"Red Sonja" Trailer: Matilda Lutz Wields Steel and Chainmail in This New Sword-and-Sorcery Flick with Robert Sheehan and Wallis Day
The famed red-haired warrior queen returns in this bloody, battle-axe-filled revival, with Lutz leading a rebel charge against Robert Sheehan’s tyrant Dragan.
To most people raised on ‘80s cinema, Red Sonja equals the statuesque presence of Danish starlet Brigitte Nielsen, who picked up the sword for her 1985 film debut, acting alongside Arnold Schwarzenegger in a glorified cameo. For the most part, the film was an utter stinker—one of many cheaply made schlock productions from famed Italian movie producer Dino De Laurentiis.
But it was the ‘80s, baby! Cocaine ran rampant, logic took a backseat, and sword-and-sorcery fantasy films like this one didn’t need to be coherent or well-made… just an awesome poster, a bitchin’ sword, a beautiful Amazonian female warrior, a hulky hero with biceps the size of bowling balls, and maybe some slow-motion fight scenes to find their cult audience.
Red Sonja is now considered a cult ‘80s classic—the kind that’s so bad, it’s good. Sure, it’s nothing you would hang your hat on, but definitely something you’d throw on during a lazy Sunday afternoon when you’re in the mood for camp, cheese, and chainmail bikinis.
Now, if you had told us that someone was going to make another Red Sonja movie… our response would automatically be: why?! Did some movie producer just find his secret stash of cocaine that he hasn’t seen since 1989? Because making a Red Sonja movie in this day and age would be a crazy idea.
And yet... here we are. A new Red Sonja movie is coming this summer. And to be frank, in light of how the first Red Sonja turned out, expectations aren’t high. Nor should they be.
But we’re getting our first look at the new Red Sonja, this time played by Italian actress Matilda Lutz, who made waves with her lead performance in Coralie Fargeat’s 2017 gristly desert-set thriller Revenge. Lutz played a woman who refused to be a victim as she sought vengeance on the men who sexually assaulted her and left her for dead. She showed quite an effective mix of raw intensity, physicality, and steely resolve—traits that might just make her a solid fit for the sword-wielding red-haired warrior.
Now, we’re not saying this first official Red Sonja trailer (watch it above) is going to change hearts and minds. If someone thought the project was doomed from the start, this probably won’t be the thing to convince them otherwise.
But we gotta say, as fans of campy, cheesetastic sword-and-sorcery action movies ourselves—well, this trailer might just scratch that very specific itch. A very specific, oddly shaped, battle-axe-carrying kind of itch.
Based on the character created by Conan the Barbarian creator and fantasy writer Robert E. Howard, this new Red Sonja film has gone through multiple versions and false starts over the years. Disgraced and scandal-ridden filmmakers Bryan Singer and Brett Ratner were once attached at different points, which only added to the project’s long, cursed development history.
There was even an attempt to revive the character back in the mid-to-late 2000s, with director Robert Rodriguez attached to the project and Rose McGowan set to star. Concept art was released online (see above), some early promo images made the rounds, but the project ultimately fizzled out. And just recently, Thunderbolts actress Hannah John-Kamen was the latest name attached to the role—but then exited the project before filming ever began.
It’s really a miracle that this new Red Sonja movie came to fruition. Now, was it all worth it? That remains to be seen. But hey, stranger things have happened in Hollywood... especially when chainmail and cult nostalgia are involved.
Joining Matilda Lutz in the cast are British actress/model Wallis Day (from the shows Krypton and Batwoman), Robert Sheehan (The Umbrella Academy), Martyn Ford (House of David), Rhona Mitra (Underworld: Rise of the Lycans), Philip Winchester (Strike Back), Ben Radcliffe (Masters of the Air), Luke Pasqualino (The Musketeers), and mixed martial artist Michael Bisping, among others.
Directed by action helmer M. J. Bassett (Silent Hill: Revelation, Rogue), the film follows red-haired barbarian huntress Red Sonja (Matilda Lutz) as she’s enslaved by the cruel tyrant Dragan the Magnificent (Robert Sheehan). Sonja must rally a ragtag crew of warriors to take down Dragan’s brutal regime... and his fearsome bride, Dark Annisia (Wallis Day).
Red Sonja will be coming to theaters August 15th before slashing its way onto digital Tuesday, August 29th.
Official Synopsis:
Enslaved by an evil tyrant who wishes to destroy her people, barbarian huntress Red Sonja must unite a group of unlikely warriors to face off against Dragan The Magnificent and his deadly bride, Dark Annisia.
This looks worse than version from the 80's, I have seen better Xena episodes. I guess it is too late for them to take the Batgirl route to avoid loosing as much money.