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Violent Night Writer Reacts To Passing Die Hard On VOD Charts
After making its surprise digital debut for the holiday, Violent Night writer Josh Miller reacts to passing Die Hard on the Christmas video-on-demand charts. The former stars Stranger Things' David Harbour as Santa Claus as his visit to a wealthy family's home to deliver presents to the young Trudy turns into a night of chaos when he stumbles into a hostage situation, forcing him to rise up and save the family. Co-written by Sonic the Hedgehog duo Pat Casey and Josh Miller and helmed by Hansel and Gretel: Witch Hunters' Tommy Wirkola, Violent Night has drawn a lot of positive feedback from critics and audiences alike, which has seen it make a unique landmark for the holiday season.
Just a few weeks after making its well-received theatrical debut, the David Harbour-led Violent Night came to premium VOD and digital platforms just in time for Christmas. With its holiday setting, the film proved to be a hit on VOD charts, even surpassing Die Hard on Christmas Day, to which writer Josh Miller took to Twitter to react to the surreal situation. Check out Miller's reaction below:
Will Violent Night Reach Die Hard's Classic Status?
Though considered a classic today, Die Hard memorably had a difficult go of things in its early run, receiving generally mixed reviews from critics, many of which focused on its excessive violence and Bruce Willis' performance as John McClane. While a box office hit at the time, the film has seen history look far more favorably upon the 1988 actioner, namely Willis' leading turn, which is now often hailed as one of the best of his career. Audiences have hilariously debated Die Hard's standing as a Christmas movie, with some feeling it doesn't properly spotlight the December holiday, while others note its Christmas Eve setting and the inclusions of Christmas music and decorations as plenty of evidence to the contrary.
While off to a slightly better start critically than Willis' film, Violent Night has much of the same makings as Die Hard to become the next Christmas classic for those looking for something off the beaten path of holiday films. Utilizing the same hand-to-hand combat audiences have come to love and expect from the John Wick movies, also produced by David Leith and Kelly McCormick's 87North Productions, and the dark humor that made Bob Odenkirk's Nobody a winner with critics and audiences alike, Harbour's film looks to be overcoming some criticisms of not taking its unique concept far enough. Additionally, with Violent Night surpassing Die Hard on VOD charts on Christmas Day itself and already being a modest box office hit with over $63 million grossed against its $20 million production budget, it's clear audiences have become hooked on the Santa-fronted action film and could propel it to the same classic status as McClane's.
Will A Violent Night 2 Happen?
With the film having proven to be a critical and commercial hit, attention has now turned towards what the future could hold for Violent Night. Producer Kelly McCormick recently teased that Violent Night 2 plans could be in the works as soon as January, while writers Casey and Miller have expressed their hopes to write "a lot of sequels" for the film, including ones to further explore the North Pole, Mrs. Claus and Santa's workshop. Though Universal has yet to greenlight a follow-up, Violent Night's unique spreading of Christmas cheer looks to only just be getting started.
