EXCLUSIVE: Alex Pettyfer and Clive Owen are to appear in Scorpion, an action thriller directed by Australian filmmaker Richard Hughes, with the UK’s WestEnd Films launching worldwide sales at the European Film Market (EFM).
Scorpion follows a young police officer on his first assignment with an elite tactical unit of Afghanistan veterans. During a nighttime raid on a remote farmhouse, the operation turns into a deadly trap. Cut off from all communication and sealed inside the building, the squad is confronted by a sinister voice issuing an ultimatum: every 30 minutes, someone will die unless one of them confesses to what the unit did during a classified operation in Afghanistan years ago.
Production is due to commence in April, in UK, Bulgaria and Cyprus. The project reunites WestEnd with US producer Jib Polhemus, having partnered on thriller Zealot. Further producers are Patrick Hughes – the director of The Hitman’s Bodyguard franchise – and Greg McLean for Australia’s Huge Film, alongside Hannah Leader and Yariv Lerner.
Pettyfer and James Ireland also produce for US company Dark Dreams Entertainment, and Matt Murphie, Luke Bouchier and David Mansfield of Cyprus-based Copper Island. Michael Lawrence serves as executive producer.
Hughes, whose credits include 2022 action thriller The Enforcer starring Antonio Banderas, co-writes the script with Bennett Fisher.
Richard Hughes said: “Scorpion is a relentless, claustrophobic thriller that blends the brutal realism of a tactical police drama with the psychological intensity of a revenge-driven horror film. I want to explore a morally ambiguous world where loyalty and guilt collide. At its core, Scorpion asks whether justice and revenge can ever truly be separated.”
“Scorpion is a gripping ride that masterfully blends action with psychological depth,” added Maya Amsellem, managing director of WestEnd Films. “We’re thrilled to be partnering with Jib again, and we couldn’t be more excited to work with Clive Owen and Alex Pettyfer, whose performances will add both intensity and emotional complexity to this story.”
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