This sort of thing used to be civilized: you misbehaved throughout the year, Santa Claus gave you a lump of coal, done. But with the trailer for Mel Gibson’s Fatman, there’s a certain naughty kid who’s decided to take the law into his own hands, by putting a hit out on the holly jolly holiday maker himself. Judging by what we’ve seen, and what you’re about to see, it doesn’t look like Kris Kringle’s just going to lie down and take what’s coming to him. See for yourself, in Fatman’s first trailer below:
No folks, this isn’t a biopic of Kevin Smith’s Fatman on Batman podcast, though that’s an idea we’ll just stash in our back pockets for now. Rather, Fatman shows audiences a deranged, disillusioned Santa who finds himself losing faith in his abilities. Kids are actually shooting Santa in the world of directors Ian Nelms & Eshom Nelms’ creation, and Mel Gibson’s titular titan gets pretty banged up as a result. But there are those who still believe in Santa, namely the U.S. military, who have decided to draft Claus into some sort of secret mission.
Which, somehow, leads us to the meat of Fatman’s trailer, in which Walton Goggins plays the hitman hired by a bratty youth to retire jolly old St. Nick once and for all. The connection isn’t exactly clear at this point, but what is apparent is the fact that this movie is ready to go hardcore on the Santa mythos. With a Gibson v. Goggins title match in the cards, complete with exploding barn and bombastic taunts of claiming one’s head, it’s hard not to get excited about that concept.
Sylvester Stallone’s Rambo franchise may, or may not, be done and dusted, but to his The Expendables 3 co-star, there must have been some magic in bandana he metaphorically found. You can’t look at Fatman and not think that one legendary ‘80s action star isn’t tipping his Santa hat to the other, especially when a world weary attitude and the U.S. military are involved. So if you really need a hard sell on why Fatman might be the movie for you, think of it this way: Santa has become John Rambo, and Walton Goggins is the man crazy enough to try and kill him. If that doesn’t do it, I’m sure Elf will be in heavy rotation by time this movie comes out, and that just might be more your speed.
Fatman hits select theaters on November 13th, with the digital/video-on-demand release slated to hit not too long after on November 17th. Oh, and if you were worried the film would chicken out, it is indeed rated R; so you might want to reconsider programming a marathon of this film and Kurt Russell’s kinder/sexier holiday offering The Santa Chronicles. And don’t forget, we’ve made our own list here at CinemaBlend, and we check it more than twice, as the 2020 release schedule is constantly updated. If you’re in the mood to go back to the movies, that’s your one stop shop for what’s heading to theaters, and what’s taken the road to 2021.
