Sam Worthington to Play Hostage Negotiator in Action Thriller 'Counterplay'

Blue Fox is selling the film — to be shot in the Philippines — at the European Film Market in Berlin.

Sam Worthington is set to take the lead in Counterplay, the upcoming action thriller that also marks the first international film produced by the newly established MAM Media, in association with BlackOps Studio.

Formerly known as Escape, the film sees the Avatar star play John Craig, a retired kidnap and ransom hostage negotiator who comes out of retirement to take on one last job. The daunting task is to help a young man, played by up-and-coming actor/musician Alex Diaz, who has been wrongly accused of trafficking drugs to escape and return to his home and family in Australia.

Blue Fox Entertainment is handling international sales of the film — due to shoot this August in Manila, the Philippines — and will introduce the project to buyers at the European Film Market in Berlin.

"This is a great character-driven action thriller, with an iconic lead role that is perfect for Sam Worthington, and we’re very excited to be working with a great team of filmmakers on this project," said James Huntsman of Blue Fox.

The team producing Counterplay is led by Scott Rosenfelt (Home Alone, Mystic Pizza), along with Michael McDermott of MAM Media. Andy Green of Fusion Pictures will be serving as executive producer.