A new featurette for Red Sonja has been released online by Samuel Goldwyn Films, and you can view it in the player below. The featurette runs for just under two minutes, and it showcases both clips from the fantasy epic in addition to behind-the-scenes footage. You will also be pleased to learn that the film has received an R-rating from the MPAA, so it will be just as violent as the Red Sonja comics which fans have enjoyed over the years.
Red Sonja was directed by M. J. Bassett, who previously directed films such as Deathwatch, Wilderness, the criminally underrated Solomon Kane, Silent Hill: Revelation, and Inside Man: Most Wanted. The screenplay was provided by Tasha Huo, and the film stars Matilda Lutz as the titular heroine, with the supporting cast including Michael Bisping, Martyn Ford, Wallis Day, Rhona Mitra, Robert Sheehan, and Veronica Ferres.
The sword and sorcery epic will focus on Red Sonja as she embarks on a quest to free her homeland from the grip of a tyrannical ruler who wishes to subjugate the populace. Filming largely occurred in Greece and Bulgaria, and you can certainly get a feel of the large-scale sets which were constructed for the production from the featurette. Despite not having a budget in the range of a Marvel Studios production, Red Sonja will still clearly be an epic cinematic experience.
Red Sonja first appeared in issue 23 of Marvel's Conan the Barbarian comic series in 1973, and Marvel continued to publish many comics featuring the character until 1995, which took place in both the Hyborian Age and the modern Marvel Universe. The character was inspired by, but not directly based on, a character named Red Sonya of Rogatino from the 1934 short story The Shadow of the Vulture by Conan the Barbarian creator Robert E. Howard.
Red Sonja’s publishing rights then moved to Dynamite Entertainment in 2005, who have been releasing Red Sonja comics ever since, although she did briefly return to the Marvel Universe in a 2007 crossover titled Spider-Man/Red Sonja, which was co-published by Marvel. And a Red Sonja film was released in US cinemas in 1985, which starred Brigitte Nielsen as the titular heroine alongside Arnold Schwarzenegger as her companion, Lord Kalidor. It wasn't well-received and it underperformed at the box office (which was unexpected given Schwarzenegger's star power at the time), so it goes without saying that hopes are high for the next live-action adaptation.
Fans in the US will be able to enjoy Red Sonja on the big screen when it opens on August 13, courtesy of distributor Samuel Goldwyn Films. And you also will not have long to wait before you can watch it at home, as it will subsequently arrive on VOD platforms on August 29.
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