First Looks

Review: Christian Sesma’s LIGHTS OUT Delivers A Knock Out Blow!

Christian Sesma’s latest gritty action packed feature is hitting cinemas, digital platforms and on demand services from 16th February 2024. I was lucky enough to have a sneak preview and here are my thoughts on the film. (Poster courtesy of Quiver Distribution) Starring Frank Grillo, Mekhi Phifer, Jaime King, Dermot Mulroney and British Action Man Scott Adkins. The synopsis of “Lights Out” A homeless veteran, Michael “Duffy” Duffield (Grillo), meets a talkative Ex-Con, Max Bomer (Phifer) who notices Duffy’s skills after he gets into a bar fight and offers him a well-paying “job” competing in underground fight clubs. The pair form an unlikely partnership after their first fight and decide to travel to LA so Duffy can atone for his past and Max can pay back a crime boss, Sage Parker (Mulroney). Duffy enters Sage’s fight club and eventually wins, but it also gets him tied up in the crime […]

OFFICER BLACK BELT First Look Teases The Wear And Tear That Comes With The Job As A Martial Arts Cop

Lee B. Golden III

Netflix’s K-content announcement is making the rounds these days. Worth spotlighting in my book is Officer Black Belt which comes from “Bloodhounds” shepherd, writer/director Jason Kim and announced last year with actors Kim Woo-bin and Kim Sung-kyun. The action flick is expected to arrive in the Fall of this year and we now have our first look at the latter cast member in a still from the streamer which you can view below. This one looks like it’s gonna go as hard as the director’s hit show did for sure, or maybe even harder – at least one can hope. This action-drama film follows the antics of Lee Jung-do, who boasts a 9th degree expertise in taekwondo, kumdo and judo combined, when he lands a job as a martial arts officer electronically monitoring criminals, along with Kim Sun-min, a probation officer who recognizes Jung-do’s crime-detecting abilities and martial arts skills. […]

11b97641-1519-d083-5d9d-2858f2bb5e144099433170555797058

OSIRIS Teases First Look At William Kaufman’s New Sci-Fi Ahead Of EFM

Lee B. Golden III

The Channel director William Kaufman is back on radar as XYZ Films has just announced its world sales for next week’s EFM launch in Berlin with Osiris. The new sci-fi flick wrapped filming late last year with Max Martini, Deadpool 1 and 2 actress Brianna Hildebrand, LaMonica Garrett and Terminator franchise staple Linda Hamilton starring. In the film, a team of Special Forces commandos are in the middle of an operation when they’re abducted by a mysterious spacecraft. When they wake up aboard the ship, they quickly discover they are being hunted by a merciless alien race. Kaufman directed the pic from a script he penned with Paul Reichelt. Jon Wroblewski and Christian Sosa produced the film for Roosevelt Film Lab, along with Andrew and Isaac Lewis of Denton Film, and the aforementioned Martini, with Reichelt exec producing. “XYZ Films is the perfect partner who shares our sentiment for iconic […]

XYZ Films Acquires Domestic Distribution Rights To Sci-fi Actioner ‘SKYLINE: WARPATH’ STARRING IKO UWAIS AND SCOTT ADKINS

Joe Hallett

In Los Angeles, California on 16th January 2024 XYZ Films has acquired all US rights to distribute the martial arts sci-fi action film SKYLINE: WARPATH, written and directed by action mastermind Liam O’Donnell (Beyond Skyline) and starring Iko Uwais (The Raid Franchise) and Scott Adkins (Undisputed), with Louis Mandylor, Randall J. Bacon and Yayan Ruhain rounding out the cast. The film is produced by Matthew Chausse and Evangelo Kioussis. XYZ Films will release the film domestically in early 2025. The rights deal was negotiated by Matthew Chausse on behalf of the filmmakers with Maxime Cottray from XYZ Films. Set within the “Skyline” universe and five years after the events of BEYOND SKYLINE, Sua (Iko Uwais) leads The Resistance against the aliens. When Sua discovers the powerful alien Radial Gauntlet, he must deal with both the corrupt Eric (Scott Adkins) and the army of alien invaders. In a partnership with XYZ Films, the original […]

New Teaser Poster, Featurettes Peel Back Layers Of New Post-MAT KILAU Mystery Project

Lee B. Golden III

A new teaser poster is making the rounds along with several behind-the-scenes featurettes for the latest mystery project out Studio Kembara. The Malay production banner behind the success of director Syamsul Yusof’s record-breaking period action epic, Mat Kilau: Kebangkitan Pahlawan, is yet to divulge explicit details just yet about the film in question, which leaves plenty of room for fans of Yusof’s film to speculate. The success of the Adi Putra starrer led to an announcement of a prequel and a sequel, the former to which neither Yusof or his star would be involved. All articles thereafter hinted at the prequel’s filming this year with a production keeping most of its details under wraps, including its cast and crew until September came and word came to pass of Studio Kembara’s sudden removal of NYAFF’s Daniel A. Craft award-winning filmmaker Areel Abu Bakar (Silat Warriors, Walid) from the prequel’s production. Remarkably, […]

DUCHESS: First Look At Newest Charlotte Kirk Action Thriller Nabbed By Saban For 2024 Release

Lee B. Golden III

The first few stills are now out for Neil Marshall’s new action thriller, Duchess. Saban Films has acquired U.S. rights to the pic for a 2024 release, as announced on Thursday by Palisades Park Pictures CEO, Tamara Birkemoe. Starring Charlotte Kirk who also penned the pic with Marshall, Duchess follows no-nonsense Scarlett Monaghan (Kirk) and her rise from a working-class petty criminal to becoming a ruthless organized crime leader in the seedy underbelly of the diamond smuggling circuit of Tenerife. Also starring are Philip Winchester (”Law & Order: Special Victims Unit”), Sean Pertwee (Fox’s “Gotham,” Event Horizon), Colm Meaney (“Star Trek: Deep Space Nine,” Con Air with Nicolas Cage) and Stephanie Beacham (“Dynasty,” “The Colbys”). Emily Corcoran produced the film for Cork Films next to Kristyna Sellnerova. Joe Simpson is exec producer alongside Simon Williams, Jonathan Bross and Matthew E. Chausse of Ashland Hill Media Finance, and Norman Merry and […]

EXPEND4BLES Teases Statham V. Uwais In A New Clip That Takes Hollywood To Task Once Again

Lee B. Golden III

Lionsgate is currently campaigning for the upcoming release of Expend4bles next week, and that includes its volley of preview clips that’ll be circulating online until then. The latest clip is available below as well, featuring Jason Statham and Iko Uwais which you can view below: Here’s the thing: We’ve been here before. Say what you will about Mile 22, I certainly have. Indeed, that film was in different hands, although it doesn’t change the fact that Uwais hasn’t had a proper presentation of his skillset as an action star apart from his feature film showcase in “Wu Assssins” spin-off, Fistful Of Vengeance on Netflix. Expend4bles is directed by Scott Waugh who we last heard from following the aforementioned streamer’s release of his Jackie Chan/John Cena headliner, Hidden Strike. The film is an ample serving of action for fans of the genre and Chan alike, but it’s important to note that […]

WHAT REMAINS OF US: Kit Harrington Has An Axe To Grind In The First Look At The Upcoming Horror Thriller

Lee B. Golden III

Production is completed for the Yorkshire, England-shot horror thriller, What Remains Of Us, and the official first look has been revealed above. Award-winning photographer and documentary filmmaker Alexander J. Farrell (Refugee) is making his directorial debut from a script he wrote alongside Greer Ellison (Butterfly Kisses, winner of the Crystal Bear at the Berlinale) Featuring Kit Harington (HBO’s “Game of Thrones,” Eternals, upcoming Blood For Dust), What Remains Of Us is set deep in rural England, and framed from the point of view of Harington’s character’s 10-year-old daughter (Caoilinn Springall, Midnight Sky). Behind the walls of her family’s isolated, fortified compound, she begins to question her unusual life. She discovers that once a month her father turns into a monster. Her parents say the monster is nothing to be afraid of but when the monster escapes, the girl has to confront the harsh reality of her father’s identity and make […]

VIKTORIA MUST DIE: Norwegian Family Crime Comedy Announces 2024 Release, LevelK Takes World Sales

Lee B. Golden III

The latest look at Norwegian family crime comedy Viktoria Must Die comes by way of Screendaily’s Wendy Mitchell, reporting LevelK for international sales ahead of a 2024 release. Hailing from På film AS, the film is produced by Ole Marius Elvestad, and is directed by Gunnbjörg Gunnarsdottir in her second solo outing. Two young and wealthy siblings, Hedvig and Henrik, decide to hire a hitman to get rid of their annoying stepmother, Viktoria. To solve their problem, the children approach Carl, an immigrant from Bosnia. He refuses to help them, because he is a law-abiding citizen. That is until he finds himself and his family in a difficult financial situation. Currently in post-production, Viktoria Must Die also stars Ine Marie Wilmann, Leo Ajkic, Morten Svartveit, and Agnete Haaland. Gunnarsdottir also penned the script with Rolf-Magne Golten Andersen. LevelK also financed the pic along with Scandinavian Film Distribution, Mediefondet Zefyr, and […]

FIGHTER Flies Online With A New Motion Poster For Siddharth Anand’s Indian Air Force Actioner

Lee B. Golden III

Viacom18 Studios and Marflix have announced Fighter, a new Indian air force military action adventure rejoining Bang Bang! and War duo, actor Hrithik Roshan and director Siddharth Anand. The first official motion poster teaser is now running online with production signaling a January 25 release next year on the eve of India’s 75th Republic Day. Shamsher Pathania, an aspiring young man, fulfills his lifelong dream of joining the Indian Air Force. As he faces rigorous personal challenges, Shamsher must rise above his own limitations to be a true hero of the Indian Armed Forces. Fighter also reunites Anand with Pathaan leading lady Deepika Padukone who will next be seen in the Shah Rukh Khan-led Jawan and in the Hindi/Telugu Prahbas starrer, Kalki 2898 A.D., and also stars Anil Kapoor whose next appearance will be later this year in Animal starring Ranbir Kapoor. Anand has been making a killing in the […]

ASH: New Flying Lotus Sci-Fi Thriller Reveals A Trio Of Stills With Eiza Gonzalez and Aaron Paul

Lee B. Golden III

A trio of first look stills are now up for Ash, the new sci-fi thriller featuring Eiza Gonzalez and Aaron Paul. The film is directed by Flying Lotus (Kuso) and based on an original screenplay written by Jonni Remmler. When a woman (Gonzalez) wakes up on a distant planet and finds the crew of her space station viciously killed, she must decide if she can trust the man (Paul) sent to rescue her. Rounding out the cast are Iko Uwais, Beulah Koale and Kate Elliot round out the cast. XYZ Films and GFC Films are producing, with Neill Blomkamp (District 9) and Echo Lake onboard as exec producers, and XYZ Films co-financing alongside IPR.VC. As previously reported the film rejoins the teams at XYZ Films and GFC following New Zealand director Toa Fraser’s subsequent successes, Maori action drama The Dead Lands and hostage thriller 6 Days. Lotus, who is also a globally-known and critically-acclaimed […]

Netflix: SQUID GAME S2, AVATAR: THE LAST AIRBENDER, REBEL MOON, HEART OF STONE, ONE PIECE And More Selects From Saturday’s Tudum Event

Lee B. Golden III

Netflix held its Tudum Global Fan Event live in Brazil on Saturday and was host to a bevy of upcoming gems. News has already been announced regarding a third entry for Extraction and the casting of Linda Hamilton for the final season for Stranger Things, as well as a season two renewal for Arnold Schwarzenegger’s Fubar. As for teaser and promo materials, I’ve picked out some selections that stood out, including second season casting of Squid Game, teaser footage for La Casa De Papel spin-off, Berlin; a sixth-season cast promo for Cobra Kai; a first look teaser for 3 Body Problem; a K-Content preview featuring footage from Celebrity, the next season of D.P., Mask Girl, A Time Called You, and action thrillers Ballerina and Believer 2, Song Of The Bandits, Doona!, Daily Dose Of Sunshine, the next season of Sweet Home and upcoming Gyeongseong Creature; the first official series teaser […]

SLEEPING DOGS: Check Out Russell Crowe And Tommy Flanagan In A First Look At The New Crime Thriller

Lee B. Golden III

Adam Cooper’s crime thriller debut, Sleeping Dogs, gets a first look this weekend out of Cannes as Highland Film Group and Nickel City Pictures handle world sales. The new photo features Russell Crowe and Tommy Flanagan who lead the cast from a script by Cooper and co-scribe Bill Collage (Assassins Creed, Exodus: Gods and Kings). Adapted frim E.O. Chirovici’s critically acclaimed novel, “The Book of Mirrors,” Crowe plays ex-homicide detective Roy Freeman. In the wake of a cutting-edge Alzheimer’s treatment, Freeman is tasked with re-examining a brutal murder case from his past – the grisly murder of a college professor. Intrigued and fighting to regain his memory, Roy enlists his former partner (Flanagan) to help him revive the investigation. This time though, things unfold very differently when they encounter a magnetic and mysterious woman: as he uncovers a tangled web of contradictions and secrets, Roy is forced to face a […]

DEVARA Signals A Godlike NTR Jr. In New Key Art

Lee B. Golden III

“When courage turns into a disease… fear is the only cure.” That’s the tagline for Devara (meaning God or Godlike), the newest Telugu film from director Koratala Siva. The film stars NTR Jr.’s in his thirtieth movie after conquering the world in the past year alongside leading man Ram Charan in S.S. Rajamouli’s RRR. Plot and story details are known only to the production while Variety‘s Naman Ramachandran describes the project as “a revenge drama”. The film opens in theaters next year and also stars Janhvi Kapoor (“Mili”) and Saif Ali Khan (“Vikram Vedha”) in pivotal roles Check out the poster below and mark the date!

GUNNER: Hemsworth And Freeman Featured In First Look As Deals Land At Cannes

Lee B. Golden III

Highland Film Group has locked distribution deals in key international territories for action thriller Gunner. The new film is directed by Dimitri Logothetis from a script by Gary Scott Thompson. Gunner follows Special Ops veteran Lee Gunner (Luke Hemsworth) who takes his two sons on a fishing trip to reconnect. The trip soon turns awry when the boys stumble upon a massive drug running operation and are kidnapped by Dobbs, the son of the gang’s kingpin Kendric Ryker (Morgan Freeman) who runs the organization from prison. With no one but himself to retaliate and with elite combat skills they won’t see coming, an enraged Gunner wreaks havoc to rescue his two sons from Ryker’s gang. You don’t cross Gunner! The deals sealed this week include Daro Film Distribution for Germany and Eastern Europe, Premiere TV Distribution for Benelux, Spentzos Film for Greece, IIF for Italy, NOS Lusomundo Audiovisuais for Portugal, […]

CONSUMED: XYZ Films Goes Wild For Butcher Brothers’ Next At Cannes

Lee B. Golden III

Film duo Mitchell Altieri and Phil Flores, better known as The Butcher Brothers have directed their newest horror thriller to date with Consumed, with Devon Sawa (“Chucky” the Syfy/USA Network series, Final Destination) headlining. The film is directed by Altieri from a script by David Calbert, with Courtney Halverson (Unfriended, “True Detective”) and Mark Fariglietti (Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines, How to Get Away with Murder, “Madmen”) also starring. Consumed follows a married couple, Jay (Famiglietti) and Beth (Halverson), as they embark on a celebratory camping trip one year after Beth’s cancer remission, but things go horribly wrong when the couple find themselves trapped between a wild madman (Sawa) and a skin stealing monster. Flores and Texas Chainsaw Massacre vet Jeffrey Allard are producing the new thriller, with XYZ Films exec producing and launching sales at the upcoming Marché du Film in Cannes with a promo for buyers. Consumed […]

CLASSIFIED: Aaron Eckhart Takes Aim In First Look At Roel Reine’s Latest From Film Bridge Int’l At Cannes

Lee B. Golden III

Deadline is doling out the first visuals of Classified, the newest action thriller from Fistful Of Vengeance helmer Roel Reine. Film Bridge International will launch sales at the Cannes market. Operating alone in the field for more than 20 years, a CIA hitman uses the “Help Wanted” section of the newspapers to get his orders from the Agency. His long lost daughter (now a UK MI6 analyst) tracks him down to deliver shocking news: his CIA boss has been dead for years and the division long since shut down. Together, they set out to discover who’s orders he’s been executing. Classified also stars Abigail Breslin and Tim Roth, with a script by Bob DeRosa. Ellen Wander and Jordan Dykstra produced the pic for Film Bridge International. “It was an honor to work with this cast of talented actors. Aaron brought an engaging, emotional depth to his portrayal of an assassin […]

MAD CATS: Paws (Get It?) And Check Out The Brand New Poster For Reiki Tsuno’s Hit Feature Debut!

Lee B. Golden III

International sales agent Third Window Films has affirmed its next steps forward with Reiki Tsuno’s fantastically entertaining action comedy adventure thriller, Mad Cats. The film is currently poised to screen for the White Raven Competition of the 41st BIFFF in Brussels next month. Further festival dates and commercial release announcements remain pending as well, and those updates can’t come soon enough. Mad Cats made its world premiere at Slamdance back in January, featuring Sho Mineo and Yuya Matsuura, and introducing actress and burgeoning action star hopeful, Ayane in the first role she auditioned for after jumping into the world of performing arts. Tsuno directs from his script which sees Mineo as a shiftless, jobless trailer park dweller who instantly sets out on a mission to find his missing brother after receiving a mysterious package. The journey soon lands him in the throes of a vengeful family of female monster cats […]

BANG: Get A Look At Jack Kesy In The New Action Thriller From ‘The Driver’ Director [EXCLUSIVE]

Lee B. Golden III

There hasn’t been much information circulating about director Wych Kaosayananda’s new film, Bang. Thankfully, Film Combat Syndicate can now discuss the upcoming action thriller with some much-needed exclusive info and a selection of behind-the-scenes stills courtesy of the director. Kaosayananda, whose previous efforts at the helm partly include Mark Dascascos starrers The Driver and Once Night In Bangkok and the notable WB 2002 release Ballistic: Ecks VS. Sever, directs from a script by Peter M. Lenkov and Ken Solarz. What’s more is the film sees burgeoning star Jack Kesy in the lead role just as he’s about to make headway in the comic book arena as the new Hellboy for Millenium Media. In Bang, Kesy stars in the titular role of a stone-cold hitman who, after surviving a near-fatal attempt on his life, becomes a target himself after betraying his crime organization in search for redemption. A young woman and […]

Promotional still for "Escalation" (2023)

ESCALATION Kicks Off With George Tchortov And Chris Mark In New Stills!

Lee B. Golden III

International sales outfit WTFilms have made available several photos and initial market artwork for Escalation, the new action crime thriller reuniting director James Mark with actors George Tchortov and Chris Mark. The film, which screened for buyers in Berlin in the past week, is produced by Bruno Marino (Enhanced), and also reteams the helmer a fourth time with writer Matthew Nayman, who co-wrote with Brett Caron. A former police officer puts aside his differences with the force in order to track down his brother’s murderer. He will need to team with a younger detective to bring the case home. Tchortov, whose credits partly include Paramount+ series “Mayor Of Kingstown” and the CBS series reboot of “McGyver,” previously starred in the former Mark’s second and third features, sci-fi actioner Enhanced with Alanna Bale, and contained sci-fi thriller Control featuring Sara Mitch. Co-star Mark adds another acting notch to his career belt […]