There have been plans for a new Red Sonja movie for over a decade now, but the project has changed hands and gotten shelved numerous times. Hoping that this is the time the project will finally go into production stages, actress Hannah John-Kamen has been cast as the lead in Red Sonja.
John-Kamen previously played the villain Ghost in Marvel Studios' Ant-Man and the Wasp and recently had a major role in the television series Brave New World. She can also be seen in Ready Player One, Game of Thrones, Black Mirror, and in a main role in the series Killjoys. John-Kamen will soon be starring in the upcoming video game adaptation Resident Evil: Welcome to Raccoon City as Jill Valentine.
The Hollywood Reporter has learned John-Kamen will be playing Red Sonja, a sword-wielding superhero who originally debuted in the Conan the Barbarian comic books from Marvel in the 1970s. She became popular enough to lead her own comic books, easily identifiable by her red hair and her chainmail bikini. The movie, which will be distributed by Millennium, is said to be based on the Red Sonja comics published by Dynamite Entertainment, which began in 2005. Red Sonja will be directed and co-written by Joey Soloway, a director who has previously worked on projects such as Transparent and Six Feet Under. Soloway's co-writer is Tasha Huo, a screenwriter who is currently the showrunner for the upcoming animated Tomb Raider series for Netflix. Soloway said of John-Kamen, "Hannah is a very talented actress who we’ve been following for years and she IS Red Sonja. Her range, sensibilities, and strength are all qualities we have been looking for and we couldn’t be more excited to embark on this journey together."
There is very little further information about Red Sonja, in regards to both other casting and plot. "There could not be a greater moment in our world for Red Sonja’s ways of wielding power and her connection with nature and our planet," Soloway said, calling Red Sonja, "an ancient heroine with an epic calling." This suggests that the magical and fantasy elements will be maintained. It also suggests at least part of the project will be set in the past, although Sonja's "calling" could certainly take her into modern times.
This will not be the first live-action adaptation for Red Sonja. Brigitte Nielsen played the role in 1985's Red Sonja, which also featured Arnold Schwarzenegger in a supporting role. Interestingly enough, despite having previously played Conan the Barbarian in his own standalone films, Schwarzenegger did not reprise the role of Conan in Red Sonja, even though the character started as part of that universe in the comics.
There is no indication that Conan will make an appearance in John-Kamen's Red Sonja either. It's likely that creators want her to stand on her own as a character without being overshadowed by the more well-known Conan. Conan will receive his own live-action series at Netflix, so the writers may not feel the need to involve him in Red Sonja. However, with John-Kamen the only cast member announced so far, the possibility is still open.
Red Sonja is currently in development.
Source: The Hollywood Reporter