Summary
Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson’s new action-comedy film looks set to continue a recent Christmas movie trend after the trailer revealed a few surprises.Red Onewill star The Rock and Chris Evans' character trying to save Santa Claus (J.K. Simmons) who has been kidnapped. While the idea of saving Santa has been done numerous times before in some of thebest Christmas action movies,Red Onewill do so in a completely unique setting, giving the film a distinct personality. However, in the process,The Rock’s upcoming project looks set to follow a fun trend involving modern Christmas movies.
Red Oneis set to be released in theaters on August 15, 2025, and will be the perfect warm-up for the Holidays. The action mixed with comedy will fit Johnson and Evans' brand of acting perfectly, while Simmons looks perfect as a more serious Santa Claus, makingRed One2024’s most exciting Christmas movie. Despite the project having a seemingly fun and humorous tone, the trailer did suggest thatRed Onemay have a few more adult themes as it looks set to follow in the footsteps of two recent films to continue a surprising recent Christmas film trend.
Red Onereportedly has a budget of over $250 million after some behind-the-scenes drama impacted production.
Red One Looks Set To Continue The Violent Christmas Movie Trend
Red One Will Become The Next Graphic Christmas Film After Violent Night & Fatman
Violent Christmas movies have surprisingly become more common in recent years, and The Rock’sRed Oneseems like it will continue this. In 2020, Mel Gibson and Walton Goggins teamed up inFatman, before David Harbour brought graphic Christmas movies back withViolent Nightin 2022. While there have been some great takes on the usual family-orientated style of Christmas movies over the years,festive films have been getting more violent lately, andRed Onelooks destined to repeat thisas the trailer already indicated there will be plenty of fighting and combat when the film releases in November.
LikeFatmanandViolent Night,Red Onewill mask some of its violence with comedy, and while the trailer suggests it may be less bloody, it still looks like there will be plenty of fighting. ConsideringFatmanandViolent Nightwere both received positively by audiences, the market for graphic Christmas movies is certainly there.Red Onealso appears to have more family appeal than its predecessors, and if it manages to balance its action with comedy, it could compete critically while also having a more mainstream appeal, potentially givingThe Rock a holiday franchiseif it performs well financially.
Red One’s Setting Makes It One Of The Most Unique Christmas Movies Yet
The Fantasy Elements Make Red One’s Violent Setting Even More Interesting
Alongside having a slightly more graphic nature,Red One’s setting is completely unique due to the way it brings the Christmas setting to life. The idea of Santa Claus being real has been showcased in multiple films, butRed Onegoes the extra mile in the live-action setting by utilizing plenty of other Christmas creatures.The trailer featured a talking Polar Bear, snowmen fighting on the beach, and even Krampus slapping The Rock, proving this Christmas movie will be like nothing that has been done before.
The Rock & Chris Evans' Movie Team-Up Needs To Break 2 Seriously Disappointing Streaks
The upcoming Amazon Prime movie from Chris Evans and the Rock needs to buck two disappointing streaks from the movie stars’ past streaming ventures.
Using all of these different themes and trying to make them all realistic may be difficult to pull off, but regardless of whetherRed Onesticks the landing or not, it is gearing up to be a one-of-a-kind Christmas film. The movie will need to avoid taking itself too seriously in order to work, but the trailer shows promising signs, as there is plenty of humor which seems to be the main selling point. Combining this with some violence, adult themes, and a unique environment givesRed Onea great opportunity to become a modern classic Christmas hit.
Red One
After Santa Claus is kidnapped, the North Pole’s Head of Security (Dwayne Johnson) must team up with a notorious bounty hunter (Chris Evans) in a thrilling, globe-spanning mission to save Christmas. This action-packed holiday adventure mixes comedy and festive magic, with an ensemble cast that includes Lucy Liu and J.K. Simmons.
