At long last, S. Craig Zahler will return to the director’s chair for the first time since 2018.
READ MORE: Theo James Joins S. Craig Zahler’s ‘The Bookie & The Bruiser,’ Replacing Adrien Brody
Toronto.com reports that Zahler will begin shooting “The Bookie And The Bruiser,” a mafia crime movie starring Vince Vaughn and Theo James, in Toronto starting on April 1. Cast and crew are scheduled to be in T-Dot through May 21, so it’s an eight-week shoot for the project. It’s Zahler’s first narrative feature since “Dragged Across Concrete,” also starring Vaughn; the pair also worked together on 2017’s “Brawl In Cell Block 99.”
And from the sound of things, Vaughn’s role in “The Booker And The Bruiser” will be as hard-hitting as the one he had in that one. Set in 1959 NYC, Zahler’s latest stars James and Vaughn as a Jewish WWII veteran and an “oversized Italian-American though” who “partner up in an illicit gambling operation,” — a gig that soon attracts the attention of the Irish gang and the mafia. Vaughn plays the heavy, with James as the brains of the operation. Adrien Brody was originally cast in James’ part before dropping out due to scheduling conflicts.
While Zahler hasn’t directed anything since “Dragged Across Concrete,” he’s remained busy in the industry since then. “Frontier Crucible,” a Western that Zahler wrote and was an Armie Hammer comeback vehicle, was released last year. Another Zahler script, “Empire City,” will shoot this year. That one, a hostage thriller set in NYC, stars Hayley Atwell and Gerard Butler, and should reach audiences around the same time as “The Bookie And The Bruiser.”
Other upcoming projects for Vaughn include “Animal Friends” and a new season of “Bad Monkey” for Apple TV+. “Mike & Nick & Nick & Alice“ just premiered at SXSW 2026 and will premiere on Hulu tomorrow.
As for James, he’s in theaters next with the UK thriller “Fuze“ on April 24. “The Gentlemen” Season 2 will also premiere on Netflix later this year.
As for when “The Bookie And The Bruiser” will reach audiences, expect it sometime in 2027.
