, if not her son, Ursa tells him not to avenge her. This stands in stark contrast to what her father, Einar, had once told her, for through her life experiences, Ursa has learned that revenge only causes more bloodshed and loss for both sides. If she hadn't ventured to avenge her father, she wouldn't have lost her son. Therefore, she tells Torres and Kenji not to avenge her, knowing that doing so will only cause them pain. Although Ursa is captured by the Yautja at the end of the film, she doesn't die, but is frozen using cryogenic technology so she can awaken later. Since the Yautja keep Ursa alive to fight on their battlefield later, we can expect to see her again in the franchise, possibly fighting the same aliens who captured her.
Thanks to Torres' quick thinking, the three humans manage to devise an escape plan from the alien planet, as he also commandeers one of the alien spaceships to take them back to Earth. When the Yautja stop their ship, Ursa jumps in and destroys the ray holding them back, ultimately freeing the ship, and the men are able to fly away. Although we see Torres and Kenji fly away in the spaceship at the end of Predator: Killer of Killers, their exact fate is unclear. Warlord Predator also orders his forces to immediately launch a hunt to find and capture the humans, suggesting that Torres and Kenji will likely be recaptured before they can successfully return to Earth. What exactly happens to them will only become clear in the sequels, but we can expect Torres and Kenji to put up a strong fight against the Predators when they return to our screens in the future.
The ending of Predator: Killer of Killers also confirms that Ursa, Torres, and Kenji weren't the only humans captured and cryofrozen by the Yautja; that thousands more warriors have returned to their home planet. All the humans collected in this way are placed in cryogenic coffins and carefully stacked inside a state-of-the-art facility. The final shot of the film focuses on the face of one human in particular: Naru, the protagonist of the 2022 film Prey. Belonging to the Comanche tribe, Naru had bravely fought off a Predator that had attacked.
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