Few franchises are as popular as Predator. Since premiering in 1987, the Predator (or, more specifically the Yautja warrior) has spawned his own film franchise, appeared in movies, comics and video games. There's even a popular crossover franchise, Alien vs. Predator. If you want to watch every movie in the the Predator franchise, we've got you covered with this streaming guide. Below you can find out how to watch every Predator movie in release and chronological order.
If you want to watch the Predator movies in release order, you can watch with Predator (1987) before moving on to Predator 2 (1990). The franchise then takes an unexpected turn with Alien vs. Predator (2004) and Alien vs. Predator: Requiem (2007), before returning to the Yautja's standalone movies again with Predators (2010) The Predator (2018) and Prey (2022). However, Prey takes place chronologically before the events of the original predator movie. So, if you want want to stream the entire Predator franchise in chronological order, this guide is here to help.
Predator: Killer of Killers
Placing Predator: Killer of Killers on a chronological timeline is difficult because the movie centers on three time periods; the Viking era, feudal Japan, and WWII. The animated movie follows the deadly alien species going up against human warriors from each historic era.
Prey
Chronologically, the second movie in the series would be Prey, which is set back in 1719. In the film, a young Comanche woman (Amber Midthunder) wants to be a great hunter, but is told she’s not allowed since she’s a woman. But after encountering the Predator in the forest, she must not only become a hunter, but also survive being hunted.
Predator
Next up is the original movie which is set in the present day (being 1987 at the time). In the film, an elite military team is tasked with an extraction mission in a wartorn Central American country. But escaping rebel forces in the jungle turns out to be the least of their worries once they find themselves stalked by the Predator.
Predator 2
Taking Predator from the jungle to the city, Predator 2 starred Danny Glover as a Los Angeles detective who is investigating drug cartels. Also, somewhat randomly, the film is set in 1997 instead of 1990 – perhaps to give the movie more of a dystopian future vibe (which…it didn’t). But the cartels soon find that they’re not just warring against each other and the police, but also the Predator.
Alien vs Predator
This iconic head-to-head movie, which is known to fans as simple 'AVP', was inspired by a crossover comic book from 1989. When Weyland Industries identify a pyramid hidden underneath an island in the Antarctic, the unfortunate team sent to investigate become entangled in an intergalactic war between the Xenomorphs and the Yauja warriors.
Rumors about a connected universe between Xenomorphs and the Yautja began when the skull of the parasitic alien could be seen within the predator's ship in Predator 2. What may have been just an easter egg from the film's visual effects teams (some of whom worked on both franchises) eventually became a blockbuster event that was unprecedented at the time.
The AVP movies are generally considered to be canonical within the Predator franchise but not recognized within the Alien franchise's canon. However, if you want to watch all of the Alien movies in order, it would be a mistake to skip AVP and AVP 2.
Alien vs Predator 2
AVP 2 continues the ongoing fight between two of cinema's most recognizable alien species. Also known as Aliens vs Predator: Reqiuem, the movie follows a Predator ship that leaves Earth with its captured Xenomorph facehuggers. But it's not long before there's a chestburster aboard the ship – leading to the creation of an alien which has the characteristic traits of both species.
Predators
This one is highly debated because Predators never actually says when it takes place. However, many fans believe it takes place between the first two movies. In the film, a group of humans awaken on an alien planet and learn that they’re being used for hunting practice by the Predators. Even wilder, the Predator from the first movie (who definitely was blown up in the finale, but oh well...) is somehow there, and alive, and is tied up and being tortured by the other Predators for his failure on Earth. Because of this, many fans think it’s set not long after the first movie. But there are others who believe the film takes place in the future, which begs the question: How long has the Predator been tied up for?????
The Predator
Another oddity (and, honestly, just a really terrible movie in general) is The Predator. Before the film’s release, director Shane Black claimed in a 2016 interview with HeyUGuys that the movie takes place before 2010’s Predators, but also, and I quote, “Predator 2 has probably happened already…” So the film’s director doesn’t even know where and when the movie takes place. Black also cast his convicted pedophile friend for a small role in the film where he plays a pervert, and the movie has a bizarre subplot about autism. Needless to say, Black hasn’t directed a movie since The Predator and this film can honestly just be skipped.
