The curse of Red Sonja continues! I won’t get into the issues this film has been having since when Robert Rodriguez and Bryan Singer were trying to get versions off the ground. Millennium Films’ take on the sword-swinging badass looked to be in a good place with Ant-Man actress Hannah John-Kamen set to lead, and Transparent‘s Joey Soloway to direct. But now the film has undergone a major shake-up that leaves it without a star and a new director.
News comes from The Illuminerdi (judge accordingly), that Soloway and John-Kamen have both dropped out of Red Sonja. The search is on for a new lead actress who can handle the physical load, which John-Kamen definitely could, but that decision could turn out to be a pretty simple one. Why? Funny you should ask.
With Soloway out, MJ Bassett has reportedly taken over as director. Bassett is the filmmaker behind action flicks such as Solomon Kane, Rogue, and Endangered Species. She’s also quite close to actress Megan Fox, and I wouldn’t be surprised if Bassett reaches out to her first.
While I do like Bassett’s work (check my interview with her here), her hiring, and the potential casting of Fox, would send this movie into straight-to-VOD land rather than it being a major theatrical release. And that’s a shame given the long wait, the popularity of Red Sonja as a Conan-adjacent character, and the potential as a franchise.