EXCLUSIVE: John Wick producer Thunder Road Pictures has set director Renny Harlin (The Strangers franchise) and star Aaron Eckhart (The Dark Knight) for action-thriller Trial By Combat.
The film is set in “a near future where ‘judicial combat’ has become accepted practice and legal trials are settled by gladiatorial combat between elected ‘Champions’. It’s a system that rewards corruption and punishes the innocent. Eckhart stars as John Porter, a once-great Champion, chewed up and spat out by the judiciary. Galvanised by a fresh injustice, and fuelled with righteous fury, Porter seeks out a judgement day against his old nemesis: a high stakes battle to the death, in the hope of bringing the whole system crashing down.”
Architect has launched international sales ahead of the American Film Market and CAA Media Finance is handling North American rights.
Screenplay comes from Matthew Wilson. Wilson, Harlin and Eckhart previously teamed on action-thriller The Bricklayer and have survival thriller Deep Water upcoming. Die Hard 2 and Cliffhanger director Harlin is also currently in post-production on the third in Lionsgate’s The Strangers trilogy.
Basil Iwanyk and Erica Lee produce for Thunder Road. Matthew Wilson and Tarik Heitman are executive producers. Principal photography is being lined up to begin in Europe in Q1, 2026. Additional casting is in process.
Architect’s Calum Gray said: “Trial By Combat is a pulsating, epic throwback to classic 80s and 90s high concept, character-driven action thrillers. It’s also everything you want from a Thunder Road actioner: grounded, thoughtful and intelligent, but also propulsive, stylised, and kick-ass. Expertly curated to deliver maximum satisfaction for the audience!”
Eckhart is repped by CAA and Hirsch Wallerstein. Renny Harlin is repped by M3 Global Strategy and Jackoway Austen.