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| “ | His power has been wasted for far-too long. The punishing begins tonight! | „ |
| ~ Grýla declaring war in the climax - her most famous quote. |
Grýla the Winter Witch is the main antagonist of the 2024 Christmas fantasy action comedy film Red One.
She is a winter witch who kidnaps Santa Claus and attempts to use his powers to create magical snow globes and imprison every child on Earth who's on the Naughty List.
She was portrayed by Kiernan Shipka in her first villainous role. In her true form, she was voiced by Morla Gorrondona, who also voiced Light Hope in She-Ra and the Princesses of Power.
Personality[]
Grýla is cold, ruthless, and vengeful. She is driven by a deep resentment toward "naughty" children and seeks to punish them through her magical snow globes. She's cunning and manipulative, using both magic and technology to carry out her plans. She feels justified in her actions, believing she is enforcing a harsh but necessary justice. Her bitterness comes partly from her complicated past with Santa and Krampus, and she views herself as a powerful enforcer of her own twisted version of fairness. Overall, she's a calculating, prideful villain who is willing to do whatever it takes to achieve her goals.
Biography[]
Red One[]
The story follows M.O.R.A. (Mythological Oversight and Restoration Authority), a secret organization that maintains a peace treaty between humanity and mythological creatures. Callum Drift, a Christmas elf and the head of Santa Claus's security team, is disillusioned with the growing number of "naughty" children in the world and decides to retire after one last Christmas run. However, his plans are interrupted when Santa is kidnapped by a mercenary black ops team led by the winter witch, Grýla.
Callum reluctantly teams up with Jack O'Malley, a human hacker who unknowingly exposed Santa's location. Together, they discover that Grýla, a powerful and vengeful figure in folklore, is behind the plot. Grýla, who is linked to both Santa and his estranged adoptive brother Krampus, has a dangerous plan to rid the world of all naughty children. She aims to use magical snow globes to imprison them forever, draining their magic and ensuring they never escape.
As Callum and Jack investigate further, they uncover that Grýla is working with Krampus, who has created the Naughty List and is bitter about his fractured relationship with Santa. Grýla's motivation stems from a desire for revenge and control over the mythical world. She also holds Santa captive in a magical vault, siphoning his power to fuel her plans.
After a tense confrontation with Krampus and a daring escape, Callum and Jack manage to track down Grýla's lair at the North Pole. There, they find Santa unconscious and imprisoned, while Grýla uses the North Pole's magic to mass-produce the snow globes. In a final battle, Grýla is confronted by Callum, Jack, and Krampus, who ultimately helps them stop her. Grýla is sealed inside one of her own snow globes, ensuring she can no longer harm anyone. It's unknown what happened to Grýla after her imprisonment, although she was either taken away by either Santa or Krampus.
With Grýla defeated, Santa recovers and invites Jack and his son Dylan to join him on his Christmas Eve journey, symbolizing a fresh start. Callum, witnessing the rekindled sense of wonder in Jack and Dylan, decides to stay on and continue his work, putting aside his retirement plans. The story ends with the world saved and a renewed sense of hope for the future.
Powers and Abilities[]
- Superhuman Strength: Even in her humanoid form, she possess immense physical strength. She is able to physically ragdoll Callum Drift, a Christmas elf with superhuman strength, and Jack O'Malley a skilled human with ease. In her true ogress form, her superhuman strength is further amplified and she can easily beat up and ragdoll a powerful Christmas demigod like Krampus.
- Immortality: As an magical being, Grýla is immortal and has been alive for countless centuries with no signs of aging. Her immortality also grants her near invulnerability, allowing her to take hits from Red One's reindeers, Callum Drift and Krampus' fireballs without injury or serious discomfort.
- Shapeshifting: Grýla possesses shapeshifting abilities, and can take on a seemingly harmless humanoid form to blend into the human world. In her true ogress form, she is unusually large in size and possess two prehensile tails.
- Telepathic Possession: Grýla was able to psychically possess the body of Ted and use it as vessel to communicate with Callum Drift.
- "Hearing her Name": Grýla possesses the unusual ability to always hear her name no matter who says it and where. She can use this to pinpoint the location of the person who said her name.
- Mystical Craftswomanship: She designed the Glaskäfig, a magical imprisoning snow globe.
- Strategic Planning: Grýla has shown exceptional strategic thinking abilities. She orchestrated a clever plot to punish all the naughty people in the world by imprisoning them inside Glaskäfigs. Grýla even successfully plotted the kidnapping of St. Nicholas and even created a believable diversion for his elves so that her shapeshifting lads can infiltrate the North Pole unnoticed.
Quotes[]
| “ | Grýla: The world is a mess because they fear nothing. I'm going to give them something to fear. I'm going to do in one night what you have failed to do for centuries. Sant Claus: And what is that? Grýla: I'm gonna make the world a better place. |
„ |
| ~ Grýla and Santa Claus. |
| “ | Callum Drift: What is it you want?. Grýla: The same thing I have always wanted for hundreds of years. To make them behave. The time has come...to punish the naughty. All of them. Everyone who is on the list. Everyone who has ever been on the list. From killer to jaywalkers. Anyone who's ever lied of littered. Anyone who's ever been rude or late. Callum Drift: You're talking about almost everyone. Grýla: Everyone I see fit. Tomorrow they will all be punished. And he is going to help...You can't see it yet, but when you wake up this Christmas morning, the world will be much, much... NICER. |
„ |
| ~ Grýla talks to Callum Drift about how she aims to change the world while she controls the body of Ted. |
| “ | The machine isn't working. Fix it. Now, or else the next test will be on one of you. | „ |
| ~ Grýla threatens her men. |
| “ | Tonight, I will deliver one of these to every single deviant on the list. And when they wake up and open their gift, they'll join my collection, and the world will be in the hands of the righteous. Finally. Tonight, I make the ride. | „ |
| ~ Grýla menacingly gloats about her evil plan to a captive Jack and Dylan. |
| “ | Jack: Well, look at you. Grýla: Oh, shut up! |
„ |
| ~ Grýla's last word after being defeated and imprisoned in one of her own snow globes that Jack O'Mally holds on. |
Trivia[]
- Grýla is a fearsome Ogress from Icelandic folklore, known as the mother of the Yule Lads, who punishes naughty children during Christmas. Traditionally depicted as a monstrous figure, she is said to live in the mountains and, in some versions of the myth, kidnaps and eats misbehaving children. Over time, her character has evolved into a more malevolent figure tied to darker Christmas lore.