Netflix is assembling another high-profile action movie, with Alan Ritchson reportedly in negotiations to lead Maelstrom, a long-awaited thriller that has spent more than three decades in development. According to Variety, the project will be directed by Jaume Collet-Serra, whose recent Netflix hit Carry-On became one of the streamer’s most-watched original films.
If negotiations are finalized, Maelstrom will mark another major Netflix action project for Ritchson, whose popularity has surged thanks to Prime Video’s Reacher.
A hurricane survival thriller finally heads to production
The story follows a U.S. Federal Marshal tasked with protecting the fiancée of an arms dealer who has entered witness protection. As a powerful hurricane cuts off all communication and prevents reinforcements from arriving, the pair must survive both the deadly storm and relentless attacks from gunmen sent by the criminal organization.
The screenplay has been updated by Mark Bianculli (How to Rob a Bank), modernizing an original script written by the late Gregory Fitzpatrick. The project was originally sold to Warner Bros. in 1993 by producer Jeff Robinov, who will now produce the film for Netflix alongside Tabitha Shick.
According to Variety, Maelstrom found new life after the breakout success of Carry-On, which spent more than a decade in development before Netflix revived it. The film went on to become one of the platform’s biggest original movie hits, encouraging the streamer to search for other high-concept scripts that had never reached production.
Netflix executive Ori Marmur reportedly helped revive Maelstrom, with development executive Kira Cousineau also playing a role in bringing the project back into active development.
Neither Ritchson nor Collet-Serra has publicly commented on the negotiations, while Netflix has declined to comment. However, with an established action star, an experienced thriller director, and a high-concept survival premise, Maelstrom is shaping up to become one of Netflix’s most anticipated action films currently in development.
