Copshop

Copshop is a 2021 American action thriller film directed by Joe Carnahan and written by Kurt McLeod and Carnahan, based on a story by McLeod and Mark Williams. The film stars Gerard Butler, Frank Grillo, and Alexis Louder, and is set in a small-town police station that becomes the battleground between a hitman, a rookie cop, and a con artist.
Copshop was released in the United Kingdom on September 10, 2021, by STXfilms, and was released in the United States on September 17, 2021, by Open Road Films. It received generally positive reviews from critics.
==Plot==
Con artist and fixer Teddy Murretto is on the run in a stolen unmarked police car, which breaks down not far from a Nevada casino. In the midst of a brawl outside the casino, Murretto sucker-punches rookie police officer Valerie Young so that she will jail him and protect him from his pursuers. One of those pursuers, hitman Bob Viddick, gets himself incarcerated in the same small-town jail by pretending to be drunk and crashing a car into the police car Murretto had abandoned, which was being investigated by two state troopers.
Murretto and Viddick are placed in separate cells, initially thwarting Viddick's plan to kill Murretto. However, Viddick has planted a small incendiary device at the station's entrance and when it ignites and the fire alarm goes off, he takes advantage of the confusion. Viddick beats a drunken man sharing his cell and incapacitates the police sergeant, stealing his gun. He is about to kill Murretto when Young interrupts him and returns him to his cell.
Young, determined to find out the truth, finally gets Murretto to explain his story: he was working for a Nevada casino mob boss and tried to buy off the state's attorney general William Fenton. When Fenton didn't cooperate and was brutally killed, it turned out he had recorded his conversations with Murretto. To save his own skin Murretto agreed to work with the FBI, which lead the mob boss to send hired killers after him.
While Murretto and Viddick trade threats, a new killer enters the police station—Anthony Lamb, a second hitman hired to kill Murretto. Entering the station with a bouquet of balloons as cover, he quickly murders several police officers. Young discovers the carnage and retreats behind bulletproof glass to the holding cells containing Murretto and Viddick. In a hail of bullets, one of Young's own rounds ricochets and hits her in the abdomen. Corrupt police officer Huber, who has been stealing drugs from the evidence locker and has killed the sergeant during Lamb's shooting spree, reveals his betrayal to Young and joins forces with Lamb as they attempt to break through the wall of the holding cells.
Murretto and Viddick appeal to Young for the keys to their cells. Murretto manages to convince Young to hand him the keys with the promise that he will return with a medical kit for her, to the dismay of Viddick. Young releases him to go after Huber and Lamb. Just as two of Young's fellow officers are shot by Lamb after they catch him and Huber trying to break through the wall, Murretto arrives on the scene and attacks Lamb and Huber. In a steam-filled shower room Lamb shoots Huber by mistake while himself being stalked by Murretto. Meanwhile Viddick shows up (having finally convinced Young to release him too), stabs Lamb and offers Murretto the chance to kill Lamb and avenge the death of his ex and son. Murretto instead shoots both Viddick and Lamb. Murretto returns to the battered doors of the holding cells seemingly to check on Young but instead pours gasoline all over the room, intending to light the entire station on fire and leave the scene, revealing his true nature. 
Just as Murretto is about to leave he is confronted by Young, who has meanwhile attended to her gunshot wound. She threatens to put him back in his cell, but Murretto kicks a gasoline bottle and shoots it, lighting the place on fire. Young engages in an intense gunfight with Murretto and is finally about to shoot him, when another corrupt cop (Detective Deena Schier, the investigating officer on the Fenton case) arrives and shoots her instead. Deena is promptly shot by Viddick, who then also shoots Murretto to complete his contract. Viddick then helps Young to safety outside while advising her to “let it go” and then escapes in a police car.
While being taken away by ambulance, Young gets a radio dispatch about a stolen police vehicle from the station. She leaves the paramedics by the wayside, hijacks the ambulance and drives off in pursuit of Viddick, with both singing the same song.
==Cast==
* Gerard Butler as Bob Viddick, a professional hitman
* Frank Grillo as Teddy Murretto, a con artist
* Alexis Louder as Valerie Young, a rookie police officer
* Toby Huss as Anthony Lamb, a psychotic killer with a contract for Murretto's death
* Ryan O'Nan as Huber
* Chad Coleman as Duane Mitchell, a police sergeant
* Kaiwi Lyman-Mersereau as Barnes
==Production==
===Development and casting===
In September 2020, it was announced that Gerard Butler and Frank Grillo would star in the action thriller film Copshop, which would be directed by Joe Carnahan. The screenplay was written by Kurt McLeod, based on a story by McLeod and Mark Williams. It is the first produced screenplay for McLeod, who works as a financial advisor in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. The most recent draft was written by Carnahan. The film was produced by Williams and Tai Duncan through Zero Gravity Management, Warren Goz and Eric Gold through Sculptor Media, Butler and Alan Siegel through their company G-BASE Productions, and Carnahan and Grillo through their company WarParty Films.
In October 2020, Alexis Louder was cast in the third starring role. Later that month, Ryan O'Nan, Kaiwi Lyman-Mersereau and Toby Huss were cast in supporting roles.
===Filming===
Principal photography began in October 2020 at Blackhall Studios in Atlanta, Georgia. Filming also took place in Albuquerque, New Mexico. On October 2, filming was shut down after three crew members tested positive for COVID-19 in the midst of the ongoing pandemic. Filming had resumed by October 5, and had wrapped by November 20.
According to Frank Grillo, director Joe Carnahan's cut of the film was rejected in favor of a different cut which did not include as much of his performance.
==Release==
Copshop was released in the United Kingdom and Ireland on September 10, 2021, by STXfilms and was released in the United States on September 17, 2021, by Open Road Films. Netflix released the film on January 15, 2022 in multiple regions.
==Reception==
===Box office===
, Copshop has grossed $5.2 million in the United States and Canada, and $1.5 million in other territories, for a worldwide total of $6.7 million.
In the United States and Canada, Copshop was released alongside Cry Macho, and was projected to gross around $5 million from 3,005 theaters in opening weekend. The film made $950,000 on its first day and went on to debut to $2.3 million, finishing sixth at the box office. The film dropped 45% to $1.3 million in its second weekend, finishing eighth.
===Critical response===
On Rotten Tomatoes the film has an approval rating of 82% based on 103 reviews, with an average rating of 6.50/10. The website's critics consensus reads: "It doesn't add many new ingredients to the genre, but action fans in the mood for an old-school thriller will be happy to buy what Copshop is selling." On Metacritic it has a weighted average score of 61 out of 100 based on reviews from 22 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews". Audiences surveyed by PostTrak gave the film a 62% positive score, with 39% saying they would definitely recommend it.
Ian Freer of Empire magazine called it "A simple, effective thriller, Copshop doubles down on pulpy, '70s-styled fun. It proffers little that is novel but has enough vim and vigour to compensate."
==References==
==External links==
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Category:2021 action thriller films
Category:American films
Category:American action comedy films
Category:American action thriller films
Category:Film productions suspended due to the COVID-19 pandemic
Category:Films about con artists
Category:Films about contract killing in the United States
Category:Films about police officers
Category:Films directed by Joe Carnahan
Category:Films produced by Joe Carnahan
Category:Films scored by Clinton Shorter
Category:Films set in Nevada
Category:Films shot in Atlanta
Category:Films shot in New Mexico
Category:Films with screenplays by Joe Carnahan
Category:Open Road Films films