Ryan Phillippe is back in action. He’s a bit older, a bit stockier, and more badass than ever in the new trailer for the 2023 movie The Locksmith. It’s the story of a man with a past who just can’t get out of the game and the effects this has on the people he loves.

Getting In Was the Easy Part

     Screen Media

Miller Graham (Ryan Phillippe) is a criminal lock picker who is on a job with his partner Kevin (George Akram). After getting the money, they are about to leave when Kevin is shot by a man in a suit. Miller is shocked and finds himself being arrested and put in prison.

When he gets out, he’s met by his old friend, Frank (Ving Rhames) who sets him up with a job at his locksmith business, gives him a place to stay, and tells him that he’ll get him back on his feet. Miller is eager to see his ex-wife Beth and their daughter Lindsay (Kate Bosworth and Madeline Guilbot), who is now around ten years old. They all seem to get along and in what looks like a sweet scene in a park, his daughter asks him what he’s good at and hints that her mother said he’s the best at picking locks.

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Miller is obviously talented as we see him in the locksmith shop. In front of him on the counter is what looks like a wood stand of six deadbolt locks. There are two columns of three. He hits a button on his watch and quickly begins picking each lock in quick succession. ONE. TWO. THREE. FOUR. FIVE. SIX. Beep! He hits the watch again, checking his time. He’s very fast.

But Miller seems to have unfinished business he wasn’t aware of. He’s approached by a young woman in her twenties. He seems to know her and addresses her as April (Gabriela Quezada). She says “I’m in trouble, Miller.” It turns out that she was Kevin’s girlfriend, and it appears she blames Miller for his death. She tells him her story and how the man she works for won’t let her leave and that he hurts her. We even see bruises on her arms. “And he’s still hurting me,” April explains to Miller that after Kevin died there was nobody to protect her anymore. Miller expresses remorse about bringing Kevin on the job the night he was killed. But April doesn’t see that as an answer. She explains to Miller, “I need money to start a new life. Then you’ll have made it up to me.”

Pulled Back In with Consequences

Miller is remorseful and wants to help April. She points out the house of the man she works for. It is ornate and in a beautifully expensive neighborhood. Miller is going to rob the house.

The problem is that he seems to have told Beth that he’s going to do something. But it turns out that Beth is not only a cop but incredulous about him doing anything. “Are you out of your mind? Another mistake and you’re done!”

Miller doesn’t take her advice and instead breaks into the house wearing a ski mask, picks the lock on an office door, and attempts to steal a bag of cash. He may have been set up because bodyguards appear and after a fight, he is able to get away.

The problem is that the man whose money he stole is trying to get it back. Miller wants to go to the police until the bad guy takes his daughter. Then, as they say, it’s personal. Suddenly, he’s in deep and trying to get to his daughter before the cops, including his ex-wife, get to him.

Ryan Phillippe Leading the Charge

The trailer is clearly for a “bad guy tries to go good” type of action flick. Phillippe has been doing films for years, but this seems like a gritty return to form for a guy who has sporadically starred in some iconic projects like I Know What You Did Last Summer, Cruel Intentions, and the show Shooter. Not to mention being paired with the action hero’s favorite sidekick Ving Rhames. The film promises to be an edge-of-your-seat thrill ride with Phillippe leading a B-list but engaging cast. Bosworth seems right at home playing the ex-wife/cop that cares but is ready to dish out some tough love.

It Could Get People Talking

The film does not look to be the type to win any awards. In fact, Phillippe seems to have chosen a project that will get people talking, but that will not hurt his career if it goes south. These bad-guys-go-good films are often flashes in the pan but depending on the ending it could even be a character that the studio, Screen Media, could revisit with a lesser-known actor at another point. The studio is not known for its hits, having produced Formula 51, John Carpenter’s Ghosts of Mars, and Jeepers Creepers 3. The Locksmith may be a perfectly serviceable thriller, but it will probably not be on any end-of-year must-watch lists.

The Locksmith will be in theaters in limited release, on February 3. It will be up against the major release of M. Night Shyamalan’s Knock at the Cabin.