Chris Pratt gambles everything on AI judge in 90-minute trial thriller

Amazon MGM Studios introduced on December 9, 2025, the second theatrical trailer for “Mercy,” starring Chris Pratt as a Los Angeles detective combating to show his innocence earlier than a synthetic intelligence choose. The science fiction thriller arrives in theaters on January 23, 2026, with IMAX and 3D shows marking Amazon’s continued funding in theatrical content material that later drives Prime Video promoting alternatives.

The movie positions Pratt as Detective Raymond, a Los Angeles Police Division officer accused of murdering his spouse. In accordance with the trailer supplies and plot synopsis, the detective has precisely 90 minutes to show his innocence to Choose Maddox, a complicated AI judicial system he beforehand championed. Rebecca Ferguson performs the AI choose figuring out Raymond’s destiny throughout the compressed time window.

Director Timur Bekmambetov helmed the manufacturing from a screenplay by Marco van Belle. The forged contains Annabelle Wallis as Raymond’s spouse, Kylie Rogers as his daughter Britt, together with Kali Reis, Chris Sullivan, Kenneth Choi, Rafi Gavron, and Jeff Pierre in supporting roles. Manufacturing corporations Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, Atlas Leisure, and Bazelevs Firm collaborated on the 100-minute function, with Charles Roven, Robert Amidon, Bekmambetov, and Majd Nassif serving as producers.

Principal images started on April 18, 2024, in Los Angeles, with Khalid Mohtaseb dealing with cinematography. Pratt suffered an ankle damage on the fourth day of filming, posting documentation of a swollen ankle to social media. Manufacturing wrapped on Could 23, 2024, in keeping with statements from editor Lam T. Nguyen.

The theatrical technique displays Amazon MGM Studios’ dual-platform strategy to content material distribution. Amazon announced eight fall films throughout Prime Video and theatrical releases in August 2025, demonstrating how theatrical advertising and marketing campaigns drive model consciousness whereas streaming releases allow exact viewers focusing on via Amazon’s promoting know-how. Theatrical content material that later transitions to Prime Video creates a number of promoting touchpoints all through the content material lifecycle, maximizing return on manufacturing funding whereas offering various stock sorts for advertiser focusing on necessities.

Prime Video launched ads in January 2024, creating substantial new stock for entrepreneurs whereas creating measurement instruments to quantify marketing campaign affect. The platform reached greater than 200 million prospects worldwide in keeping with Amazon’s bulletins. CEO Andy Jassy acknowledged throughout earnings discussions that the corporate felt fairly happy with early promoting progress. The third quarter 2025 advertising revenue reached $17.7 billion, representing 22% year-over-year progress.

The January 23 launch date positions “Mercy” strategically throughout the first quarter theatrical calendar. The movie initially carried an August 15, 2025, launch date earlier than Amazon shifted the launch to January 2026, in keeping with bulletins from January 25, 2025. IMAX Company included “Mercy” in its October 2025 investor presentation, confirming the premium large-format exhibition technique. Sony Photos Releasing Worldwide handles distribution exterior america.

The narrative premise facilities on a near-future Los Angeles in 2029, the place synthetic intelligence techniques have assumed judicial duties. The compressed 90-minute timeframe creates narrative urgency as Raymond argues his case earlier than the AI system. The irony of a detective dealing with judgment from know-how he beforehand supported varieties the core dramatic pressure. Trailer footage exhibits motion sequences, courtroom confrontations, and flashback components revealing the connection between Raymond and his spouse.

The advertising and marketing emphasizes each theatrical spectacle and technological themes. Promotional supplies spotlight the IMAX presentation and 3D availability, focusing on audiences in search of premium viewing experiences. The tagline “AI is the way forward for legal justice, and it is nearer than you suppose” positions the movie inside up to date discussions about synthetic intelligence deployment in authorities techniques. The December 9 trailer launch generated 17.7 million views inside its first weeks, in keeping with YouTube metrics.

Trade observers famous the second trailer demonstrates stronger narrative development in comparison with the preliminary promotional supplies launched earlier. YouTube feedback highlighted that the December trailer reveals much less plot data whereas sustaining viewers curiosity, avoiding the widespread pitfall of displaying extreme story beats in chronological order. The promotional technique suggests Amazon realized from preliminary viewers suggestions, refining the advertising and marketing strategy for optimum theatrical affect.

The movie’s themes intersect with present debates about AI implementation in legal justice techniques. Whereas “Mercy” presents a fictional 2029 situation, discussions about AI-assisted authorized selections, predictive policing algorithms, and automatic sentencing suggestions happen actively inside coverage circles. The leisure product permits Amazon to interact audiences on these matters whereas producing content material that may ultimately feed Prime Video’s promoting stock.

Amazon’s streaming promoting infrastructure has expanded considerably all through 2025. Prime Video viewership signals launched in Amazon Marketing Cloud on November 11, 2025, introducing content material engagement information that permits advertisers to investigate viewing patterns throughout the platform’s catalog. The mixing supplies three main information sorts: content material title data, content material kind classification, and show-level engagement metrics. These measurement capabilities permit advertisers to look at relationships between streaming consumption and buy patterns, investigating whether or not particular content material genres correlate with purchasing behaviors.

The theatrical-to-streaming pipeline issues for advertising and marketing professionals as a result of it demonstrates how content material studios now optimize productions for a number of income streams and promoting contexts. Theatrical releases generate consciousness via conventional advertising and marketing channels together with tv spots, outside promoting, and social media campaigns. Field workplace efficiency supplies preliminary income whereas establishing model recognition. Subsequent streaming availability on Prime Video creates promoting stock that may be exactly focused utilizing Amazon’s first-party retail information, streaming viewership data, and geographic alerts.

Sensible tv residence screens have emerged as vital discovery surfaces for theatrical releases. Research released December 17, 2025, from LG Ad Solutions demonstrates that 96% of moviegoers discover promotions on their TV residence screens, essentially reshaping how studios allocate advertising and marketing budgets throughout the leisure lifecycle. Tv ads emerged because the dominant discovery channel for brand spanking new films, with 79% of respondents citing TV adverts as a supply for studying about upcoming releases. Amongst viewers who noticed residence display screen ads, 33% attended a theatrical screening after publicity to the promotion.

The promoting infrastructure supporting theatrical releases and subsequent streaming availability has grown more and more refined. Amazon enabled zip code-level ad targeting for Prime Video on October 31, 2025, permitting advertisers to customise nationwide TV commercials with native pricing and particulars throughout hundreds of zip codes. Nationwide advertisers can create hundreds of variations based mostly on zip codes or tens of variations by state, addressing the problem the place nationwide campaigns battle to speak native worth propositions successfully.

Linked tv promoting capabilities prolong past primary geographic focusing on. Interactive video codecs arrived on Prime Video in Could 2024, introducing pause adverts, model trivia adverts, and remote-activated purchasing capabilities. Analysis from Amazon Adverts indicated a 10x enhance in product web page views and conversions for manufacturers utilizing interactive codecs in comparison with conventional streaming tv ads. These measurement capabilities matter as a result of they reveal how streaming platforms use AI to take care of viewer consideration and cut back friction in content material consumption, immediately impacting promoting effectiveness on platforms serving business stock.

The movie arrives throughout vital transformation in promoting know-how infrastructure. Programmatic promoting progress reached 72% in 2025, with linked tv’s share of media budgets projected to double from 14% in 2023 to twenty-eight% in 2025, in keeping with trade projections. This fast growth creates operational complexity requiring refined know-how options for marketing campaign administration and measurement. Amazon consolidated its advertising platforms in December 2025, merging the Amazon DSP and Adverts Console into unified Marketing campaign Supervisor that essentially reshaped how advertisers work together with the platform.

Synthetic intelligence themes in leisure content material create pure alignment with AI-powered promoting infrastructure. Amazon expanded Creative Agent capabilities to assist Streaming TV and Sponsored TV promoting codecs on November 11, 2025. The agentic synthetic intelligence software permits professional-quality video asset creation via pure dialog, addressing inventive limitations that sometimes require weeks of manufacturing work and hundreds of {dollars} in company charges. The underlying video evaluation and enhancing applied sciences share widespread foundations with AI-powered content material options Amazon has deployed throughout its streaming infrastructure.

The advertising and marketing marketing campaign for “Mercy” demonstrates how studios navigate the steadiness between theatrical exclusivity and streaming availability. Theatrical home windows historically supplied studios with sequential income streams: theaters first, then premium video on demand, adopted by subscription streaming platforms. Amazon’s twin position as theatrical distributor and streaming platform proprietor creates totally different incentive constructions. The corporate advantages from theatrical field workplace efficiency whereas additionally capturing subsequent streaming viewership and promoting income when the title arrives on Prime Video.

Premium content material that includes established expertise instructions greater promoting charges. Chris Pratt’s participation supplies advertising and marketing worth each for theatrical releases and subsequent streaming availability. The actor’s earlier work in main franchises together with “Guardians of the Galaxy” and “Jurassic World” established viewers recognition. Rebecca Ferguson brings credentials from the “Mission: Not possible” and “Dune” franchises, whereas director Timur Bekmambetov’s filmography contains “Wished,” “Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter,” and the Russian “Night time Watch” sequence.

The compressed trial format creates structural benefits for streaming consumption. A 100-minute runtime with a 90-minute narrative deadline maintains pacing applicable for residence viewing. The courtroom setting with flashback sequences supplies pure break factors for interrupted viewing periods whereas sustaining coherent narrative movement. These manufacturing selections mirror consciousness that content material more and more serves each theatrical and streaming consumption patterns.

Amazon’s fall 2025 entertainment slate featured high-profile administrators and established expertise designed to draw premium promoting partnerships. The content material technique encompassed a number of genres focusing on totally different viewers segments, from action-thrillers to romantic comedies and documentaries. Documentary content material supplies focused promoting placement alternatives for manufacturers in search of engaged grownup audiences, whereas motion content material delivers totally different demographic compositions and viewing contexts.

The science fiction style supplies specific worth for streaming promoting stock. Style audiences reveal excessive engagement charges with franchise content material and streaming platforms. Science fiction titles generate dialogue on social media platforms, extending advertising and marketing attain past paid promoting via natural dialog. The AI judicial system premise gives differentiation throughout the crime thriller class whereas addressing matters producing mainstream media protection about synthetic intelligence implementation in authorities techniques.

Manufacturing timing demonstrates Amazon MGM Studios’ long-term content material planning. Pictures starting in April 2024 for a January 2026 launch supplies roughly 21 months from manufacturing begin to theatrical availability. This timeline accommodates in depth post-production work for visible results, sound design, and editorial refinement whereas leaving house for advertising and marketing marketing campaign growth. The trailer launch on December 9, 2025, supplies 45 days of theatrical advertising and marketing runway earlier than the January 23 launch.

The IMAX presentation technique targets premium theatrical audiences keen to pay greater ticket costs for enhanced viewing experiences. IMAX screens sometimes command ticket value premiums of a number of {dollars} above customary theatrical shows, enhancing per-screen income averages. The 3D availability extends exhibition choices, although 3D shows have declined in recognition in comparison with peak years within the early 2010s. The format stays viable for sure content material sorts, significantly science fiction and motion movies the place visible spectacle justifies the presentation technique.

Amazon operates at a $69 billion annual promoting income run charge as of the fourth quarter of 2024, greater than doubling from $29 billion 4 years earlier in keeping with monetary disclosures. This progress trajectory demonstrates how the corporate remodeled from primarily an e-commerce platform to a complete media and promoting firm. Content material funding helps promoting income progress whereas offering aggressive differentiation within the streaming market, positioning Amazon to seize growing promoting budgets shifting from conventional tv to streaming platforms.

The theatrical launch supplies extra advantages past field workplace income. Vital reception and viewers word-of-mouth established throughout theatrical runs affect subsequent streaming efficiency. Movies that underperform theatrically might battle to draw streaming audiences, whereas theatrical success creates momentum that carries via the content material lifecycle. The advertising and marketing publicity generated by theatrical releases creates consciousness that interprets to streaming discovery when titles turn into accessible on Prime Video.

Trade analysts be aware that Amazon’s place as each content material creator and promoting platform proprietor creates distinctive benefits unavailable to conventional studios or standalone streaming providers. The corporate’s e-commerce infrastructure supplies purchasing habits insights that inform promoting methods throughout Prime Video stock. First-party information integration distinguishes Amazon’s promoting capabilities from competing streaming platforms that lack equal retail transaction information. This integration permits advertisers to look at relationships between content material viewing and buy habits, offering measurement capabilities that justify premium promoting charges.

The movie’s exploration of AI-powered judicial techniques arrives as promoting platforms deploy more and more refined AI instruments for marketing campaign administration and optimization. The thematic alignment between content material and promoting infrastructure creates pure advertising and marketing alternatives. Manufacturers creating AI services or products might discover specific worth in promoting adjacency to content material exploring AI implementation challenges and societal implications. The narrative pressure between human judgment and algorithmic decision-making mirrors debates occurring inside promoting know-how about automation versus human oversight.

“Mercy” represents a take a look at case for Amazon MGM Studios’ theatrical dedication following the Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer acquisition. The manufacturing funds, whereas undisclosed, possible reached substantial ranges given the forged, director, manufacturing corporations concerned, and IMAX presentation necessities. Field workplace efficiency will affect future theatrical funding selections as Amazon evaluates whether or not theatrical releases justify their prices in comparison with streaming-exclusive productions that ship promoting stock with out theatrical distribution bills.

The January launch date positions the movie exterior the crowded summer time and vacation theatrical home windows whereas avoiding direct competitors with main franchise releases. The primary quarter sometimes sees fewer main releases in comparison with peak seasons, doubtlessly offering “Mercy” with diminished competitors for viewers consideration and display screen availability. Nevertheless, January additionally experiences decrease general theatrical attendance in comparison with summer time months, creating tradeoffs between competitors ranges and whole accessible viewers.

Timeline

• January 25, 2024: Amazon MGM Studios announces “Mercy” with Chris Pratt starring in science fiction thriller directed by Timur Bekmambetov
• March 4, 2024: Rebecca Ferguson joins forged in undisclosed position reverse Chris Pratt
• April 18, 2024: Principal images begins in Los Angeles with Khalid Mohtaseb as cinematographer
• April 22, 2024: Chris Pratt suffers ankle damage on day 4 of filming, posts picture to social media
• Could 23, 2024: Manufacturing wraps after 5 weeks of filming
• August 1, 2024: Amazon introduces programmatic guaranteed deals for Prime Video promoting stock
• January 2024: Prime Video launches advertising tier reaching estimated 115 million month-to-month viewers in United States
• January 25, 2025: Amazon shifts launch date from August 15, 2025, to January 23, 2026
• October 2025: IMAX Company contains “Mercy” in investor presentation confirming premium format
• November 11, 2025: Amazon Marketing Cloud launches Prime Video viewership signals enabling content material engagement evaluation
• December 9, 2025: Amazon MGM Studios releases second theatrical trailer producing 17.7 million YouTube views
• January 23, 2026: “Mercy” releases completely in theaters with IMAX and 3D shows

Abstract

Who: Amazon MGM Studios produces “Mercy” starring Chris Pratt as Detective Raymond and Rebecca Ferguson as AI Choose Maddox, with director Timur Bekmambetov, author Marco van Belle, and producers Charles Roven, Robert Amidon, Bekmambetov, and Majd Nassif. The forged contains Annabelle Wallis, Kylie Rogers, Kali Reis, Chris Sullivan, Kenneth Choi, Rafi Gavron, and Jeff Pierre. The movie targets theatrical audiences in search of premium viewing experiences earlier than transitioning to Prime Video’s advertising-supported streaming platform.

What: A 100-minute science fiction thriller set in 2029 Los Angeles the place Detective Raymond stands trial accused of murdering his spouse, with 90 minutes to show his innocence to a complicated AI choose he beforehand championed. The manufacturing options IMAX and 3D shows, emphasizing visible spectacle whereas exploring themes of synthetic intelligence in legal justice techniques. Sony Photos Releasing Worldwide handles distribution exterior america, whereas Amazon MGM Studios manages home theatrical launch earlier than eventual Prime Video availability.

When: Introduced January 25, 2024, with principal images occurring April 18 via Could 23, 2024, in Los Angeles. Initially scheduled for August 15, 2025, theatrical launch, Amazon shifted the date to January 23, 2026, offering prolonged post-production time and positioning the movie exterior crowded summer time competitors. The second theatrical trailer arrived December 9, 2025, starting the 45-day advertising and marketing marketing campaign earlier than theatrical launch.

The place: Theatrical launch happens in america via Amazon MGM Studios on January 23, 2026, with worldwide distribution through Sony Photos Releasing Worldwide. IMAX and 3D shows present premium exhibition choices throughout collaborating theaters. Manufacturing happened in Los Angeles throughout spring 2024, with the narrative set in 2029 Los Angeles that includes courtroom scenes and concrete motion sequences. The movie will subsequently arrive on Prime Video’s advertising-supported streaming platform, although particular streaming availability dates stay unannounced.

Why: Amazon MGM Studios pursues dual-platform content material technique the place theatrical releases generate consciousness and field workplace income earlier than transitioning to Prime Video to create promoting stock. The strategy maximizes content material return on funding whereas offering a number of promoting touchpoints all through the content material lifecycle. Theatrical advertising and marketing drives model recognition, whereas streaming availability permits exact viewers focusing on via Amazon’s promoting know-how integrating retail information, streaming viewership, and geographic alerts. The technique positions Amazon to seize promoting budgets shifting from conventional tv to streaming platforms, supporting the corporate’s transformation right into a complete media and promoting firm working at roughly $70 billion annual promoting income.