Once packaged as a Henry Cavill vehicle before the current Man of Steel was forced to bow out due to scheduling conflicts, Simon West’s (The Mechanic) MI6 thriller Stratton is still barrelling down on its 2016 release date, only this time it is Dominic Cooper that takes up arms as the titular agent.
Thanks to AMC’s live-action Preacher series, Cooper’s stock is rising and rising fast, and this time he’s delving into the secretive world of espionage action and biochemical weapons. Loosely based on Duncan Falconer’s novel of the same name, Stratton reads like your typical flick of a one-man-army going up against the odds, pitting Cooper’s Special Boat Service operative – yes, that appears to be a real job title – against a band of unruly terrorists.
Rounding out the casting docket are Gemma Chan, Austin Stowell, Tyler Hoechlin, Tom Felton, Thomas Kretschmann, Derek Jacobi, Connie Nielsen, and Jake Fairbrother. Stratton is yet to pin down a specific release date, though we understand West’s actioner is expected to arrive before the year’s end.
Stratton, a Special Boat Service operative for MI6, and his American counterpart Marty, scope a laboratory complex in Iran in order to intercept deadly biochemical weapons. This most complex of missions goes spectacularly wrong however and in the mayhem Marty is mortally wounded. Stratton knows his trusted friend isn’t going to make it.
Back at base Stratton is summoned by the big boss at MI6. She has received intel that a former Soviet operative – Barovski – has gone rogue. Thought to be dead for the last 20 years, he plans to use deadly chemical weapons stolen from his former paymasters to take revenge. Hot on Barovski’s tail, Stratton and his team are despatched to Rome, including Hank, a US Navy Seal and loyal student of Marty’s from back in the day. Pumped up with hatred for the man who killed his friend, Hank goes all out, blowing the team’s cover and allowing Barovski an opportunity to escape.
On their return to London, Stratton and Hank track down the creator of the bio weapons and force him to reveal all he knows. Once again, however, they find their mission has been compromised; they seem to be taking one step back for every two steps forward.
