Fresh from his Transformers gig, Mark Wahlberg could be about to star in Netflix thriller Triple Frontier. The movie centers upon the border between Brazil, Paraguay and Argentina where the Iguazu and Parana rivers cross, hence the title. This location is no stranger to on-screen drama, having appeared in the likes of Miami Vice and NCIS.

It would be fair to say that Triple Frontier has not had a smooth ride. Originally a property at Paramount Studios, the movie flirted dangerously close to development hell when original lead actors Channing Tatum and Tom Hardy had a disagreement over the creative direction and a script re-write was performed by director JC Chandor. After losing Tatum and Hardy, and with a number of other factors in play, Paramount put the brakes on Triple Frontier. Happily, Netflix came in to save the day and cast Ben Affleck in a lead role, only for the movie's curse to strike again as Affleck stepped down to focus on his personal life.

Once again however, it seems as if Triple Frontier has life in it yet as Deadline is reporting that Wahlberg is being lined up to replace Affleck, and he could be joined by a host of other big names - including, Charlie Hunnam (Sons of Anarchy), Pedro Pascal (Narcos) and Garrett Hedlund (Pan). If everything goes smoothly, this news could put Triple Frontier in position to finally start production in August.

Pedro Pascal standing at a board in Narcos

If this casting news come to fruition, you have to imagine that Wahlberg would be an ideal replacement for Affleck. The actor has the genre down to a fine art, thanks to turns in Deepwater Horizon and Patriots Day, and he arguably has ever more pulling power with audiences than Affleck right now. The other names in the mix also make for impressive reading - and if Netflix has its way, they will have assembled a star-studded cast for a production that once looked dead in the water.

There are plenty of examples in cinematic history where a troubled behind-the-scenes production has leaked into the movie itself, leading to a disjointed script or underwhelming performances. Hence, there may undoubtedly be a small air of skepticism surrounding Triple Frontier, due to the script re-writes and numerous last-minute actor changes.

However there are also a host of instances where, against all odds, a film that initially struggled to get off the ground becomes a huge hit - and given that Triple Frontier seems to be staunchly refusing to die, it would take a brave soul to bet against it, particularly if Wahlberg and company come aboard.

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Triple Frontier is expected to be released in 2019. More news when it arrives.

Source: Deadline