He’s already got one billion dollar baby in the Fast & Furious franchise, and Lionsgate is hoping Vin Diesel can launch another this fall in The Last Witch Hunter, an action fantasy that finds the star playing Kaulder, an immortal warrior who carries a flaming broadsword and deals out death and destruction to any witches or warlocks he encounters as part of an eternal quest to avenge the murders of his wife and daughter. Over the centuries, he’s come up against sorcerers around the world and quietly changed the course of history in his travels.
“Vin’s character has inextricably shaped the history that we live with today—and nobody knows it,” director Breck Eisner told EW, which debuted the above image. “We posit the battle between witches and humans began with the Black Plague, an incredibly powerful global curse by witches.”
In order to prevent another cataclysmic event initiated by the spellcasters, Kaulder finds himself with no option other than to team up with a supposed “good witch” (Game of Thrones‘ Rose Leslie). Inevitably, sparks fly. But viewers needn’t worry that romance will hijack the proceedings – Diesel, who also produced, has a stated affection for Dungeons & Dragons, and the fantasy role-playing game proved instrumental in helping him craft his vision for the film.
“One of the things about his playing so much Dungeons & Dragons is that Vin has a great mind for creating mythology,” explained Eisner. “He understands world building and how that affects an audience.”
That mythology will certainly come in handy if Diesel powers The Last Witch Hunter to blockbuster numbers – Lionsgate is so thrilled to be working with the actor that it has already stated its intention to green-light a sequel and is asking Diesel to carve out time for it in his busy schedule.
The Last Witch Hunter opens October 23.