Character Relationship Map: Predator: Badlands

Characters

• Thia / Tessa (played by Elle Fanning) — protagonist

  The protagonist of Predator: Badlands, who allies with an exiled Predator.

• Dek / Father (played by Dimitrius Schuster-Koloamatangi) — supporting

  A young exiled Predator who proves himself in Predator: Badlands.

• Bud (played by Ravi Narayan) — supporting
• Father (Suit) (played by Reuben De Jong) — supporting
• Kwei (Suit) (played by Michael Homick) — supporting

Canonical Relationships

Family, romantic, and professional connections based on plot evidence.

• Thia / Tessa → Father (Suit) (Professional Company Operative Under Threat) — Tessa is subject to the Company's mission demands and threat of decommissioning.

  The plot says Tessa is retrieved by Weyland-Yutani androids, repaired at their base, and threatened with decommissioning if she fails her mission.

• Dek / Father → Father (Suit) (Family Father And Son) — Their bond is defined by Njohrr's rejection and Dek's eventual refusal to accept a place in his clan.

  Njohrr is Dek's father and orders Kwei to kill Dek. Later, Dek returns to confront Njohrr, who refuses his request for a cloaking device and orders hi...

• Dek / Father → Kwei (Suit) (Family Brother) — Kwei sacrifices himself to help Dek escape their father's execution order, becoming a defining loss for Dek.

  The plot identifies Kwei as Dek's brother. Kwei defies their father's order to kill Dek and is executed by him.

Story Dynamics

Alliances, conflicts, and narrative interactions that evolve throughout the story.

• Bud → Kwei (Suit) (Narrative Indirectly Connected) — Their connection is indirect: Kwei's ship provides a location in Dek's journey with Bud.

  Dek uses Kwei's crashed ship while healing, and later uses the ship's events as part of his path toward rescuing Thia and Bud.

• Thia / Tessa → Bud (Alliance Allies) — Thia works with Bud during the effort to reach and free the Kalisk.

  Thia and Bud search for the Kalisk together after Dek tells Thia that Bud is the creature's child.

• Dek / Father → Bud (Alliance Protector And Companion) — Dek's care for Bud develops into a bond that helps him understand protection and choose his own family.

  Dek saves Bud from a wild beast and feeds her. Later, he realizes she is the Kalisk's child and includes her in the rescue effort.

• Dek / Father → Thia / Tessa (Alliance Reluctant Allies) — Their alliance grows from mutual need into trust as Thia helps Dek and Dek risks himself to free her.

  Thia offers to help Dek track the Kalisk. After helping the Company capture them, she regrets it and helps Dek escape; he later rescues her from the b...

Story Analysis

An exiled young hunter learns that strength means protecting a chosen pack rather than earning approval through killing.

Plot Progression

1. The Brother's Sacrifice — Dek seeks approval by pursuing the Kalisk, but Njohrr orders Kwei to kill him. Kwei helps Dek escape and dies at Njohrr's hands.
2. Allies on Genna — After crashing on Genna, Dek loses most of his gear and accepts help from Thia. Bud joins them, while Tessa begins a Company mission to find the group.
3. The Kalisk's Capture — Dek confronts the regenerating Kalisk alone after believing Thia has betrayed him. Tessa captures Dek and Thia, bringing them to the Company's base.
4. Choosing the Pack — Thia helps Dek escape, and he understands that an alpha protects its pack rather than simply killing the most prey. He and Bud return to the base to rescue Thia and the Kalisk.
5. A Clan of His Own — Dek and Bud help defeat Tessa, then Dek returns to Yautja Prime and challenges Njohrr. He rejects the clan offer, claims the cloaking device, and faces the arrival of his mother.