Summary
- Recent activity within the Alien and Predator franchises suggests a potential for a third Alien vs. Predator film.
- Both franchises have recently undergone soft reboots, with successful releases and upcoming projects.
- A new crossover between Alien and Predator would have the potential for a massive box office hit.
While there haven't been any official announcements, recent activity within each franchise could indicate that a third Alien vs. Predator film would be possible after all these years. Alien vs Predator was released in 2004 when the two franchises were practically dead, and it spawned a sequel, Alien vs. Predator: Requiem. Even though both movies were poorly received by the audience and by the critics, they did okay financially (via The Numbers) and created an entire mythology that sort of exists as its canon within the Alien and Predator movies.
The Alien franchise and the Predator franchise are two of the most iconic sci-fi horror sagas ever. They have both spawned several films, including sequels, prequels, and crossovers. One thing these two franchises have in common is that they were born more than 30 years ago and, throughout that time, they've had their ups and downs, but they were never fully dead. Currently, the upcoming Alien and Predator projects seem to set the perfect landscape for another crossover to happen.
|
Alien Franchise |
Predator Franchise |
|---|---|
|
Alien (1979) |
Predator (1987) |
|
Aliens (1986) |
Predator 2 (1990) |
|
Alien 3 (1992) |
AVP: Alien Vs. Predator (2004) |
|
Aliens: Resurrection (1997) |
Alien Vs. Predator: Requiem (2007) |
|
AVP: Alien Vs. Predator (2004) |
Predators (2010) |
|
Alien Vs. Predator: Requiem (2007) |
The Predator (2018) |
|
Prometheus (2012) |
Prey (2022) |
|
Alien: Covenant (2017) |
Badlands (2025) |
|
Alien: Romulus (2024) |
Prey 2 (TBA) |
Both The Alien & Predator Franchises Have Soft Rebooted
Looking back at the Predator franchise and the Alien franchise's past and considering their present, there seems to be a similar tendency. In the first place, after the release of the second AVP film, the Predator films follow a different path by making movies involving more predators and going deeper into their species. While Predators, which had a fine cast, worked rather well, The Predator's failure almost killed the franchise forever. However, with Prey's release in 2022, the franchise has gotten back on track, and upcoming projects like Prey 2 and Predator: Badlands look more promising.
The New Predator Movie Title Hints It Might Be Connected To Prey
The title for the next chapter in the Predator franchise may reveal a connection to the franchise's highly successful most recent entry.The Alien franchise took a similar path after the Alien vs Predator movies, as well. Prometheus, Ridley Scott's return to the franchise, did well at the box office and was well received by critics, but Alien: Covenant didn't get good reviews overall. Additionally, both films go deeper into the xenomorph's origins and deviate from the original Alien timeline. However, the upcoming Alien: Romulus, which is scheduled to be released on August 16th, 2024, gets the franchise back on track as it is set somewhere between the events of Alien and Aliens. An Alien TV show is also happening.
20th Century Studio Seems To Be Slowly Setting Up An Alien vs. Predator 3
Now that the Predator franchise has already emerged with Prey's success, and that Alien seems to be returning to the basis with plenty of excitement from the audience with Alien: Romulus, it seems as if 20th Century is trying to put both franchises in the right place for a possible crossover that could be a massive box office hit in the style of Godzilla vs. Kong. In addition to that, the fact that Badlands is set in the future also means that its timeline could potentially cross with Alien: Romulus, giving birth to a new Alien vs. Predator film.
Source: The Numbers
