Predator: Killer of Killers (Disney+) is full of ideas, but doesn’t quite land the kill

Note: This review was first published on 29 July 2025.

The premise of Predator: Killer of Killers sounds really promising when the trailer dropped for the animated follow-up to the refreshing Prey movie. Drop a Yautja into different points in human history, match it against the fiercest warriors of their time, then watch all hell breaking loose. Vikings, samurai and wartime pilots are all solid picks. But after, and finally, having the time to watch the entire series, I’m mostly just left wondering what Killer of Killers could have really been if it had not tried to do everything at once.

The show presents itself as an anthology, but it doesn’t fully commit to the format. It jumps across timelines, gives each protagonist just enough context to justify a fight, then circles back with a frame narrative that’s meant to tie it all together. Except it doesn’t, really. It just sort of lingers there – this vague connective tissue that keeps flashing in and out, hinting at something bigger but never doing much with it. You can feel the show trying to be clever about it, but the end result is a bit muddled. The stories don’t build on each other in any meaningful way, and the final act, where they all converge, feels like it was written hurriedly just to tie a bow on everything.

It’s not like the individual episodes are bad. The Viking chapter opens strong – moody, cold, a bit grimy in the right ways. There’s a scene early on where the snow crunches underfoot and you can see the tension in the characters’ shoulders before anything even happens. And the Japan segment – no dialogue, just atmosphere and well-paced silence – is probably the best episode for me. It almost works as a short film on its own.

But here’s my biggest peeve: Each segment ends before it really lands, and by the time the cross-timeline team-up starts rolling in the final act, I was already out of it. There’s no time for the characters to develop, so when they’re forced to share screen time, it’s not exactly a reunion. It’s three strangers stuck in a room together with a Yautja nearby and no real plan. That last half hour is all action and thematic gestures, but nothing really clicks. It’s trying to be profound, but it’s also in a hurry – which is a weird combo.

Visually, the art direction is really nice. The Viking costumes have weight. The Japanese landscapes have that autumnal painterly vibe. There are scenes that absolutely work as screenshots. But when things start moving – especially during the fight scenes – the seams start to show. Frame rates drop. Animations stutter. I found myself rewinding certain moments just to check if my stream was glitching, only to realise, no, that’s just how it was animated. It’s not unwatchable, but it is distracting. Especially in sequences where the choreography’s meant to be fluid. You get these jerky transitions, then suddenly it’ll snap into buttery-smooth movement again, which makes it even more noticeable.

What annoyed me more, though, was the ending. Not because it’s bad exactly – it’s just very obviously setting up a sequel. There’s no clear resolution and no real payoff. It leans on the idea that you’ll stick around for the next one. Look, I don’t think Killer of Killers is bad animated series. There’s enough creativity on display that I didn’t regret watching it. There’s a version of this that works brilliantly – where each chapter gets room to stretch, the animation has a bit more polish, and the anthology format is used with more purpose. But this isn’t quite it. It’s a sampler platter that promises a full meal later. And while some of the flavours are nice, you’re mostly left hungry.

I still want to see more Predator stories set in the past and I still think animation is a great way to explore them. But this one feels like a pitch reel pretending to be a movie. It’s cool in places, frustrating in others, and ultimately not as satisfying as it wants to be.

Note: Predator: Killer of Killers is available for streaming now on Disney+. You can subscribe to the service here.

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