Chris Pratt Battles an AI Judge in the New Trailer for Mercy

Amazon MGM Studios has released the first trailer for Mercy, a sci-fi thriller starring Chris Pratt and Rebecca Ferguson, set to hit theaters on January 23, 2026. The film’s premise is tight and suspenseful: a detective (Pratt) wakes up strapped to an execution chair and must convince an advanced AI judge (Ferguson) of his innocence within 90 minutes — or face immediate death.

Directed by Timur Bekmambetov and written by Marco van Belle, Mercy leans heavily into a sleek, oppressive near-future setting where artificial intelligence becomes the ultimate arbiter of justice. The trailer emphasizes claustrophobic tension — the lead character’s desperation, the cold logic of the AI judge, and a race against time.

Rebecca Ferguson plays “Judge Maddox,” and her character’s icy, unyielding presence dominates much of the promotional footage.  The supporting cast includes Annabelle Wallis, Kali Reis, Chris Sullivan, and Kylie Rogers.

What the trailer promises

• A high-tension, minimalist conflict: one man, one judge, one impossible timeframe.

• Visuals that lean into sterile, high-tech environments, emphasizing the power imbalance between human and machine.

• Questions about the nature of justice, accountability, and the dangers of outsourcing moral decisions to algorithms.

• >A sense of inevitability: one wrong move, and the AI may execute judgment without mercy.
  

Mercy is scheduled for release on January 23, 2026, including in IMAX and 3D formats.  With Bekmambetov’s visual flair (known from Wanted and Unfriended), the film aims to blend thriller, sci-fi, and high concept in a streamlined package.

If the trailer is any indication, Mercy could become a talking point in conversations about how far we’ll let machines decide life and death.