Paper Tiger (2026)

James Gray (We Own the Night, Armageddon Time) returns to the treacherous underworld of New York crime in this gripping, emotionally charged thriller about ambition, family loyalty, and the devastating consequences of misplaced trust. Set in 1986, Paper Tiger stars Miles Teller as Irwin Pearl, an engineer whose plans to enter a lucrative business arrangement with the Russian mob, encouraged by his older brother Gary (Adam Driver), place his wife Hester (Scarlett Johansson) and their two children in mortal danger. Drawing upon the traditions of classical American crime cinema, Gray orchestrates a mounting atmosphere of paranoia and dread, balancing nerve-shredding suspense with an intimate examination of familial relationships under extraordinary pressure. Beneath its genre trappings lies a pointed critique of masculine ambition and the corrosive pursuit of prosperity, set against the shifting economic and political landscape of Reagan-era America. Combining muscular storytelling with his characteristic sensitivity to character and milieu, Gray fashions a richly textured crime drama in which the pursuit of the American Dream threatens to destroy the very family it was meant to sustain.