# Supermax (film)
**Supermax** is an upcoming American action thriller film directed by [David Gordon Green](https://www.edgepedia.org/david-gordon-green), starring [Will Smith](https://www.edgepedia.org/will-smith) as Rex, one of two FBI agents investigating a seemingly impossible murder inside the world's most secure maximum-security prison.[1](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt37090816/) • [2](https://www.thewrap.com/creative-content/movies/will-smith-amazon-movie-supermax/) [Amazon MGM Studios](https://www.edgepedia.org/amazon-mgm-studios) acquired worldwide rights to the Miramax-produced film for a reported $70 million and will release it directly on Prime Video without a theatrical run.[3](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt37090816/news/)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Plot | Two FBI agents investigate a murder committed inside the impenetrable walls of the world's most secure maximum-security prison[1](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt37090816/) |
| Director / writers | David Gordon Green; screenplay by David Weil and David J. Rosen[2](https://www.thewrap.com/creative-content/movies/will-smith-amazon-movie-supermax/) |
| Lead cast | Will Smith as FBI agent Rex, with AnnaSophia Robb as his partner; Jaafar Jackson, Jason Clarke, and Melissa Leo in supporting roles[1](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt37090816/) • [4](https://nz.news.yahoo.com/nicholas-alexander-chavez-three-others-155500575.html) |
| Rights deal | Amazon MGM acquired worldwide rights from Miramax for $70 million[3](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt37090816/news/) |
| Release | Streaming exclusively on Prime Video; no theatrical release planned[3](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt37090816/news/) |
| Production | Began August 24, 2026 in New South Wales, Australia, with a filming window through November 2026[4](https://nz.news.yahoo.com/nicholas-alexander-chavez-three-others-155500575.html) • [5](https://mande.net/es/production-listings/film/supermax) |
| Production companies | Miramax, The Picture Company, and Westbrook Studios[1](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt37090816/) |
## Premise
The film is described as a "propulsive and twist-laden action thriller" in which two FBI agents are tasked with unraveling a puzzling killing inside a maximum-security prison, a place where such a crime ought never to have happened.[1](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt37090816/) • [2](https://www.thewrap.com/creative-content/movies/will-smith-amazon-movie-supermax/) Smith plays Rex, a determined FBI agent working through what trade coverage has called a deadly puzzle-box mystery alongside his partner, played by [AnnaSophia Robb](https://www.edgepedia.org/annasophia-robb).[2](https://www.thewrap.com/creative-content/movies/will-smith-amazon-movie-supermax/) • [3](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt37090816/news/) Character details for the supporting roles have been kept under wraps.[4](https://nz.news.yahoo.com/nicholas-alexander-chavez-three-others-155500575.html)
## Development and rights deal
**Miramax set up the project** in late 2025. Deadline reported on October 28, 2025 that David Gordon Green was set to helm the thriller for the studio.[6](https://www.miramax.com/news/) The project moved quickly: on May 14, 2026, Deadline reported that Will Smith would star as the FBI agent and that Amazon MGM Studios had closed a deal for worldwide rights to the Miramax project, a purchase reported at $70 million and completed ahead of the Marché du Film that runs alongside the Cannes Film Festival.[3](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt37090816/news/) • [7](https://www.elseptimoarte.net/noticias/actualidad/will-smith-protagonizara-el-thriller-de-accion-supermax-53151.html)
The studio decided against a theatrical release, dropping the film directly on Prime Video on a date yet to be determined.[3](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt37090816/news/) For Smith, the film marks his first non-franchise studio film in years and one of his few recent projects outside an established series.[7](https://www.elseptimoarte.net/noticias/actualidad/will-smith-protagonizara-el-thriller-de-accion-supermax-53151.html) • [8](https://www.comingsoon.net/movies/news/2133179-will-smith-fbi-action-movie-title-first-details-skipping-theaters) Deadline also reported that the film will be the biggest-budget production of Green's directing career.[9](https://efe.com/cultura/2026-05-15/will-smith-supermax/)
## Cast
Smith leads the cast as Rex.[2](https://www.thewrap.com/creative-content/movies/will-smith-amazon-movie-supermax/) AnnaSophia Robb plays the second FBI agent, his partner in the investigation.[4](https://nz.news.yahoo.com/nicholas-alexander-chavez-three-others-155500575.html) In July and August 2026, further casting was announced: [Jaafar Jackson](https://www.edgepedia.org/jaafar-jackson), who played his uncle [Michael Jackson](https://www.edgepedia.org/michael-jackson) in the biopic *Michael*, joined in a role described as pivotal to the central story, followed by [Jason Clarke](https://www.edgepedia.org/jason-clarke) and Melissa Leo.[10](https://www.cinemablend.com/movies/jaafar-jackson-michael-follow-up-will-smith-supermax) • [3](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt37090816/news/)
**Four more cast members** were added as production began on August 24, 2026: [Nicholas Alexander Chavez](https://www.edgepedia.org/nicholas-chavez) (*Monster: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story*), Andrés Almeida (*Bardo: False Chronicle of a Handful of Truths*), Martin Bats Bradford (*Hit Man*), and Erika Ringor (*King Richard*).[4](https://nz.news.yahoo.com/nicholas-alexander-chavez-three-others-155500575.html) IMDb also lists Nathan Phillips, Goran D. Kleut, and Callan Colley among the credited cast.[1](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt37090816/)
## Production
Filming began on August 24, 2026 in [New South Wales](https://www.edgepedia.org/new-south-wales), Australia, with support from the NSW Government through Screen NSW's Made in NSW Fund.[4](https://nz.news.yahoo.com/nicholas-alexander-chavez-three-others-155500575.html) Production listings place the shoot in Sydney, with locations including Cabramatta, the Disney studios at Moore Park, and Marrickville, and a filming window running from August 24 to November 2026.[11](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt37090816/locations/) • [5](https://mande.net/es/production-listings/film/supermax) Amazon MGM Studios marked the start of filming by sharing a video of Smith's first day on set.[3](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt37090816/news/)
The film is produced by Alex Heineman and Andrew Rona of The Picture Company, and by Will Smith and Adam Fishbach for Smith's Westbrook.[2](https://www.thewrap.com/creative-content/movies/will-smith-amazon-movie-supermax/) Writers David Weil and David J. Rosen, known for the television series *Hunters* and *[Invasion](https://www.edgepedia.org/invasion-2021-tv-series)*, serve as executive producers alongside Miramax executives Jonathan Glickman, Alexandra Loewy, Thom Zadra, and Spencer Ela, with Natalie Weil as associate producer.[2](https://www.thewrap.com/creative-content/movies/will-smith-amazon-movie-supermax/)
## Context and other works of the same name
The title has been used by several unrelated projects. In 2007, David Goyer and Justin Marks developed *Super Max*, a [DC Comics](https://www.edgepedia.org/dc-comics) prison-break story in which the [Green Arrow](https://www.edgepedia.org/green-arrow) is wrongly incarcerated in a prison designed for supervillains; that project never reached production.[12](https://www.slashfilm.com/495957/david-goyer-talks-super-max/) In 2009, Sony's Columbia Pictures bought a separate horror spec script titled *Supermax* by Christopher Allen Nelson and Mitch Rouse, about a guard and an inmate surviving a riot in a prison for supernatural criminals.[13](https://www.darkhorizons.com/sony-picks-up-spooky-supermax/) A Brazilian reality-style television series titled *Supermax*, written by Daniel Burman and co-produced with the Globo network, was filmed in Rio de Janeiro and the salt flats of Jujuy, Argentina.[14](https://adfcine.org/supermax-un-desafio-en-las-entranas-del-monstruo/) The 2026 Amazon MGM film is unrelated to all of these.[13](https://www.darkhorizons.com/sony-picks-up-spooky-supermax/)
## References
1. [Supermax, IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt37090816/)
2. [Will Smith to Star in Prison Action Thriller 'Supermax' for Amazon, TheWrap (May 14, 2026)](https://www.thewrap.com/creative-content/movies/will-smith-amazon-movie-supermax/)
3. [Will Smith to Star in Action Thriller 'Supermax,' Amazon MGM Lands Rights in $70 Million Streaming Deal, Deadline via IMDb News](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt37090816/news/)
4. [Nicholas Alexander Chavez & Three Others Join Action Thriller 'Supermax' From Amazon MGM & Miramax As Production Begins, The Hollywood Reporter via Yahoo](https://nz.news.yahoo.com/nicholas-alexander-chavez-three-others-155500575.html)
5. [Supermax production listing, M&E](https://mande.net/es/production-listings/film/supermax)
6. [Miramax News (David Gordon Green Set To Helm Miramax Thriller 'Supermax,' October 28, 2025)](https://www.miramax.com/news/)
7. [Will Smith protagonizará el thriller de acción 'Supermax', El Séptimo Arte (May 14, 2026)](https://www.elseptimoarte.net/noticias/actualidad/will-smith-protagonizara-el-thriller-de-accion-supermax-53151.html)
8. [Will Smith's New Action Movie Is Skipping Theaters, Gets Title & First Details, ComingSoon.net (May 14, 2026)](https://www.comingsoon.net/movies/news/2133179-will-smith-fbi-action-movie-title-first-details-skipping-theaters)
9. [Will Smith protagonizará el thriller de acción 'Supermax', EFE (May 15, 2026)](https://efe.com/cultura/2026-05-15/will-smith-supermax/)
10. [Jaafar Jackson Just Landed His Michael Follow-Up (And Will Smith Is Involved), CinemaBlend (August 3, 2026)](https://www.cinemablend.com/movies/jaafar-jackson-michael-follow-up-will-smith-supermax)
11. [Supermax filming & production, IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt37090816/locations/)
12. [David Goyer Talks Super Max, SlashFilm (April 11, 2007)](https://www.slashfilm.com/495957/david-goyer-talks-super-max/)
13. [Sony Picks Up Spooky "Supermax", Dark Horizons (September 8, 2009)](https://www.darkhorizons.com/sony-picks-up-spooky-supermax/)
14. [SUPERMAX: un desafío en las entrañas del monstruo, ADF (January 29, 2017)](https://adfcine.org/supermax-un-desafio-en-las-entranas-del-monstruo/)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Films and standalone screen works › Individual films by title and year › Crime, thriller, and mystery films (individual works) › 2025–2026 films › Crime, heist, and gangster films*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 19, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Sep 19, 2026; Oct 11, 2026; Oct 15, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*
License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license