The Last Witch Hunter | |
---|---|
Directed by | Breck Eisner |
Written by |
|
Based on | Melkor the Witch-Hunter by Vin Diesel |
Produced by |
|
Starring | |
Cinematography | Dean Semler |
Edited by | |
Music by | Steve Jablonsky [1] |
Production companies |
|
Distributed by | Lionsgate [3] |
Release dates |
|
Running time | 106 minutes [4] |
Country | United States |
Language | English |
Budget | $71–90 million [5] [3] |
Box office | $146.9 million [3] |
The Last Witch Hunter is a 2015 American fantasy action film directed by Breck Eisner and written by Cory Goodman, Matt Sazama, and Burk Sharpless, and based on the Dungeons & Dragons campaigns of Vin Diesel's Melkor the Witch-Hunter. The film stars Vin Diesel as an immortal witch hunter who must stop a plague from ravaging the entire world. [6]
The film was released on October 23, 2015, grossing $147 million while receiving generally unfavorable reviews from critics. A sequel is in development.
Eight hundred years ago, the Witch Queen unleashes the Black Plague to wipe out humanity. A band of knights, including a widowed Kaulder, storms her lair and impales her. Before dying, the Queen curses Kaulder with eternal life.
In the present day, Kaulder prevents a teenager from unintentionally destroying an airplane with weather-controlling runes. Kaulder is revealed to be a witch hunter for an organization called the Axe and Cross, which aims to keep the truce between humans and witches and either executes or imprisons witches who break the law. He is aided by a priest called "Dolan", a tradition carried from the battle to destroy the Queen.
The 36th Dolan tells Kaulder he is retiring from his duties and has chosen a new Dolan, but dies in his sleep. Kaulder and the young 37th Dolan, who says witches killed his parents and that Kaulder killed the witches and saved him from a fire which burned 37's hands, deduce that 36 was murdered by a witch. While tracking down the witch, Kaulder finds traces of old dark magic, not seen since before he killed the Queen. It is revealed that 36 is not dead but under a dark magic spell that can only be broken if the witch that cast it is killed.
Using clues that 36 left behind, Kaulder goes to a witch bar, owned by Chloe and Miranda, to buy a memory spell to help him remember how he died and came back. Chloe eventually agrees to perform the spell. During the process of reliving Kaulder's memory, the bar is attacked by the warlock who cursed the 36th Dolan. He later attacks Chloe at her apartment, though Kaulder saves her. 37 and Kaulder work together to determine the witch's name—Baltasar Ketola, aka Belial. After Belial kills Miranda, Chloe agrees to help Kaulder get what he needs to kill him.
To get the rare ingredient to create another memory spell, they visit another witch, Danique. However, Danique casts a memory spell on Kaulder, planning to entrap him in his dream forever. Chloe, however, is able to enter his trance and free his mind and the pair escape. Kaulder asks Chloe to enter his mind and pull out the memory. He discovers that, though the Queen's body burned to ash, the first Dolan chose to spare her heart; if the heart was destroyed, Kaulder would die. They deduce that 36 was attacked because he knew where the heart was hidden and was tortured into revealing its location. They also realize that Belial's real plan is to revive the Queen.
Leaving Chloe and the 37th Dolan behind, Kaulder goes to face Belial to prevent the Queen from returning. Though he kills Belial in a confrontation, the Queen reenters the world through the sacrifice of another witch (Max Schlesinger) and escapes into the city, stealing Kaulder's immortality. 36, who is recovering, encourages Kaulder to continue fighting.
The members of the Witch Council, who guard the Witches' Prison, are killed and the Queen plans to release another plague curse using the imprisoned witches as a magical power source. Using her dream-walking ability, Chloe kills a prisoner, severing the connection of the Queen. Kaulder fights the Queen, and appears close to killing her, until 37 attacks him with a grudge: he reveals his parents were a warlock and witch whom Kaulder killed, though 37 lacks their magical power. He asks the Queen to give him that power. She refuses and kills 37, and uses Chloe to complete the connection for the plague curse to form again. Kaulder summons lightning to his sword using the weather runes he confiscated from the teenage girl on the plane, and throws his sword into the Queen, burning her to ash. Kaulder prepares to kill both himself and the Queen's heart, but Chloe dissuades him, stating that there were things in the darkness worse than the Witch Queen that he needs to continue fighting.
The 36th Dolan agrees to delay his retirement and stay by Kaulder's side. Chloe does as well, and the three form a new team, free from the Axe and Cross. The heartbeat of the Queen is heard within Kaulder's weapon vault in his apartment.
In September 2015, Vin Diesel revealed that The Last Witch Hunter would be a film adaptation of Diesel's own Dungeons & Dragons campaigns as "Melkor the Witch-Hunter", an original character of his, having been put in touch with screenwriter (and fellow Dungeons & Dragons player) Cory Goodman to do so after Diesel had mentioned these campaigns in the foreword for the 30th anniversary collection of Dungeons & Dragons. [7] Initially Timur Bekmambetov was to direct but was later replaced by Breck Eisner and Goodman's script was re-written by D.W. Harper before Melisa Wallack was brought on to work on the film's script. [8] [9] Both were uncredited. The production filed for a film tax credit in Pennsylvania and was allocated a tax credit of $14 million. [10] [11] In February 2014, Vin Diesel posted a photo of the film's concept artwork to his Facebook page and Lionsgate CEO Jon Feitheimer commented that if successful, The Last Witch Hunter could become a film franchise. [12] In March 2014, Lakeshore Entertainment boarded the film as co-financier with Lionsgate, but Lakeshore quietly left the project. In July 2014, it was announced that Rose Leslie would be joining the cast as Vin Diesel's co-star, [13] and in August, Elijah Wood, Michael Caine, and Ólafur Darri Ólafsson were also announced as attached to the film. [14] [15] [16] Julie Engelbrecht and Lotte Verbeek will also star. [17] [18] In February 2015, Steve Jablonsky was hired to compose the film's score.
Principal photography for The Last Witch Hunter was initially delayed due to the death of Paul Walker, [19] as the death delayed shooting for Furious 7 . Lionsgate officially began setting up for filming in Pittsburgh in June 2014. [19] The filming began on September 5, 2014, in Pittsburgh, as Diesel posted a first look of himself on Facebook. [20] [21] [22] The shoot lasted until December 5. [23]
R&B singer Ciara covered "Paint It Black" by English rock band the Rolling Stones for the film. [24]
On 13 November 2015, The Last Witch Hunter Soundtrack, with music composed by Steve Jablonsky was released. [25]
No. | Title | Length |
---|---|---|
1. | "I Curse You With Life" | 8:11 |
2. | "Three Is Trouble" | 3:21 |
3. | "Judgement" | 3:12 |
4. | "Well Hello, Witch Hunter" | 4:23 |
5. | "Lights Out" | 1:06 |
6. | "The Witch Queen" | 4:06 |
7. | "I Must Remember" | 3:31 |
8. | "Good Hunting" | 6:36 |
9. | "Remember Your Death" | 4:45 |
10. | "This Isn't Real" | 3:50 |
11. | "I Am Reborn" | 4:19 |
12. | "You Have To Fight" | 3:01 |
13. | "By Iron And Fire" | 11:26 |
14. | "At Your Service" | 3:10 |
The film's New York City premiere was held October 13, 2015 [26] at the Loews Lincoln Square. [27]
The Last Witch Hunter grossed $27.4 million in North America and $113 million in other territories for a worldwide total of $140.4 million, against a budget of $90 million. [3]
The film opened on October 23, 2015 alongside Paranormal Activity: The Ghost Dimension , Rock the Kasbah and Jem and the Holograms , as well as the expanded release of Steve Jobs . In its opening weekend, the film was projected to gross $13 million from 3,082 theaters; [28] it made $525,000 from its Thursday night previews and $3.7 million on its first day. In its opening weekend, the film grossed $10.8 million, finishing fourth at the box office behind The Martian ($15.7 million), Goosebumps ($15.3 million) and Bridge of Spies ($11.3 million). [29]
Outside North America, the film's top openings were in Russia and the CIS ($3.4 million), Brazil ($2 million) and Italy ($1.2 million). [30]
On Rotten Tomatoes, the film has a rating of 18%, based on 139 reviews, with an average rating of 3.9/10. The site's critical consensus reads, "Grim, plodding, and an overall ill fit for Vin Diesel's particular charms, The Last Witch Hunter will bore and/or confuse all but the least demanding action-fantasy fans." [31] On Metacritic, the film has a score of 34 out of 100, based on 22 critics, indicating "generally unfavorable reviews". [32] Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "B−" on an A+ to F scale. [29]
Alison Willmore from BuzzFeed News said "It is terrible. It is fabulously entertaining." [33] Inkoo Kang of TheWrap thought it aimed for pulp but wasn't "as fleet, funny, or detailed as it needs to be". [34] Simon Abrams for RogerEbert.com called it "atypically dopey but consummately well-assembled", and praised Diesel as "especially charming". [35]
On June 17, 2015, Diesel stated on his Facebook page that an untitled sequel was in the planning stages. [36] Though it was initially planned to be a franchise, the poor box office showing as well as Diesel's busy film schedule has cast doubts on a sequel getting made. [37]
On March 10, 2020, Diesel stated that Lionsgate is going through with a sequel. [38]
Michael Breckenridge Eisner is an American television and film director.
XXX is a 2002 American action film directed by Rob Cohen, produced by Neal H. Moritz and written by Rich Wilkes. The first installment in the xXx film series, the film stars Vin Diesel as Xander Cage, a thrill-seeking extreme sports enthusiast, stuntman, and rebellious athlete-turned-reluctant spy for the National Security Agency. Cage is sent on a dangerous mission to infiltrate a group of potential Russian terrorists in Central Europe. The film also stars Asia Argento, Marton Csokas, and Samuel L. Jackson. Cohen, Moritz, and Diesel had previously worked on The Fast and the Furious (2001) as director, producer and cast member respectively. The film grossed $277.4 million worldwide and was followed by two sequels, xXx: State of the Union (2005) and xXx: Return of Xander Cage (2017).
Mark Sinclair, known professionally as Vin Diesel, is an American actor and film producer. One of the world's highest-grossing actors, he is best known for portraying Dominic Toretto in the Fast & Furious franchise.
Pitch Black is a 2000 American science fiction action horror film directed by David Twohy and co-written by Twohy and brothers Ken and Jim Wheat from a story conceived by the latter. The film stars Vin Diesel, Radha Mitchell, Cole Hauser, and Keith David. Dangerous criminal Riddick (Diesel) is being transported to prison in a spacecraft, and escapes when the spaceship is damaged by comet debris and crash lands on an empty desert planet. When predatory creatures begin attacking the survivors, Riddick joins forces with them to escape the planet.
The Chronicles of Riddick is a 2004 American science fiction action film written and directed by David Twohy. It is a sequel to Pitch Black (2000) and the second installment in the Riddick film series. Vin Diesel reprises his role as Richard B. Riddick and acts as producer, alongside Thandiwe Newton, Karl Urban, Alexa Davalos, Colm Feore, and Keith David. It follows the adventures of Riddick as he attempts to elude capture and face an invading empire.
Lions Gate Entertainment Corp. is a Canadian-American entertainment company currently headquartered in Santa Monica, California. It was founded by Frank Giustra on July 10, 1997, and domiciled in Vancouver, British Columbia, being incorporated there.
The Chronicles of Riddick is an American science fiction space Western media franchise created by brothers Ken and Jim Wheat and later continued by writer-director David Twohy. It follows the adventures of antihero character Riddick in the 28th century.
Dungeons & Dragons (D&D) is a fantasy role-playing game first published in 1974. As the popularity of the game grew throughout the late-1970s and 1980s, it became referenced in popular culture more frequently. The complement of games, films and cultural references based on Dungeons & Dragons or similar fantasies, characters, and adventures became ubiquitous after the end of the 1970s.
The Blair Witch Project is a 1999 American supernatural horror film written, directed, and edited by Daniel Myrick and Eduardo Sánchez. One of the most successful independent films of all time, it is a "found footage" mockumentary in which three students hike into the Black Hills near Burkittsville, Maryland to shoot a documentary about a local myth known as the Blair Witch.
xXx: Return of Xander Cage is a 2017 American action thriller film directed by D.J. Caruso and written by F. Scott Frazier. The third installment in the xXx film series and a sequel to both xXx (2002) and xXx: State of the Union (2005), it stars Vin Diesel in the title role along with Donnie Yen, Deepika Padukone, Kris Wu, Ruby Rose, Tony Jaa, Nina Dobrev, Toni Collette, Ariadna Gutiérrez, Hermione Corfield, and Samuel L. Jackson.
Lotte Verbeek is a Dutch actress, dancer and model. She is known for her role as Giulia Farnese in The Borgias television series created by Neil Jordan, and as Geillis Duncan in the Starz series Outlander.
Rose Eleanor Arbuthnot-Leslie is a Scottish actress. She portrayed Gwen Dawson in the ITV drama series Downton Abbey and Ygritte in the HBO fantasy series Game of Thrones. She played Maia Rindell in three seasons of the CBS All Access legal and was in political drama The Good Fight and starred as Clare Abshire in HBO's The Time Traveler's Wife.
Lionsgate Canada is a Canadian entertainment company and a subsidiary of Lionsgate Studios. Based in Toronto, Ontario, the company is primarily involved in the acquisition and production of films and television series.
Riddick is a 2013 science fiction action film written and directed by David Twohy, based on the character Richard B. Riddick by Jim and Ken Wheat. It is the third installment in The Chronicles of Riddick film series and a sequel to both Pitch Black (2000) and The Chronicles of Riddick (2004). Vin Diesel reprises his role as the eponymous character alongside Jordi Mollà, Matt Nable, Katee Sackhoff, Dave Bautista, Bokeem Woodbine, Raoul Trujillo, and Karl Urban. In the film, notorious murderer Riddick is betrayed and left for dead on a desolate planet and uses his instincts to survive. He eventually teams up with mercenaries arriving to capture him to escape from a larger threat.
Melisa Wallack is an American screenwriter and film director. Wallack and fellow screenwriter Craig Borten were nominated for an Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay for the 2013 film Dallas Buyers Club.
The Fate of the Furious is a 2017 action film directed by F. Gary Gray and written by Chris Morgan. It is the sequel to Furious 7 (2015) and the eighth installment in the Fast & Furious franchise. The film stars Vin Diesel as Dominic Toretto, alongside Dwayne Johnson, Jason Statham, Michelle Rodriguez, Tyrese Gibson, Chris "Ludacris" Bridges, Scott Eastwood, Nathalie Emmanuel, Elsa Pataky, Kurt Russell, and Charlize Theron. In the film, Dom has settled down with his wife Letty Ortiz, until cyberterrorist Cipher (Theron) coerces him into working for her and turns him against his team, forcing them to find Dom and take down Cipher.
Unlocked is a 2017 action thriller film directed by Michael Apted, written by Peter O'Brien, and starring Noomi Rapace, Orlando Bloom, Michael Douglas, John Malkovich and Toni Collette. It was Apted's final film before his death in 2021. It was released in the United Kingdom on May 5, 2017, by Lionsgate.
Matt Sazama and Burk Sharpless are American writers best known for writing films together. After box office successes like Dracula Untold (2014) and The Last Witch Hunter (2015), Sazama and Sharpless wrote Gods of Egypt (2016), Morbius (2022) and Madame Web (2024), all of which became box office bombs and received negative reception from critics. The duo also wrote a reboot of Lost in Space for Netflix.
Bloodshot is a 2020 American superhero film based on the Valiant Comics character of the same name. It is intended to be the first installment in a series of films set within a Valiant Comics shared cinematic universe. Directed by David S. F. Wilson from a screenplay by Jeff Wadlow and Eric Heisserer, the film stars Vin Diesel in the main role, with Eiza González, Sam Heughan, Toby Kebbell, Lamorne Morris, and Guy Pearce in supporting roles. It follows a soldier who was killed in action, only to be brought back to life with superpowers by an organization that wants to use him as a weapon.
Groot is a fictional character voiced by Vin Diesel and portrayed in various forms and capacities via motion capture by Diesel, Krystian Godlewski, Sean Gunn, James Gunn and Terry Notary, in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) media franchise, based on the Marvel Comics character of the same name. A tree-like extraterrestrial humanoid known as a flora colossus, the character is a member of the Guardians of the Galaxy and a close associate of Rocket in particular. The initial incarnation of the character sacrifices himself to save his allies during the battle against Ronan the Accuser at the climax of the first film, leaving behind a sapling which grows into a new Groot, colloquially known as "Baby Groot" and differentiated offscreen by James Gunn as the original's "son". Raised by Rocket as an adoptive son, the new Groot gradually grows to a similar size as his predecessor over the course of his next several appearances. He participates in the conflicts against Ego and then Thanos, falling victim to the Blip before being resurrected five years later by the Avengers and participating in the final battle against Thanos before departing for space with the Guardians. After the Guardians defeat the High Evolutionary, Groot continues to serve on the team, now under the command of Rocket.