Afterburn cast & characters: Meet the stars behind the film and the roles they play

Afterburn is a 2025 American post-apocalyptic action film that combines the talents of several well-known genre actors and is the first feature film of director J. J. Perry, who was previously a stunt coordinator. The screenplay by Matt Johnson and Nimrd Antal is based on the Red 5 Comics graphic novel.

Afterburn takes place in a world where a huge solar flare has caused the end of modern technology. The project of Afterburn was started in 2018, but after a few years of silence, it was revived in 2024 and finally went to the shooting with the lead actors Dave Bautista and Samuel L. Jackson.

Afterburn stars Dave Bautista as post-flare relic hunter Jake, Samuel L. Jackson as power broker August Valentine, Olga Kurylenko as resistance fighter Drea, and Kristofer Hivju as the ruthless warlord General Volkov.

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Who stars in Afterburn?

1) Dave Bautista as Jake

Dave Bautista (Image Via Getty)

Dave Bautista leads Afterburn as Jake, a former soldier turned treasure hunter who locates and retrieves rare pre-flare artifacts for the most powerful clients.Bautista made his name and exit from the arena during his WWE career, where he was one of the main characters of the Ruthless Aggression Era and later went fully into acting.

In the movies, he is mostly known for his role as Drax in the Marvel Cinematic Universe from 2014 to 2023, and Rabban in Dune and Dune: Part Two. Besides that, his name appears in the credits of Blade Runner 2049, Spectre, Army of the Dead, Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery, and Knock at the Cabin.

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2) Samuel L. Jackson as August Valentine

Samuel L. Jackson (Image Via Getty)

Samuel L. Jackson is August Valentine, the self-proclaimed King of England, who monopolizes resources and is using Jake to retrieve the relics that are of the utmost value. Jackson is one of the top, money, making actors in the whole history of films, and his work has covered the big screen, TV, and the stage for many years.

His seminal performance in Pulp Fiction as Jules Winnfield got him an Oscar nomination and a collaboration with Quentin Tarantino.

Besides that, he is widely recognized for playing Nick Fury in the Marvel Cinematic Universe and Mace Windu in Star Wars. His range of work includes Jurassic Park, A Time to Kill, Unbreakable, Snakes on a Plane, and Glass.

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3) Olga Kurylenko as Drea

Olga Kurylenko (Image Via Getty)

Olga Kurylenko features in Afterburn as Drea, a member of the resistance against a warlord who has taken control of the western part of France. Kurylenko was singled out for global recognition for the first time as Camille Montes in the Bond film Quantum of Solace.

Her name is listed in the credits of major features, including Hitman, Oblivion, Seven Psychopaths, The Death of Stalin, Johnny English Strikes Again, and The Man Who Killed Don Quixote. Besides that, she has been a part of the Marvel universe in Black Widow and Thunderbolts.

In Afterburn, the character of Kurylenko is the one who stands against the norm and exercises her ethical principles in a world of lawlessness.

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4) Kristofer Hivju as General Volkov

Kristofer Hivju (Image Via Getty)

Kristofer Hivju plays the role of General Volkov, the dictatorial military leader who imposes his control over the region in a post, flare France. Globally, Hivju is mainly recognized for his role as Tormund Giantsbane in HBO's Game of Thrones.

His movie credits are After Earth, Force Majeure, Downhill, and The Fate of the Furious. Hivju, who was educated at the Russian Academy of Theatre Arts, combines a dramatic impetuosity and a solid physical stature, making him the leading antagonist of the movie.

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What is Afterburn about?

Afterburn is set several years after a massive solar flare has destroyed technology worldwide, and as a result, the world is divided and ruled by those who have control over the few resources that are left.

Jake is making a living by salvaging the old world valuables from the pre-flare time for August Valentine, who is the one to finance Jake's dream of escaping life on Earth. The main story features around Jake and Drea going to France to recover what seems to be the Mona Lisa, but a later revelation shows that the artifact is in fact, a secret atomic bomb related to the Cold War history.

As a result of enemies getting closer, it becomes a runaway from the ruined infrastructure, which leads to betrayals, revelations, and in the end, a final confrontation that determines the power of the film's ending.

It concludes by revealing that the cultural symbols and weapons have been intentionally faked, which is a very strong Afterburn thematic point that power in a world that is broken is most of the time an illusion.

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The movie was released in theatres on December 19, 2025.

Edited by Sakshi Singh