Scott Adkins and Lewis Tan are keeping up the action star bromance and together will lead Deadlocked, about a deadly siege in which a group of jurors come under attack.

Pre-production on the pic is has begun, with Tan overseeing the action design in collaboration with a fight choreographer and Roel Reiné (Classified) directing. Collin Armstrong is the writer, with Film Mode Entertainment, Vault Entertainment, Rebel Entertainment and In Tandem Productions all attached. Production is slated for late this year.

Film Mode will introduce the project to buyers at the Cannes Film Festival as it launches worldwide sales.

The plot is based around a routine jury site visit that turns deadly when a mercenary kill team led by Hewitt (Adkins) storms the location in search of a secret ledger detailing citywide corruption. Trapped inside, a disgraced ex-cop-turned-bailiff (Tan) must protect the surviving jurors and battle the attackers outside while exposing a traitor within.

The news comes less than a week after we were first with the news Adkins is making his directorial debut with MMA action pic Brawler, which also stars Tan and is launching in Cannes via Capture.

Melanie DiPietro and Samantha Simon from In Tandem developed the idea for Deadlocked with Reiné and his Rebel banner. All three are producers alongside Craig Baumgarten and Mike Staudt from Vault, and Sean Patrick O’Reilly from Arcana. Clay Epstein of Film Mode serves as executive producer.

Tan is known for playing the lead in the 2021 reboot of Mortal Kombat and has had roles in Deadpool 2, Wu Assassins, Shadow and Bone and Cobra Kai, and he is set to reprise his role as Cole Young in Mortal Kombat II.

Action genre stalwart Adkins is known for the Undisputed franchise, and has had roles in John Wick: Chapter 4, The Expendables 2, and Ip Man 4.