David Harbour’s Highly-Anticipated Action Sequel Gets a Surprising Update

When director Tommy Wirkola’s Violent Night hit theaters in 2022, its audacious blend of yuletide cheer and R-rated action made it an unexpected holiday hit. The film, starring David Harbour as a disillusioned Santa Claus, quickly garnered a passionate fanbase and became a new cult classic for its genre-bending mayhem. A sequel was quickly greenlit, but development on Violent Night 2 has been slow, leaving fans waiting for concrete news. Universal Pictures finally staked out a holiday 2026 release date for the follow-up, and now, the film has received its most significant update yet. During a panel at Tampa Bay Comic-Con hosted by Collider, Harbour confirmed the sequel’s production is about to begin, assuring fans it’s on track to meet its release.

“I’m doing the sequel to Violent Night in four weeks,” Harbour stated at the convention. This news signals that the film has officially moved from development into active production. With cameras set to roll in by late August, audiences can finally expect a steady stream of updates to emerge. This new phase will likely bring official casting announcements, behind-the-scenes photos from the set, and further plot details, building momentum and offering the first real glimpse into Santa’s next bloody Christmas adventure.

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Following Violent Night‘s impressive box office run, where it grossed over $76 million on a modest $20 million budget, initial script development for Violent Night 2 was halted by the 2023 WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes that shut down Hollywood. Once the strikes concluded, the project then had to contend with Harbour’s demanding schedule. He was locked into filming the epic final season of Netflix’s Stranger Things, immediately followed by his commitment to the MCU as the Red Guardian in Marvel Studios’ critically acclaimed Thunderbolts*. With those massive projects now largely complete, Harbour’s schedule has finally cleared, allowing him to once again don the red Santa Claus suit.

What We Know About Violent Night 2

The entire creative team that made the first Violent Night a success is returning for the sequel, including director Tommy Wirkola and writers Pat Casey and Josh Miller. All three have been vocal about their desire to broaden the scope of the sequel. While the first film was a contained thriller largely set in a single mansion, Wirkola has expressed a desire to take audiences to the North Pole, finally revealing his version of Santa’s workshop and the elves. This expansion also includes the likely introduction of Mrs. Claus, who was mentioned but never seen in the first film.

Beyond a larger setting and new characters, the sequel is poised to adopt a new cinematic influence. The creative team has teased that while the first film was heavily inspired by the structure of Die Hard, Violent Night 2 will draw thematic inspiration from classic Westerns. This suggests a potential shift in narrative, perhaps framing Santa as a lone protector facing down a new threat in a lawless environment, or structuring the story around a central high-noon-style confrontation. Combined with the promise of building on the first film’s mythology, like the magical naughty list and Santa’s seemingly bottomless sack of gifts, the sequel is aiming to be a bigger, more ambitious, and just as violent holiday event.

Violent Night 2 is scheduled to be released in theaters on December 4, 2026.

What do you want to see in Violent Night 2? Let us know in the comments!