Anya Taylor-Joy Takes Chris Evans Hostage in the First Trailer for Netflix’s Sacrifice
Chris Evans is used to saving the world. In Sacrifice, he has a very different problem: Anya Taylor-Joy wants to throw him into a volcano.
Netflix has unveiled the official trailer for Sacrifice, the darkly comic thriller from director Romain Gavras. The film, which premiered at the 2025 Toronto International Film Festival, stars Evans as movie star Mike Tyler, an actor struggling with an existential crisis who finds himself caught in an increasingly bizarre hostage situation led by Taylor-Joy’s Joan.
The film is scheduled to begin streaming exclusively on Netflix on October 16, 2026.
A Charity Gala Turns Into a Hostage Crisis
Sacrifice begins at a lavish charity gala packed with celebrities, billionaires and carefully prepared speeches. Mike Tyler arrives as a movie star trying to navigate an existential crisis, but the glamorous evening takes a dramatic turn when Joan, a radical warrior, and her followers seize control of the event.
Their goal is far more extreme than simply disrupting the gala. Joan believes an extinction-level event is approaching and that three people must be sacrificed to a nearby volcano. Mike becomes one of the people caught in the middle of her plan.
As the situation spirals out of control, the film moves between physical adventure and a more personal journey for its characters. The story deliberately plays with the boundaries between celebrity and identity, performance and belief, and salvation and sacrifice.
Netflix describes the film as a mythical dark comedy, while its official synopsis centers on a movie star who is taken hostage during a star-studded charity event by a radical warrior and her devoted followers.
Anya Taylor-Joy Leads a Radical Group
Taylor-Joy plays Joan, the enigmatic leader behind the takeover. Her character approaches the world of wealth, celebrity and charitable spectacle with a radically different set of beliefs.
Taylor-Joy previously explained to Netflix Tudum that she sees the film as exploring the tension between individual and collective action, as well as society’s growing tendency to ignore issues that matter in favor of easier forms of entertainment. She described Joan and her followers as a force that confronts that complacency head-on.
Evans, meanwhile, plays Mike Tyler, a down-on-his-luck action star looking for a comeback. The character’s public image and private crisis become central to the film’s exploration of ego, celebrity and performance.
Gavras has said Evans’ comedic timing and understanding of his own relationship with ego made him a natural fit for the role. Rather than playing the actor simply as another action hero, the director wanted to push the idea of a movie star to an exaggerated extreme.
The Cast Is Packed With Familiar Faces
Evans and Taylor-Joy lead an unusually eclectic ensemble that brings together established film stars, rising performers and musicians.
The cast includes:
- Chris Evans as Mike Tyler
- Anya Taylor-Joy as Joan
- Vincent Cassel as Ben Bracken
- Ambika Mod as Daughter Nature
- Jonatan “Yung Lean” Leandoer as Arthur
- Sam Richardson as Oliver
- Jade Croot as Louise
- Miriam Silverman as Anna
- Charli XCX as Mother Nature
- John Malkovich as Gunnar
- Salma Hayek-Pinault as Gloria Bracken
Cassel and Hayek-Pinault play Ben and Gloria Bracken, the couple at the center of the gala. Yung Lean and Charli XCX also have roles in the film, adding another unexpected element to Gavras’ unconventional ensemble.
Gavras has worked with Cassel before, and Sacrifice marks another collaboration between the pair. He also had a long-standing friendship with Yung Lean, who became the first person he cast in the movie. Charli XCX later joined the project in a smaller role.
Romain Gavras Draws From Mythology
Gavras directs Sacrifice from a screenplay he co-wrote with Will Arbery, known for Succession.
The filmmaker has long been interested in mythology, and that fascination is at the heart of the movie. The story draws from Greek mythology and French stories surrounding figures such as Joan of Arc. Gavras also jokingly compared the film’s central journey to The Lord of the Rings.
The connection is straightforward: one story involves characters taking a powerful ring toward a volcano, while Sacrifice follows people on their own journey toward a volcano with a sacrifice at its center.
Gavras has described the movie as a roller coaster, warning that the story contains plenty of reversals and unexpected turns. The heightened approach fits his broader interest in mythology, where violence, humor and stakes can all be pushed beyond ordinary proportions.
Filmed Across Greece, Bulgaria and Iceland
The production was filmed entirely on location in Greece, Bulgaria and Iceland.
For one sequence, the production brought 200 extras dressed in gala attire to a mine in Northern Greece alongside the film’s A-list cast. Gavras also wanted the performers to work in real environments rather than relying entirely on constructed sets.
The production eventually took the cast to a real active volcano. Gavras recalled that the crew and performers had to climb for almost an hour each morning, with equipment transported by donkeys as everyone made the journey on foot.
That commitment to real locations is part of what Gavras believes gives the performances their particular quality.
When Does Sacrifice Release?
Sacrifice will begin streaming exclusively on Netflix on October 16, 2026, in the United States and France. Netflix lists the film with a runtime of 1 hour and 40 minutes and an R rating.
With Evans trapped inside a bizarre doomsday scenario and Taylor-Joy leading a group determined to carry out a volcanic sacrifice, Sacrifice looks set to combine dark comedy, mythology, celebrity satire and adventure in an unusually chaotic package.
