What do you get when you cross Saint Nicholas with John Wick? Well, you get Violent Night, a Christmas-themed action-comedy that stars David Harbour (Stranger Things) as Santa Claus. The film took in $1.1 million in Thursday night previews, which has it on track to become a sleeper hit of the season.
Violent Night follows a team of mercenaries who break into a wealthy family compound on Christmas Eve and take everyone inside hostage, but the team isn’t prepared for a surprise combatant: Santa Claus is on the grounds, and he’s about to show why this Nick is no saint. In addition to David Harbour, Violent Night also stars John Leguizamo (John Wick), Cam Gigandet (Without Remorse), Alex Hassell (Cowboy Bebop), Alexis Louder (The Tomorrow War), Edi Patterson (The Righteous Gemstones) and Beverly D’Angelo (National Lampoon’s Vacation). Tommy Wirkola (Hansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters) directed from a script by Pat Casey & Josh Miller (Sonic the Hedgehog).
Our own David Arroyo loved every minute of Violent Night, even saying that it could — but not quite — give Die Hard a run for its money when it comes to the “definitive Christmas action film.” Boasting an “over-the-top collection of bloody action scenes, insane performances, and some of the corniest jokes in a movie” that he’s heard in years, Arroyo singled out praise for David Harbour, who is “brilliant” as the apathetic St. Nick. “David Harbour knows exactly what kind of film he’s in, so he commits to the madness of the premise,” Arroyo said. You can check out the rest of Arroyo’s review right here.
Violent Knight is currently sitting at 66% on Rotten Tomatoes, although its audience score is much higher. Let us know what you thought of Violent Night in the comments below!