Hugh Jackman is stepping into legendary territory with a twist nobody saw coming.
The beloved actor is trading his Wolverine claws for a weathered bow and arrow in The Death of Robin Hood, A24’s gritty new take on folklore’s most famous outlaw.
Fresh first-look images reveal Jackman transformed into a rugged, battle-scarred version of Robin Hood that feels worlds away from cartoon foxes and tights-wearing heroes of Hollywood past.
Director Michael Sarnoski promises this isn’t your typical adventure—it’s brutal, reflective, and intensely human.
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A Robin Hood Unlike Any Other
Sarnoski, fresh off directing A Quiet Place: Day One and the indie breakout Pig, spent nearly a year filming in Northern Ireland’s harsh landscapes. His vision? Strip away decades of romanticized legend and expose the man beneath the myth.
What I love so much about Mike’s vision of Robin Hood is that the script delivered power, and it examines how power can be used for good or bad.
Jackman’s Robin Hood appears aged, scarred, and weathered—a far cry from swashbuckling heroics. Wild hair, an unkempt beard, and eyes that have witnessed darkness mark this iteration of the character.
Sarnoski teases that audiences will witness some of Jackman’s musclebound physique, but clarifies this isn’t an action movie in the traditional sense.
Robin Hood is a real man in our story. With all the scars, the pain, the regret, and yes, the love. Mike’s story has weight to it. For me, it’s beautiful and human.
Death, Reflection, and Folklore
The title itself reveals much about the film’s direction. This Robin Hood stands at life’s end, grappling with his legacy and the folklore that’s transformed him from murderous bandit to folk hero.
He was this murderous outlaw who did a lot of terrible things, and was kind of monstrous. But he’s lived long enough to see this folklore get created about him. He’s figuring out how he feels about that, about being portrayed as a hero when he knows what he really was.
Sarnoski draws inspiration from five early Robin Hood ballads passed down through oral tradition. These original tales paint Robin as brutal rather than noble—a “hero” whose methods were horrifying by modern standards.
The director wanted to explore someone experiencing their own mythologization while still alive, wrestling with storytelling versus identity.
More War Movie Than Adventure Film
Expect visceral, grounded combat. Sarnoski describes fight sequences that feel more like warfare than choreographed swordplay.
It almost gets towards feeling like a war movie. Fighting back in those days was brutal; it wasn’t people dancing around and fencing. It was people in the mud trying to crack each other’s heads open with a shovel.
Filming took place on Northern Ireland’s “beautiful, barren mountains” in conditions that were rainy, snowy, and freezing cold. The harsh environment bleeds into every frame.
Sarnoski shot on 35mm film for his first time on a feature, which he says elevated everyone’s performance and captured something truly epic.
Bill Skarsgård’s Little John Connection
Bill Skarsgård joins Jackman as “a version of Little John,” though this relationship carries dark undertones. Robin Hood maintained a small army of child soldiers in this telling, and Skarsgård’s character was one of them.
Years later, the two men reunite with vastly different understandings of their shared past. Their mentor-student dynamic has curdled with time and perspective.
First-look images show both actors windswept and scowling in matching gray tones, suggesting their reunion isn’t exactly warm.
Jodie Comer Brings Color and Complexity
Jodie Comer rounds out the central trio, though Sarnoski remains tight-lipped about her role. He confirms she’s not playing Maid Marian.
Her character introduces Robin to “another side of life,” and their dynamic brings sensitivity to an otherwise harsh narrative.
Visually, Comer’s scenes contrast sharply with Jackman and Skarsgård’s footage. She appears in striking blue against gorgeous coastal backdrops on Northern Ireland’s north coast—a different world entirely from muddy battlefields.
We shot a lot of Jodie’s [scenes] on the north coast of Northern Ireland, which is this really beautiful, gorgeous, expansive area — a different feeling as we get into her world.
A Lifelong Passion Project
Sarnoski describes himself as a “Robin Hood head” since childhood. Unlike Frankenstein, which has Mary Shelley’s definitive novel, Robin Hood emerges from murky folklore with no single source text.
That ambiguity plays a central role in this story. The film examines how legends form, transform, and ultimately define people who may not recognize themselves in the tales.
An old quote about Robin describes him as “this murderous bandit who the common folk have decided to glorify.” Sarnoski wanted to explore someone experiencing that glorification firsthand and struggling with it.
What to Expect
Audiences can approach The Death of Robin Hood with any level of familiarity about previous versions. Sarnoski assures viewers they’ll understand this interpretation through the performances alone.
Key elements to anticipate:
- Brutal, realistic medieval combat
- Psychological depth exploring identity versus legend
- Stunning 35mm cinematography
- A weathered, reflective Robin at life’s end
- Intense performances from Jackman, Skarsgård, and Comer
The film even questions accepted wisdom about Robin’s methods. When asked about “stealing from the rich to give to the poor,” Sarnoski raised an eyebrow and asked, “oh, does he?”
Coming to Theaters in 2026
A24 will release The Death of Robin Hood theatrically in 2026, though no specific date has been announced. Given Sarnoski’s track record with emotionally complex, visually stunning films, expectations are sky-high.
This marks another bold choice for Jackman, who continues reinventing himself long after becoming synonymous with Wolverine. Playing an aging outlaw confronting mortality and mythology feels like perfect territory for an actor who consistently seeks challenging, substantive roles.
For Sarnoski, it represents the culmination of a childhood fascination transformed into art—digging beneath centuries of legend to find uncomfortable truths about heroes, villains, and the stories societies tell themselves.
