You wait years for a Kurt Russell-fronted Western and suddenly two arrive in quick succession. Before heading off into the wintery hills of Wyoming for Quentin Tarantino’s The Hateful Eight, we’ll see Russell pick up the hat and sheriff’s badge for S. Craig Zahler haunting cannibal drama Bone Tomahawk, and today brings forth the film’s maiden trailer.
Coming by way of Entertainment Weekly, our first look at Zahler’s stylish and decidedly dark drama showcases Russell as Sheriff Franklin Hunt, sworn protector of a dusty old town known as Bright Hope. Haunted by a group of vicious cannibals, the residents of the remote settlement sleep with one eye open, though when a number of settlers are kidnapped, Russell’s lead whips a search party in order to locate the missing persons – and put an end to the cannibal’s reign once and for all.
In the build-up to its debut at Fantastic Fest, Bone Tomahawk was gaining a lot of traction for its relentless violence and dark, putrid core. Our Matt Donato called out its shortcomings – a bloated story and uneven pacing – though the fact that Kurt Russell is leading a cannibal Western movie ought to be enough to get bums on seats.
Joining the actor for the adventure are Lili Simmons (True Detective), Scream veteran David Arquette, Sean Young (Blade Runner), Sid Haig (The Devil’s Rejects), Evan Jonigkeit (Girls) and Kathryn Morris (Cold Case).
Adopting a diverse release rollout that we’re beginning to see more and more from Hollywood studios, Bone Tomahawk will make its debut across cinemas, iTunes and via VOD, on October 23. For now, you can get acquainted with Kurt Russell’s gruelling part through the synopsis below.
When a group of cannibal savages kidnaps settlers from the small town of Bright Hope, an unlikely team of gunslingers, led by Sheriff Franklin Hunt (Kurt Russell), sets out to bring them home. But their enemy is more ruthless than anyone could have imagined, putting their mission – and survival itself – in serious jeopardy. Kurt Russell (The Hateful Eight, Tombstone) leads an all-star cast, including Patrick Wilson (Insidious), Matthew Fox (“Lost”) and Richard Jenkins (The Cabin in the Woods) in this gritty, action-packed thriller chronicling a terrifying rescue mission in the Old West.