Elegance Bratton’s “By Any Means” has found its home.
Paramount has acquired the U.S. all media rights to the film, which stars Yahya Abdul-Mateen II and Mark Wahlberg. They have set a September 4, 2026 theatrical release date for the movie.
According to the official synopsis, the film, set in 1966 Mississippi and loosely inspired by actual events “follows a volatile partnership between a hardened mafia hitman and a young Black FBI agent as they are forced into an uneasy alliance to track down those responsible for the killing of civil rights leaders—uncovering a conspiracy that tests the limits of justice, loyalty and survival.”
“This is a story about unlikely alliances forged under impossible circumstances—where justice is not clean, and the truth comes at a cost,” Bratton said in an official statement. “I wanted to explore what it means to confront violence not just as an act, but as a system—and what it demands of those caught inside it.”
Producers of “By Any Means” include Alex Lebovici for Hammerstone Studios; Chester Algernal Gordon and Bratton for Freedom Principle; Basil Iwanyk and Erica Lee for Thunder Road; and Wahlberg and Stephen Levinson for Municipal.
Sascha Penn wrote the screenplay. And the cast is rounded out by Nicole Beharie, David Strathairn, Giancarlo Esposito, Josh Lucas and Ethan Embry.
WME Independent handled the sale of the film, with north.five.six handling international sales of the film.
“By Any Means” opens in theaters on September 4, 2026.
