Armie Hammer is not only back in the new Frontier Crucible trailer, but he’s back with a juicy role: He plays an ornery outlaw who rips the leg off a tarantula for “trying to run away.”

The film from director Travis Mills also stars Myles Clohessy, Mary Stickley, Ryan Masson, William H. Macy and Thomas Jane. Hammer is second billed. Frontier Crucible is produced by Dallas Sonnier, who also produced Bone Tomahawk, a similarly gritty Western.

The film, from Well Go USA Entertainment, follows a wagon full of crucial medical supplies that is targeted in an Apache attack. The only man who can guide it through to its destination is Merrick Beckford, but he needs to enlist the help of a trio of dangerous outlaws. When they accidentally kill an Apache scout, the stakes are raised considerably.

The film is Hammer’s most prominent role since his career collapsed amid revelations that he enjoyed cannibal-themed role play — and he faced sexual assault accusations that didn’t lead to criminal charges.

He said in a January podcast interview that he was making a quiet career comeback that included Frontier Crucible, and that the general perception of him in Hollywood is, “Man, that guy got f—ed.”

Armie Hammer Background

The poster for Frontier Crucible. Well Go USA Entertainment.

Hammer lost jobs and his representation at his agency, WME, when private messages ascribed to him went viral in early 2021. They included talk of cannibalism, drinking blood, enslavement and rape. Hammer has since contended that they were part of consensual fantasy role playing, taken way out of context.

His once-thriving career had included roles in The Social Network and The Lone Ranger, but it crumbled as police investigated sexual assault accusations by an ex-partner who identified herself as Effie.

In 2023, Los Angeles County prosecutors announced that they would not file charges against Hammer, in part because of the “complexity of the relationship” between Hammer and the woman.

In an interview with Tom Segura and Christina Pazsitzky’s Your Mom’s House Podcast released on New Year’s Day, Hammer explained that he would sometimes send sexual partners graphic, joking messages, laughing as he sent them.

He also said that his understanding of consent has evolved since that period in his life, and that he understands that some of his partners may have thought they were in a more long-term relationship than he intended, and may have felt burned by their interactions with him.

“The worm is turning. And it takes time. It’s slow,” Hammer said on the podcast. “But generally now the conversation when my name comes up with people in the industry is, ‘Man, that guy got f—ed.’ And that feels really good. It’s really encouraging.”

Main image: Armie Hammer in Frontier Crucible. Well Go USA Entertainment.