Violent Night 2 Writers Tease "Western Influence" for David Harbour's Return as Butt-Kicking Santa

Ho! Ho! Ho! David Harbour recently delivered an early Christmas present in the form of a confirmation that he'll be reprising his butt-kicking Santa Claus character in a direct sequel to 2022's holiday/action mashup, Violent Night.

The announcement made on Instagram last week showed the Stranger Things actor sitting in front of a festive backdrop (presumably in a mall somewhere) and next to a grinning Santa impersonator. Clutched in the actor's hand is the screenplay for Violent Night 2. "Merry Xmas, ya filthy animals," he wrote in the caption — a reference to Home Alone's faux gangster movie, Angels with Filthy Souls.

Said script was written by the returning creative duo of Pat Casey and Josh Miller, who just so happened to give SYFY WIRE an exclusive tease of the sequel in the midst of a wider conversation about Sonic the Hedgehog 3 (now playing).

Violent Night 2 writers tease David Harbour's Santa sequel

"The first one obviously lived in a Die Hard space. We can't tease too much, other than we're trying to bring in a little Western influence," Miller said, going on to clarify that while the script is still being polished, he and Casey are "pretty excited about how it's shaping up."

"Everyone’s really excited about continuing the adventure, bringing more violence and more Christmas spirit into the world," echoed Casey, who affirmed 1947's Miracle on 34th Street as a major influence on the budding franchise. In fact, he and Miller briefly toyed around with making "Massacre on 34th Street" the official subtitle for the Violent Night 2, whose production rests mainly in the hands of Mr. Harbour.

"You can fake snow for Christmas movies, but David Harbour is also very busy, so it's just finding the right window to get it made," Miller continued. In the meantime, however, he and Casey are more than happy to revel in the fact that the first movie has already become a holiday viewing staple. "It's been exciting seeing people post about watching it every Christmas since it's come out."

Chatting with us two years ago, the screenwriters revealed they had a one horse open sleigh full of ideas for future installments. Those bullet points included an appearance from Mrs. Claus, a new take on the North Pole's cohort of toy-making elves, and a deeper look at Santa's origin as a bloodthirsty Viking.

"We didn't see the North Pole, we didn't see the elves, we didn't see Mrs. Claus," reiterated director Tommy Wirkola, who is on board to helm the sequel. "And also, the first film was just one location, one mansion. We want to try to go a little bit bigger — not too much, but expand upon the world and the characters [while still keeping] the same sense of humor."