Somebody has kidnapped Santa Claus, and it’s up to North Pole’s Head of Security Callum Drift (Dwayne Johnson) and the world’s most infamous bounty hunter Jack O’Malley (Chris Evans) to find him and get him back. Christmas itself is on the line.
J.K. Simmons plays Nick, a significant departure from his previous roles. Interestingly, Simmons is also a body builder and shows off some serious guns in the opening scene in this trailer as the Claus pumps out 500 reps of bench press using what would be a record breaking loadout of barbell. Nick is kidnapped almost right away (he’s the MacGuffin of the film, so that has to happen or there’s no plot. The film is full of interesting characters, including an enclave of Krampus, whose respect Callum Drift must earn to get their help in finding the missing Claus.
Lucy Liu plays Zoe, who seems to be head of operations at the North Pole. Bonnie Hunt plays Mrs. Claus.
Red One is directed by Jake Kasdan, and written by Chris Morgan and Hiram Garcia. It hits theaters on November 15, 2024, giving folks who may drag their feet getting around to seeing a Christmas film a little time to do so before it exists the theaters.
Most Christmas films are sleepers — they keep on generating new cash year after year as perrenials that keep popping back up each year to garner new viewers. I sure hope this is one of them.