Deadlocked (2020) Movie News & Updates

Indian filmmaker Nikhil Bhat, the man behind the acclaimed 2023 action thriller Kill, is packing his bags for Hollywood. According to a new report, Bhat is set to direct Deadlocked, a high-concept actioner that will star Oscar winner Jamie Foxx, with Amazon backing the project. The news marks a major leap for the director, who turned a modestly budgeted Bollywood production into one of the most talked-about genre films of recent years.

For those who missed the Kill hype train, it was the kind of movie that made action purists sit up and take notice - a brutal, claustrophobic slugfest set almost entirely on a speeding train, with a jaw-dropping body count and a lead performance that turned Lakshya into an instant star. Bhat’s ability to wring maximum tension from tight spaces and relentless choreography clearly caught the attention of international players. Now he’s taking that same energy to a very different kind of confined nightmare: an elevator.

The plot for Deadlocked is refreshingly simple in the best way. When a zombie virus erupts, a random assortment of strangers trapped in an elevator must fight for their lives against an infected passenger among them - and, once the doors open, a clever horde waiting just outside. It’s a setup that sounds tailor-made for Bhat’s toolkit: one location, rising stakes, a ticking clock, and a cast of characters with nowhere to run. Think Speed meets Train to Busan, but with the sardonic bite of a Jamie Foxx one-liner.

Now, before anyone gets too excited, there’s a twist in the metadata here that needs addressing. The film listed above with the Deadlocked title - the one from 2020 with a 79-minute runtime and a cast of relative unknowns - is a completely different, low-budget indie horror that currently holds a shaky 4.2 on IMDb. That’s not Bhat’s movie. This new project is a separate, bigger-budget reimagining or a fresh production entirely, one that Amazon is backing and that will definitely not feature Sophie Giberson or a voice-only dispatcher. The old film is essentially a ghost on the digital shelf; the new one is the headline act.

Still, it’s worth noting that the title carries a bit of baggage. The 2020 Deadlocked was a scrappy, micro-budget effort that didn’t exactly set the world on fire, and its existence might cause some confusion when trailers start dropping. But if Bhat’s track record is anything to go by, audiences are likely to forget that other version ever existed. The guy doesn’t do half-measures.

For Foxx, this is another intriguing pivot. The actor has been on a roll lately, bouncing between prestige dramas, comedies, and the occasional blockbuster. Pairing him with a director known for visceral, practical-action filmmaking suggests Foxx is looking for something with grit. There’s also a certain irony in casting an actor famous for his smooth-talking charisma in a role where survival might depend on silence. But that’s precisely the kind of tension Bhat loves to exploit.

The Amazon backing is a significant vote of confidence. The streaming giant has been aggressive in courting international talent, and snapping up Bhat signals a clear desire to bring his distinct voice to a global audience. For Indian cinema fans, this is a proud moment, but it also raises a question: will Bhat’s signature style - the balletic violence, the grim humor, the unrelenting pace - translate to an American studio system? The answer, at least on paper, is yes. Deadlocked sounds like it was designed for his strengths.

There’s no confirmed release date yet, and production details are still under wraps. But the combination of Bhat, Foxx, and Amazon is enough to generate serious buzz. The elevator premise is a clever hook, and if anyone can turn a stalled lift into two hours of white-knuckle cinema, it’s the guy who made a train full of commandos feel like a haunted house.

For now, we’ll be watching this one closely. A zombie movie with a brain, a director with vision, and a star with range - what’s not to be excited about? Just don’t confuse it with that other Deadlocked from five years ago. Trust us, they’re not in the same universe.

Source: Hindustan Times