‘Violent Night’: Trailer, Release Date, Cast, and Everything We Know So Far (2024)

As much as we love our good ol’ Saint Nick, his unconventional movie avatars are always more appealing. That’s why David Harbour’s Santa is going to blow your mind. Coming this holiday season, Violent Night is a darker and thrilling (but humorous nevertheless) take on the joyful festival as a badass Father Christmas slays bad people. Although it’s going to be all twisted and quite bloody, it’s all in the spirit of Yuletide.

Directed by Tommy Wirkola, and written by Pat Casey and Josh Miller, Violent Night follows Santa Claus saving the day and Christmas from a group of mercenaries who attack the estate of a wealthy family. From Tim Allen’s The Santa Clause to Bad Santa and Kurt Russell’s The Christmas Chronicles, we have seen Santa being not so nice all the time, but that's the exciting part of this kind of movie. Violent Night takes that aspect of St. Nick to a whole other level. Releasing this December, this dark comedy definitely deserves to be on your holiday movie list.

The tickets are yet to go on sale but meanwhile, you can check out our complete guide below to find out the movie’s plot, trailer, release date, cast and characters, and everything else that we know so far about Violent Night. Now, get ready for some season’s beatings (oops, greetings!) and a truly wild Christmas.

Related:Our 5 Favorite Unconventional Movie Santas

Watch the Violent Night Trailer

Fans have been waiting for so long for the official trailer of Violent Night and it has finally been released. Let us tell you straight up that you don’t want to be on this Santa’s naughty list because he doesn’t just give a lump of coal to bad people. What he does instead is way more dangerous and just what they deserve. It’s like watching Die Hard, the Santa version. Although the clip more or less reveals the entire plot, the fun of the movie is going to be watching Harbour bringing out all his action skills while being the most lovable and adorable mythical figure possible. As you can see, the movie’s title is right on point with what it’s about – Santa fighting with all guns blazing and also setting things ablaze when he sees an innocent family under attack. This Santa is all about instant karma. The trailer definitely proves that this action-comedy film is going to be full of action and thrill, making it a delicious, decadent, holiday treat! Catch a glimpse of what’s coming in the player above.

When Is Violent Night’s Release Date?

Violent Night is premiering at the New York Comic Con on October 7, 2022, followed by its nationwide theatrical release on Friday, December 2, 2022.

Who's In the Violent Night Cast?

Violent Night boasts quite a cast with David Harbour headlining as Father Noel himself. He is joined by John Leguizamo, Beverly D'Angelo, Alex Hassell, Alexis Louder, Cam Gigandet, Edi Patterson, and André Eriksen in various roles. The thrilling Christmas story sees Harbour’s Santa as not so much the elusive mythical figure he is known to be, but very, very real. And he can fight like a superhero! The Stranger Things star has featured in many action thrillers earlier, like Quantum of Solace, The Green Hornet, Suicide Squad, and the 2019 Hellboy, among many others in the same genre as well as in other genres. You can expect to see him in his upcoming projects like Gran Turismo, Thunderbolts, and My Dentist’s Murder Trial, which he is also executive producing.

In other roles, Leguizamo stars as Ben, the leader of the mercenaries; D'Angelo as Gertrude, the matriarch of the family, Alex Hassell as Skyler, one of Gertrude's children who is spending Christmas with his wife and daughter at the family estate; and Alexis Louder as Margie Matthews, Skyler's estranged wife who is spending the holidays at the house so their daughter can have a good Christmas.

Related:'Violent Night' Poster Features David Harbour as a Brutal Santa Claus

Who are the Creators of Violent Night?

Violent Night comes from Norwegian director Tommy Wirkola, who is recognized for transforming beloved classics into dark and dangerous tales with a modern setting. Take for example. Wirkola is best known for his previous projects like Kill Buljo, the Kill Bill parody, the Norwegian comedy-horror series, Dead Snow and its sequel Dead Snow 2: Red vs. Dead, What Happened to Monday, and The Trip, among others. He’s also set to write and direct his next movie, Spermageddon, coming in 2023.

Pat Casey and Josh Miller pen the screenplay for the comedy thriller, a duo best known for the live-action/animation adventure series Sonic the Hedgehog and its sequel. Violent Night comes from 87North Productions, the same production company that made Nobody and Bullet Train, and is produced by David Leitch and Kelly McCormick, along with Guy Danella. It really looks like you can expect a similar high-octane action-driven narrative to those films in this movie as well.

What Is Violent Night’s Story?

Violent Night is a power-packed, gritty rendition of the mythical legend that is Santa Claus. As the title proves, this isn’t your average, holly, jolly Christmas story, but it is a Christmas story alright. It’s Christmas Eve and Santa is on his way to fulfill his annual duty of dropping off gifts to his nice list. But little did he expect his work to get interrupted by a bunch of goons, and make a bloody mess of his wonderfully planned night. As soon as he lands at the home of a little girl on that list, he finds himself surrounded by villainous people with weapons and is attacked.

First, all he wants to do is just quietly escape and get on with his night, but the attackers won’t just let him leave. So Santa reveals a side of his character that you have never ever seen before or even imagined. The mercenaries in question are holding the house and its family members hostage for a fat payout. But what they don’t see coming is that their violent act will be returned duly, as Father Christmas takes them on with all his magical powers, tearing them down, one by one. Though the brightest day of the year takes a grim turn, it’s all undoubtedly going to end well because Santa, once again, will make it a very merry Christmas. Well, not for the bad guys.