Violent Night 2 trailer brings David Harbour’s Santa back – David Harbour is suiting up for another bloody Christmas, with the first trailer revealing Kristen Bell as Mrs Claus and a new mall-set battle for the action-comedy sequel.
Violent Night 2 will open in Australian cinemas on Thursday, 3 December. Tommy Wirkola returns to direct, while original screenwriters Pat Casey and Josh Miller are back for the follow-up.
The sequel expands the first film’s bruising festive formula rather than simply repeating its home-invasion setup. Moving the action to a busy shopping centre gives Harbour’s Santa a much larger community to protect, while Bell’s arrival as Mrs Claus adds a new force to the franchise’s gleefully unconventional take on Christmas mythology.
Watch the Violent Night 2 trailer
Santa faces a new Christmas threat
The story finds Santa confronting a ruthless gangster played by Jared Harris. The villain is terrorising the merchants of Silver Bell Mall, forcing Saint Nick into another fight against heavily armed criminals.
However, Santa has also lost sight of the true meaning of Christmas. With his magic fading and time running out, he becomes entangled with a lively mall community that urgently needs his help.
Beating the gangster’s crew will require more than Santa’s combat training. He must rediscover his faith in goodness and seek last-minute reinforcements from Mrs Claus, the one person his enemies are particularly unprepared to face.
Kristen Bell joins the Violent Night cast
Bell joins the returning Harbour as Mrs Claus, while Harris steps into the central villain role. The cast also includes Joe Pantoliano, Daniela Melchior, Andrew Bachelor and professional wrestler Maxwell Friedman.
Pantoliano’s screen credits include The Sopranos and The Last of Us. Melchior has appeared in Fast X and Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, while Friedman previously featured in The Iron Claw and Happy Gilmore 2.
A new chapter from the original creative team
The 2022 film introduced Harbour’s embittered Santa as he used his combat skills to rescue a young girl and her family from a team of mercenaries. Its mix of brutal action, Christmas sentiment and dark comedy turned the film into a new holiday franchise for Universal Pictures.
Wirkola again directs from a screenplay by Casey and Miller. Kelly McCormick and David Leitch produce through 87North, the company behind Bullet Train, The Fall Guy, Atomic Blonde and the Nobody films.
When is Violent Night 2 released in Australia?
Violent Night 2 opens exclusively in Australian cinemas on Thursday, 3 December.
Find more upcoming films in TV Central’s Movie Previews section, or visit the official Universal Pictures Australia website for cinema release information.
