The Big Picture

• Mahershala Ali is set to star alongside Tom Hardy in NYC crime thriller 77 Blackout, directed by Cary Joji Fukunaga.
• The script is written by Frank John Hughes with revisions by Fukunaga.
• The film set in 1977 NYC, follows rogue police officers planning to rob criminal organizations during a blackout.

Mahershala Ali is set to star alongside action-heavyweight Tom Hardy in the upcoming NYC crime thriller 77 Blackout. According to Deadline, American filmmaker Cary Joji Fukunaga is directing. Fukunaga is known for directing Daniel Craig’s final 007 appearance in 2021’s No Time to Die, alongside True Detective’s first season, and 2015’s Beasts of No Nation. 77 Blackout’s script was written by Frank John Hughes, with revisions by director Fukunaga.

Oppenheimer’s producer, Charles Roven, is also attached to the project, alongside Aaron Ginsburg and William Green for The Cut, and Madison Weireter for Atlas Entertainment. Independent production house Black Bear will be introducing 77 Blackout to international buyers at the upcoming Cannes market, and WME will be handling rights to the US.

What Can Audiences Expect From '77 Blackout'?

77 Blackout will be set in 1977 New York City, centering around five rogue police officers. The group plans to rob three criminal organizations across the span of one night: the Hong Kong Triads, the Italian Mafia, and the Harlem Mob. On the night of the robbery, an electrical blackout hits across NYC, throwing the crew’s plans askew. The five officers are plunged into a landscape of unexpected chaos and mayhem as they are forced to come face-to-face with their inner demons and their own moral qualms.

Ali is most known for two Best Picture-winning flicks: 2016’s Moonlight, directed by Barry Jenkins, and 2018’s Green Book, directed by Peter Farrelly. Ali won the Best Supporting Actor Oscar for both films. The actor recently starred in Netflix’s dystopian thriller Leave the World Behind alongside Julia Roberts and Ethan Hawke. Leave the World Behind spent 6 days at the top of Netflix’s streaming charts, with 41.7 million views. In January 2024, the film entered a coveted list of Netflix’s most popular films of all time. As of May 5, 2024, Leave the World Behind sits in fifth place with 143,400,000 views. Leave the World Behind saw moderate critical success, receiving a Rotten Tomatoes score of 73%.

Hardy is known for blockbusters such as Christopher Nolan’s 2010 Sci-Fi feature Inception and director George Miller’s 2015 action epic Mad Max: Fury Road, where the actor plays the eponymous Max Rockatansky. Hardy has previously worked with producer Roven on 2012’s The Dark Knight Rises, directed by Nolan, where the actor played Batman villain Bane. He can also be seen in the upcoming drama Bikeriders with Austin Butler and Jodie Comer.

Ali can be seen in Leave the World Behind, which is available to watch now on Netflix.

WATCH ON NETFLIX