Lionsgate is betting big on Vin Diesel to launch a new franchise this fall in The Last Witch Hunter, which finds the Fast and Furious actor taking on the role of an immortal warrior bent on the destruction of witches who would otherwise destroy the world.
Breck Eisner (The Crazies) directed the supernatural actioner, which traces Kaulder from his early days to modern times, after centuries spent hunting witches. Lionsgate is pretty gung-ho about the prospect of an entire Axe & Cross franchise, as it’s being called, and it’s bringing the pic to Comic-Con’s Hall H today along with The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 2.
Here’s the official synopsis:
The modern world holds many secrets, but the most astounding secret of all is that witches still live amongst us; vicious supernatural creatures intent on unleashing the Black Death upon the world. Armies of witch hunters battled the unnatural enemy across the globe for centuries, including Kaulder (Diesel), a valiant warrior who managed to slay the all-powerful Queen Witch, decimating her followers in the process. In the moments right before her death, the Queen curses Kaulder with her own immortality, forever separating him from his beloved wife and daughter in the afterlife. Today Kaulder is the only one of his kind remaining, and has spent centuries hunting down rogue witches, all the while yearning for his long-lost loved ones. However, unbeknownst to Kaulder, the Queen Witch is resurrected and seeks revenge on her killer causing an epic battle that will determine the survival of the human race.
Rose Leslie (Game of Thrones), Elijah Wood and Michael Caine co-star in The Last Witch Hunter, which opens October 23.
