Teyonah Parris is set to star opposite Denzel Washington in an untitled thriller from director Christopher McQuarrie. Amazon MGM Studios and United Artists are behind the film.

Scott Barkan and Gregg Zehentner wrote the script. According to the logline, the story follows a former police detective serving a life sentence. After he is diagnosed with terminal brain cancer, he is granted compassionate release with six months to live.

He goes home to the estranged daughter he left behind and meets a grandson he never knew existed. He wants only to make amends and forget his dark past, but that past does not stay buried.

The studios announced the project in October 2026, with Washington starring and McQuarrie directing. McQuarrie is best known for writing and directing the Mission: Impossible films. The thriller is slated to open in theaters on October 1, 2027.

The film’s producers include McQuarrie and Heather McQuarrie, United Artists’ Nick Nesbitt, Joseph Restaino, Reza Moheet, Norman Aladjem, Katia Washington, and Tommy Harper, Deadline reports.

Parris broke out with Marvel’s WandaVision and Netflix’s They Cloned Tyrone. Most recently, she played Charmaine opposite John Cena and Jessica Biel in Apple Original Films’ Matchbox: The Movie. She has also joined Gavin O’Connor‘s upcoming drama Running and is set to star in Don’t Go Gentle.

The role pairs her with one of the most decorated actors of his generation. The father-daughter material at the center of the logline could give both performers room for the kind of intimate, high-stakes dramatic work that tends to travel well into awards season.