Stranger Things (TV Series) In Violent Night, David Harbour plays a murderous Santa Claus.
David Harbour, best known for his roles as Stranger Things’ cheerful chief of police Jim Hopper and Hellboy’s cantankerous monster slayer in the 2019 reboot, has finally landed his next big role: a no-nonsense, name-calling Santa Claus.
In the first trailer for Violent Night, the Christmas black comedy action thriller directed by Tommy Wirkola of Hansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters, a band of mercenaries bursts into a wealthy family’s compound on Christmas Eve, seeking to make off with $300 million. Unfortunately for them, they’ll have to travel through Harbour’s Saint Nick first, who is far less cheery and far more violent than most people would imagine.
The film is essentially Die Hard, except John McClane has magical powers related to global toy delivery rather than the ability to navigate air ducts and crawl through broken glass. It certainly follows in the tried and tested tradition of action thrillers that pit seemingly benign everyman in death-defying high-stakes scenarios, only this time it’s, y’know, the living embodiment of holiday cheer and merriment.
Violent Night will open in theaters on Dec. 2.