Cinema VinesIndian filmmaker Nikhil Bhat has crossed over to Hollywood with his latest action thriller, Deadlocked, which will stream worldwide on Amazon MGM Studios’ Prime Video platform. The movie, directed by Bhat, stars Academy‑Award winner Jamie Foxx as a former Marine who is pulled back into combat when a courtroom trial devolves into a hostage siege.
According to Deadline, the plot centers on a grieving ex‑Marine who is called for jury duty. When the defendant’s daughter seizes the courthouse in a bid to free her father, the proceedings turn into a deadly standoff. The screenplay was penned by Eric Scott Anderson, known for The Black Fox, and Matt Takejiro Bosack, who worked on NCIS: Hawai‘i.
Bhat’s move to Hollywood follows the success of his 2023 feature Kill, which premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival and later sold to Lionsgate for a mid‑seven‑figure deal. Kill earned over ₹47 crore at the box office, won six Filmfare Awards, and was billed as India’s most violent film. Bhat’s previous work includes the films Apurva and Hurdang, and the web series Rasbhari and The Gone Game.
The production of Deadlocked is backed by a robust team: producers Brian Kavanaugh‑Jones and Fred Berger of Range, Dave Caplan of C2, and Jamie Foxx’s own Foxxhole Productions. Executive producers include AJ Bourscheid, Liz Destro, Paul Currie and Corinne Foxx. Foxx, who recently starred in Netflix’s action‑comedy Back in Action—which drew 46.8 million views in its opening weekend—will also return to Netflix for the upcoming Olympic boxing drama Fight for ’84.
With this project, Bhat marks his first English‑language feature, potentially shifting the trajectory of his career from Indian cinema to global audiences. While he had previously been attached to the Sunny Deol action thriller Parshuram, the announcement of Deadlocked has left the status of that project uncertain, with speculation that it may be delayed or shelved.
