When Violent Night arrived in 2022, it felt like the cinematic equivalent of finding a lump of coal that somehow turned out to be the perfect Christmas gift. Tommy Wirkola’s gleefully blood-soaked action-comedy paired David Harbour’s weary Santa Claus with outrageous festive carnage, but beneath the shattered ornaments and sharpened candy canes was an unexpectedly sincere story about hope, family and rediscovering the spirit of Christmas. It was exactly that unlikely balance that transformed the film from a seasonal novelty into an annual tradition for audiences around the world.
Now, Violent Night 2 is looking to unwrap an even bigger present. Reuniting Harbour’s battle-hardened Santa with Wirkola and producers David Leitch, Kelly McCormick and Guy Danella, the sequel promises to expand the franchise’s mythology with Kristen Bell joining as Mrs. Claus, more inventive festive mayhem and an emotional journey that asks who Santa really is when his place on the Nice List is suddenly in jeopardy.
To coincide with the film’s trailer release, Peter Gray spoke with producer Kelly McCormick about protecting what made the original an unexpected Christmas classic while embracing bigger, bolder ideas, why Kristen Bell was the perfect Mrs. Claus, and why Violent Night 2 might just earn a permanent place in audiences’ Christmas movie rotations.
When we first spoke about Nobody, you said that you’re always looking for a new idea rather than simply trying to one-up what came before. Violent Night became this instant Christmas favourite for a lot of people. When something unexpectedly becomes part of people’s annual traditions, does that change the way you approach a sequel? Are you protecting something that’s beloved, or does it give you permission to be bolder?
Yeah, that’s a good question. That’s really all I wanted out of Violent Night – for it to become a bit of a Christmas classic, but a subversive Christmas classic. And I think it has become that in a lot of ways. With the second one, we wanted to do new things, and I think we achieved that. It’s bolder, wilder and crazier, but we also kept the heart, and I think that was critical. That’s what makes it feel like a classic. It still feels very Christmassy and not too brutal, even though it’s quite vicious.
We really tried to please the audience again this time around and listened to a lot of what fans were saying. David Harbour is so popular, and he goes to all these Comic-Cons. He really shows up for his fans, and they ask him a lot about Violent Night and what they can expect from the next one. We really took those conversations and all the moments he’s had with fans since the first film to heart, and tried to put a lot of those ideas into this movie. I hope people really like it.
I spoke to Tommy, and he was saying that David had a lot of input this time around. It’s very obvious that, like the trailer for the first film, there’s so much we aren’t seeing. He didn’t want to give anything away! But one of the things we do see is Kristen Bell, and it feels like such inspired casting because I feel as if audiences have this warmth associated with her. The trailer suggests she’s just as dangerous, if not more so, than Santa. Was the challenge finding someone who could surprise audiences physically? Or is it someone who could convince us they have shared history with David?
The latter, I think. We wanted someone who felt like they could have a shared history with David – someone you could believe in within this crazy world we’ve created. We wanted the audience’s reaction to be more than just a giggle when they saw her. We wanted them to be, as I’m in the UK right now, “chuffed.” Or really just think, “No way!” It had to feel like such a great surprise. And I think she absolutely delivers.
She doesn’t do a lot of movies because she’s such a dedicated mum. She’s made a commitment to herself and her family that she won’t spend a lot of time away until her kids are older and out of the house. So the fact that we even got her was one of those “Holy cow!” moments. I think she’s the perfect combination. She’s a bit of a surprise because she can really move, and she’s incredibly exciting to watch in the action sequences. I don’t remember ever seeing her do anything like that before, so it was really fun to be able to showcase that side of her.
And by the way, she trained for several weeks for what was essentially a four-day role. It was amazing how dedicated she was to it. She’s one of a kind. She’s a phenomenal person.
With action sequels, I feel like they naturally get bigger, but then bigger doesn’t always mean more memorable. As a producer, what conversations do you have internally to make sure escalation comes from character rather than simply just adding more explosions and more bodies?
Yeah, it’s a really good point. It’s funny because you think about the John Wick movies, where the body count literally doubles from one film to the next. There’s a time and a place for that, but that’s not what we’re doing with Violent Night.
Without giving too much away, our Santa is actually trying to avoid violence for a really cool reason. I think it’s in the trailer that he’s trying to get back onto the Nice List, so he’s doing everything he can to avoid fighting. Obviously, he can’t, because he’s gotten himself into quite a bit of trouble.
The concept of these movies has always been, “How deadly can Christmas decorations really be?” There are so many different ways to cause trouble with Christmas decorations, and this sequel has some unbelievably vicious – and hilarious – surprises in just how lethal they can be. I think audiences will find them really fun, really surprising, laugh-out-loud funny, and also a little bit jump-scare horror at the same time.
But the real core of the movie is that our Santa is on another existential, emotional journey that he can’t move forward from without really coming to terms with who he is. One of the things I think is really interesting is that it’s tied directly to his job. Who are you without your job if you’ve defined yourself by it? If Santa is off the Nice List, and maybe there isn’t another Christmas, then who is Santa? It gets surprisingly heavy at times, right in the middle of all the ridiculousness.
I think that’s really the underpinning of this franchise, and honestly, a lot of what we do at 87North. So I think audiences will find both sides of it – the action and the emotional journey – really satisfying this time around.
I did just remember there’s a moment in the trailer with cookie cutouts that looks like it’ll be both amazing and disgusting at the same time. And just before letting you go, and I’m sure this is a question you’ve probably been asked a million times now, but is there a non-traditional Christmas movie that you like to watch during the holiday period?
My favourite Christmas movie is Love Actually, and we watch it every year. I’m a sucker for it. So I fit right into that trope. I guess it’s not the most traditionally Christmassy movie, but it’s what Christmas feels like to me. It’s about hope, love, connection, and remembering our humanity in the moment. That’s what Christmas is for me.
And then there’s Violent Night (laughs).
I’m the same. I like to watch movies like Love Actually and The Holiday and Christmas Vacation every Christmas, but then I offset that with Violent Night, now, and Batman Returns, which I think is a Christmas movie.
(Laughs) Actually, yeah, Batman Returns is a Christmas movie.
I like to offset the niceness with a bit of naughtiness as well. Violent Night was such a wonderful surprise of a movie, and the fact that it came out during COVID and still succeeded felt like proof that people still want to go to the movies. You just have to give them something worth showing up for.
I’m really looking forward to seeing everyone get behind this sequel and seeing where it can go. The trailer gives me a lot of hope that it’s going to be another crazy, violent, hilarious, but also emotional film, just like the first one. The original really got me. Underneath all the mayhem, it still had the magic of Christmas. So I’m really looking forward to it. Thank you so much for taking the time again. It’s always such a pleasure talking to you, and congratulations once again.
Same, Peter, and thank you. I’ll just say that one thing I really noticed in the test screenings is that this movie is made for the community. It’s so much fun to watch with a big audience. I really hope people are ready to grab their hot cocoa and head to the theatre for Violent Night 2, because it’s such a joyride. It’s ridiculous, it’s so much fun, it’s incredibly heartfelt, and you just have the best time watching it.
And then I think you’ll have to add it to your Christmas rotation. Every year, you’ll need another night for Violent Night – or just make it a double feature. Violent Night and Violent Night 2 work pretty well together.
Violent Night 2 is scheduled for release in Australian theatres on December 3rd, 2026.
