Aside from being a brutal, exciting, and beautifully animated sci-fi anthology movie, Predator: Killer of Killers features some mind-boggling Easter eggs and references that tie into the greater Predator lore and beyond. The new film from Prey director Dan Trachtenberg follows several Earthly warriors from across time, brought together by one common thing: they have killed one of the franchise's titular, Yautja.
The new animated movie is now streaming on Hulu, setting the stage for the upcoming Elle Fanning-led Predator: Badlands. Predator: Killer of Killers has been praised by critics, with The Direct's very own Tessa Smith saying in her review that the new film will have "fans begging for Prey 2."
Every Predator: Killer of Killers Easter Egg Explained
A Possible Familial Connection
Predator: Killer of Killers does a fantastic job of including some pretty overt references to the rest of the Predator franchise; however, it also includes a couple of subtle Easter eggs for die-hard fans to theorize over. The first of these comes with the introductions of "The Sword" portion of the film, following a pair of samurai brothers, Kenji and Kiyoshi.
Japanese actor Louis Ozawa voiced this pair of warring Feudal Japan-set brothers, who also appeared as the former Yakuza member Hanzō Kawakami in 2010's Predators.
It is unclear if the Killer of Killers brothers are related to Hanzō; however, Kenji does escape the Predator battle planet at the end of the movie, meaning there is the potential he had an heir, leading to the Predators character being born (especially considering they are both brought to life by the same actor).
The Predators Samurai Sword
The Predators connections do not stop with Kenji and Kiyoshi's voice actor. Killer of Killers includes a pretty overt reference to the 2010 Adrien Brody-led film with the inclusion of a katana vs Yautja fight.
In the 2025 animated epic main character Kenji uses his katana to slay the Predator stalking him in Ancient Japan, and then again wields it later in the film during its epic battle to the death on Yautja Prime.
In Predators, Louis Ozawa's Hanzō uses the same weapon to take on a Pedator on the alien planet, finding it strewn about some wreckage while traipsing through its dense jungles. There is even the chance that it could be the very same katana, as Killer of Killers proves the weapon has been on the planet at one point or another.
A Wink To The Franchise's First Villain
At the start of the climactic colosseum battle, there looks to be a clever wink and a nod to the Predator franchise's very first villain. Killer of Killers (along with the rest of the Predator series of films) proves there are dozens of Yautja clans living on Yautja Prime; however, to many people, the Predator is the one that appears in the 1987 sci-fi action classic, Predator.
In the animated Dan Trachtenberg movie, the Predator version of the Yautja alien can be seen to start its third-act battle to the death. To kick off the festivities that would have seen the movie's central tributes kill each other for the chance to do battle with the Yautja chieftain, an unarmed Predator is brought out into the middle of the arena for a split second before he is blown clean off his neck by the war chief watching from above.
Looking closely at this particular Yautja variant, it seems to belong to the same clan as the Predator that wreaked havoc in the Guatemalan rainforest to jump-start the franchise.
Bringing Back the 1715 Flintlock Pistol
Fans may be surprised with just how important the Raphael Adolini 1715 flintlock pistol has become to the Predator universe after it popped up yet again in Predator: Killer of Killers.
The antique pistol first appeared in Predator 2, being gifted to Danny Glover's Harrigan by several Yautja after he proved himself in battle and slayed the City Hunter Predator at the center of that film. It then appeared again in 2022's Prey, as Amber Midthunder's Indigenous hero Naru used the Spanish-made weapon to kill the Feral Predator in that movie.
Again, it plays a part in the ever-unfolding Predator canon. It is offered to Rick Gonzalez's Torres for the movie's climactic fight, seemingly having come along with Naru after she was abducted by the Yautja after the events of Prey (but we will get that later).
Some Familiar-Looking Alien Trophies
It is not just Predator Easter eggs that fans have to be on the lookout for in Killer of Killers. During the movie's final colosseum, some fans seem to think they have found a connection to another titan of sci-fi cinema, the Alien franchise.
The Yautja war chieftain, who is overlooking the movie's planned gladiator fight between Ursa, Kenji, and Torres, is wearing a cape that looks to be made of strung-together Xenomorph tails (aka the scorpion-like appendage seen on Alien's central species of extraterrestrials).
This specific Easter egg has not been confirmed, with Killer of Killers co-director Josh Wassung cryptically teasing to The Direct, "We designed that character to be as regal as possible." Seeing as there was also seemingly a reference to the Xenomorphs in the trailer for the forthcoming Predator: Badlands, it would not be surprising if the two franchises were lining up a crossover.
A Man in the Tank
Predator: Killer of Killers keeps audiences guessing until the end, potentially changing the franchise's future forever with its final few seconds. Part of this last tease is a series of cryosleep chambers similar to the ones in which the movie's trio of Earth-based heroes wake up to open its final act.
One of these tanks very clearly shows someone fans already know (we will talk about that one next), but right before that, a mystery man can be seen as one of the Yautja's slumbering prisoners. Looking closely at this fogged-up cryo-chamber, the figure inside remains pretty indiscernible other than looking like a muscular military man.
Some have taken this person to be Adrian Brody's Royce from Predators; however, without the use of time travel, that seems highly unlikely (read about whether the Predators can time travel here). What seems more likely here is that this could be Arnold Schwarzenegger's Dutch from 1987's Predator, being one of the champions the Yautja are collecting of warriors who have slated one of the alien apex predators.
Naru in Cryosleep
The other cryosleep pod Easter egg seen in Killer of Killers comes in the movie's literal last moment. After Torres and Kenji jet off into the intergalactic sunset, a pair of Yautjas can be seen transporting several holding pods. While fans are left to guess who could be hidden within some of these, one in particular makes it very clear who is behind the glass.
The last thing shown in the new movie is Amber Midthunder's Naru, as seen in Prey. In that movie, after defeating the Feral Predator, she seems to get a happy ending; however, there is a moment (depicted in several pictographs in the credits) that teases the Yautja may have come back and interacted with the Comanche tribe yet again.
Seeing as Killer of Killers seems to reveal that the franchise's central species of aliens are collecting warriors that have killed one of their own, it would make sense that they would collect and imprison Naru as a part of this. With the upcoming Predator: Badlands confirmed to be set on Yautja Prime, perhaps this could set up her return there.
