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Fans of ultra-low budget 80’s and 90’s DTV schlock know the iconic name of Roger Corman all too well and with fond remembrance. The prolific producer was a master at making the best sleaze possible and there wasn’t anything he wouldn’t touch back in his heyday. Corman sadly passed away a while back, but his legacy will always live on and one such epic franchise is the Deathstalker films which hit when sword and sorcery flicks were big time popular. The original starring Rick Hill was so epic with hardcore disciples that it spawned three sequels in Deathstalker II: Duel of the Titans (1987), Deathstalker and the Warriors from Hell (1988), and Deathstalker IV: Match of the Titans (1991) in which Hill returned to the role he made popular.
Fast forward to today and blossoming filmmaker Steven Kostanski (Psycho Gorman) is reviving not only the Deathstalker name after over thirty years of dormancy but the entire subgenre of swords, fantasy and sorcery to boot. Rejoice! What could be better than simply rebooting such a beloved movie property you ask? Well, cast 90’s DTV martial arts action star Daniel Bernhardt as the titular warrior that’s how! Bernhardt, who still looks and moves amazing, has been keeping busy in the industry over the decades and has appeared in some of the best action films of recent memory like John Wick and Atomic Blonde. Bernhardt also returned to the Baba Yaga universe last month when he took on Ana de Armas in Ballerina. His fight sequence with Armas is a showstopper and proof that age is just a number as Bernhardt brings the hyper-kinetic action flair once again in that single scene.
I am beyond pumped up to see what both Kostanski and Bernhardt do with the new Deathstalker but while we wait for a proper worldwide release, there is news that the film will make its world premiere at s Locarno Film Festival in Switzerland on August 15th! Now I know what you’re thinking. Hey, John that’s Switzerland for Christ’s sake! Yes, I know but it’s still a win as we now know the movie is finished and ready for mass consumption. Hopefully with the world premiere, a more substantial release will be in the near future.
The news comes from the official site of the Locarno Film Festival and the announcement comes with a host of brand-new images featuring Benhardt and cast in action. Age is just a number to Daniel so check him out in full Deathstalker glory in the gallery below!
There is also an official synopsis for the film which reads: The Kingdom of Abraxeon is under siege from The Dreadites, a mysterious horde of warriors, whose sudden appearance is rumored to foretell the return of Nekromemnon, an ancient sorcerer long thought dead. Such times of chaos are times of fortune for men like Deathstalker who, having broken ties with all guilds and banners, now ekes an existence from the spoils recovered in the wake of Dreadite attacks. Our story begins when Deathstalker unknowingly recovers an enchanted amulet from a corpse-ridden battlefield and finds himself cursed by an arcane magic. Now pursued by a monstrous clan of assassins at the behest of the Dreadite scourge, Deathstalker is forced into a perilous quest to reverse the curse and rid the realm of evil. Death is just the beginning… of great adventure!
Nina Bergman, who co-starred with Bernhardt in director Jesse V. Johnson’s Hell Hath No Fury, stars as well and she plays the character of Grendul, who is described as “a confident, tough leader of the Abraxeon Thieves Guild who has a history with Deathstalker.” Other cast members include Christina Orjalo, Paul Lazenby, Nicholas Rice, Patton Oswalt. Raven Banner is hard at work handling international sales along with the Canadian distribution so hopefully we get a U.S. date in the near future.
Hangar 18 Media (www.hangar18.media) serves as the production company for Deathstalker with Pasha Patriki, Michael Paszt, James Fler, Peter Kuplowsky, Andrew Hunt serving as producers. Guns N Roses guitar legend Slash was an executive producer which I think is very cool. Slash also Slash has also worked alongside composer Bear McCreary and Deathstalker II composer Chuck Cirino to create a brand-new theme. Along with directing, Kostanski also wrote the script.
Deathstalker was a successful crowd funding campaign too with many fans chipping in to see that the film was fully developed and made.
Along with the movie, there is also going to be a comic book tie in which elates me even more. Vault Comics will be the distributor with Kostanski being a part of the comic’s creative team along with writer Tim Seeley, artist Jim Terry and Slash himself. No worries as I will be putting that comic title on my pull list as soon as I am able to.
Keep checking back here for more to come from Deathstalker including a trailer reveal, more release intel and more!
