Dan Trachtenberg, the director credited with reviving the Predator franchise, is reportedly trading xenomorph-hunting sci-fi for a fairy tale, with plans to develop and direct a new film inspired by Disney’s classic animated Sleeping Beauty. According to a report by Deadline, the filmmaker is taking a detour from the sci-fi property he helped reinvigorate to work on a fresh take on one of Disney’s most storied animated classics, though the project will have no connection to the live-action Maleficent films that reimagined the tale more than a decade ago.
No plot details have been disclosed, and sources familiar with the matter told Deadline that the upcoming film will be entirely separate from Angelina Jolie’s Maleficent duology. The news marks a surprising creative pivot for a director who has become synonymous with modern, gritty science-fiction horror over the past few years.
A Director Defined by Modern Sci-Fi Horror
Trachtenberg’s ascent within the genre has been rapid and consequential. In 2022, he delivered Prey, a Hulu original that critics and audiences alike embraced as the entry that dragged the Predator franchise out of a long creative slump. The film’s success, set in the 1700s and centered on a Comanche warrior facing off against an alien hunter, established Trachtenberg as a filmmaker capable of balancing visceral action with atmospheric storytelling.
He has since built on that momentum with two more well-received projects set within the Predator universe: the theatrical release Predator: Badlands and the Hulu animated anthology movie Predator: Killers of Killers. Together, these films have expanded the franchise’s reach across formats, from live-action cinema to animated storytelling, and left many fans hopeful that Trachtenberg would return for yet another Predator project.
Instead, Disney—which owns Fox and, by extension, the Predator series—appears to have charted a different course for the talented director. The studio has reportedly tapped Trachtenberg to help shape a new interpretation of Sleeping Beauty, one of the studio’s foundational animated features from 1959.
While no official statement has been issued, Deadline’s sources indicate the new Sleeping Beauty film will be a standalone project with no ties to the Maleficent movies, signaling Disney’s intent to launch a fresh chapter rather than continue an existing one.
Based on reporting by Deadline
What This Means for the Predator Franchise
The departure of Trachtenberg from the Predator franchise leaves an obvious question hanging over the property’s future. With Disney now firmly in control of the Fox library and the Predator IP, fans had grown accustomed to seeing the director steer new installments. His apparent shift toward a Disney animated classic suggests the studio sees value in deploying his talents across a broader range of its portfolio.
It also raises an inevitable, if playful, concern among followers of the franchise: how much of the signature brutality that defined Prey and Predator: Badlands will carry over to a tale rooted in a princess, a curse, and a spinning wheel. Given Trachtenberg’s reputation for unflinching, atmospheric horror, some viewers may wonder how many spines get ripped out in this particular retelling.
For now, however, the specifics remain shrouded. Trachtenberg is reportedly in pre-production on an unknown, non-Predator film for Paramount, a separate project from the Sleeping Beauty development. The two ventures appear to be distinct, with the Sleeping Beauty film still in an early, undeveloped stage.
Looking Ahead
Given the early stages of development, it will likely be some time before Disney reveals anything concrete about the Sleeping Beauty film, including its creative direction, format, and potential release window. No casting announcements, plot summaries, or production dates have been shared, and Deadline’s report did not confirm whether the project will be animated or live-action.
Until then, the only certainty is that a director once hailed as the savior of the Predator franchise is now steering toward the enchanted forests and sleeping princesses of Disney’s animated legacy, marking one of the most unexpected creative pivots in recent Hollywood news.
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