An intense thriller with near-reality science fiction awaits in “Mercy,” starring Chris Pratt and Rebecca Ferguson

Science fiction takes inspiration from real life dystopia in Mercy, an action thriller from Unfriended (2015), and Searching (2018) director Timhur Bekmambetov. Mercy utilizes his groundbreaking Screenlife style and format, combined with cutting edge visual technology.

“Mercy is a very intense, thrilling mystery, a new approach to the Screenlife language with a very entertaining, serious, impactful subject,” says Bekmambetov. “I loved this story not just as a Screenlife movie, but as a traditional movie. It involves how we behave and interact with technology.”

Mercy takes place in the not too distant year of 2029, where Detective Chris Raven (Chris Pratt, the Guardians of the Galaxy trilogy, Avengers: Endgame) is accused of murdering his wife, Nicole (Anabelle Wallis, Peaky Blinders TV series). The judge presiding over his case is an artificial intelligence system he once championed, personified as Judge Maddox (Rebecca Ferguson, Dune, the Mission Impossible franchise). Tasked with his own defense, he must prove himself innocent to Maddox, or else face execution.

Chris Pratt was immediately hooked as soon as he received the script for Mercy, and Bekmambetov’s distinct style. “I thought it was an inventive mystery story unlike anything I’d read before, which is saying a lot because I read everything! But this really caught my attention,” Pratt says. “MERCY is a ‘multi-genre’ film — it’s a courtroom drama, a thriller, a mystery, and an action film,” Pratt adds. “And it utilizes Screenlife, a genre curated by Timur. MERCY really takes all of that to the next level.”

Rebecca Ferguson feels as though Mercy takes a magnifying glass into the real world problems that can arise with the increasing reliance on technology. “Mercy highlights the shortcomings in a world where Artificial Intelligence is growing but is still very limited when it comes to actually revealing the truth,” she says. “The problem is that we expect accuracy, and more and more we need to question what the online world is telling us.” Ferguson wishes that it imparts insight onto audiences. “I hope that people do question AI, and humans’ relationship to AI,” says Ferguson. “Artificial Intelligence is a fantastic tool, but it should always be just that — a tool to aid humans, not an alternative to humans. This film highlights, in a narrative sense, some of the ways that relying on AI could go very wrong.”

Producer Robert Amidon is excited for the latest Bekmambetov film with his signature Screenlife style. “Timur Bekmambetov has the biggest passion for the digital world and where it is today,” adds Amidon. “The concept in Mercy aligned with his previous films Missing, Searching, and Profile. And like those, this story that was set in 2029 was grounded in reality while going into different genres.”

Everything is on the line as Mercy is coming to Philippine theaters on January 28, 2026, including IMAX and 3D. Mercy is distributed in the Philippines by Columbia Pictures, local office of Sony Pictures Releasing International. Connect with the hashtag #MercyMovie @columbiapicph

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