EXCLUSIVE: In a bidding war, Netflix has nabbed Trigger Point starring Joel Edgerton (Train Dreams) with a straight-to-series order. The action crime drama, which has been picked up for eight episodes, comes from writer Harrison Query (Heads of State), director Jeremy Saulnier (Rebel Ridge), A24 and producer Joe Hipps (Ozark).
Trigger Point originated as a spec script by Query which, in a seven-way bidding war, landed at A24 in May for Hipps to produce under his deal there and Saulnier to direct. The project was developed internally and Edgerton was attached to star before it was taken out with two scripts written by Query, sparking a heated bidding among at least four buyers. It came down to Netflix and Apple TV and two straight-to-series offers, with the package ultimately going to Netflix.
Trigger Point follows a group of former Tier One Special Forces Operators who sell their elite skills to the criminal underworld behind the front of a private military contracting firm — and the FBI agent who’s hunting for them.
Edgerton will play the lead Red, an ex-Tier One Operator-turned-criminal.
Series creator and writer Query, who will serve as showrunner, and director Saulnier executive produce alongside Hipps via his Cut To company. Cut To’s Patrick McDonald and Katie Giarla executive produce and co-executive produce, respectively.
It’s been an active fall TV market with several big bidding wars resulting in straight-to-series orders. Netflix prevailed in several of them, including for Joshua Zetumer spec Pagans in late September and for Black Hole, based on Charles Burns’ graphic novels, and Rabbit, Rabbit, starring Adam Driver, both in October.
For A24, this is the second straight-to-series order after a bidding war in the past month and a half following legal thriller Discretion starring Nicole Kidman and Elle Fanning, which landed at Paramount+ in the streamer’s first official greenlight since its parent company was acquired by Skydance. That series also is produced by former Fifth Season Head of TV Hipps, who left to join A24 with a producing deal a little over a year ago.
Edgerton is getting strong awards attention for his lead role in Clint Bentley’s Train Dreams, which is set to receive Deadline’s Disruptors Award at the upcoming Sun Valley Film Festival. On TV he recently wrapped production on Season 2 of Apple TV’s Dark Matter, which he stars in and executive produces, for a 2026 premiere. Additionally, he will soon be seen in an IFC movie he produced, The Plague, which premiered at Cannes. Edgerton is repped by WME and Anonymous Content.
In addition to the bidding war for Query’s spec script Trigger Point, there was another one this year for his short story, Code Black, which sold to Amazon for seven figures with him adapting and Jake Gyllenhaal poised to star and produce alongside Matt Reeves’ 6th & Idaho and Scott Glassgold’s 12:01 Films. Query also co-wrote MGM’s Heads of State, starring John Cena and Idris Elba, which was released in July and ranks as the fourth most watched movie on the streamer. Additionally, he co-created and executive produced the upcoming limited series Unspeakable: The Murder of JonBenét Ramsey starring Melissa McCarthy and Clive Owen from 101 Studios for Paramount+. He is is repped by CAA, Ground Control and Jeff Frankel at Mckuin Frankel Whitehead.
At A24, Saulnier also has in the works October, a genre film starring Cory Michael Smith, Chase Sui Wonders, Sophie Wilde, Young Mazino, Stephen Root and James Badge Dale. He most recently wrote, directed and produced Netflix’s action thriller Rebel Ridge. Saulnier, whose credits include Green Room and Blue Ruin, is repped by CAA, Untitled and Andre Des Rochers.
