Paramount Pictures has released the trailer for By Any Means, a new film directed by Elegance Bratton based on a true story. The film stars Yahya Abdul-Mateen II as FBI agent Wayne Strider and Wahlberg as real-life mafia hitman Gregory Scarpa, who team up to investigate the murders of civil rights leaders in 1960s Mississippi.
What is ‘By Any Means’ about?
According to the official description, Strider is “sent into 1960s Mississippi to investigate a wave of brutal killings targeting civil rights leaders. Forced to work alongside notorious mafia hitman Greg Scarpa (Wahlberg), he finds himself pulled into a deadly hunt where justice and vengeance begin to blur.”
Bratton told Entertainment Weekly he was drawn to Sascha Penn’s script while looking to make a film about “people who are battling institutions that are failing them.” The inclusion of civil rights leader Vernon Dahmer, portrayed in the film by Giancarlo Esposito, who was killed by the KKK in 1966 after they set his home on fire, sealed the deal. “All of that history honestly made it incredibly satisfying to kick the KKK’s ass every day while making this film,” Bratton told EW. “I can’t wait for audiences around the world to enjoy that same satisfaction.”
On the tone he was after, Bratton added, “This is a story about justice moving through corrupted systems. I wanted this film to feel muscular, entertaining, and haunted at the same time.”
Wahlberg, who underwent a physical transformation to play Scarpa, told EW the test screening response was unlike anything he had experienced. “The response in the theater is really like nothing I’ve ever seen before,” he said. “This is going to be one of the great revenge thrillers in quite a long time.”
Abdul-Mateen II described his character’s internal struggle to EW: “Wayne was fighting for, or is supposed to stand for, what is morally right, and right in the eyes of justice, and then Scarpa’s character stands for what is necessary.” He added: “That was what really drew me in, was figuring out how long I could take Wayne through this world and keep him good, before he had to make a choice.”
Who else stars in the film?
Alongside Abdul-Mateen II and Wahlberg, the cast includes Nicole Beharie, Josh Lucas, LisaGay Hamilton, LaChanze and Ethan Embry, with David Strathairn and Esposito. It is written by Penn and produced by Alex Lebovici, Chester Algernal Gordon, Bratton, Basil Iwanyk, Erica Lee, Wahlberg and Stephen Levinson.
When does ‘By Any Means’ open in theaters?
By Any Means opens in theaters Sept. 4.
Watch the trailer below:
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