Jason Statham is coming off the most successful solo film of his career in The Beekeeper, which has earned north of $150M. And now we’re seeing the impact of that success, as Lionsgate has paid a whopping eight figures to land North American rights to Mutiny, an action-thriller that Statham will lead for Plane director Jean-Francois Richet.
Mutiny will have a script by Lindsay Michel and Plane writer J.P. Davis. Statham will play Cole Reed, who is set up to take the fall when his billionaire industrialist boss is murdered in front of him. As Cole goes on the run, he also seeks to expose an international conspiracy.
“Jason Statham is one of the most kinetic action stars in the world and we look forward to teaming him up with Jean-François and the MadRiver team who we previously worked with on Plane,” said Lauren Bixby, SVP, Co-Productions and Acquisitions for the Lionsgate Motion Picture Group. “We can’t wait to see that creative energy once again as we bring Mutiny to life,” she added.
Statham had a busy 2023 of franchise flicks, appearing in The Expendables 4, Fast X, Operation Fortune: Ruse de Guerre, and Meg 2: The Trench. He’ll be seen next in Levon’s Trade, a reunion with The Beekeeper director David Ayer.
Richet’s Plane was a sleeper hit last year. Led by Gerard Butler and Mike Colter, the action film earned $74M on a $25M budget, with plans for a Colter-led sequel titled Ship.