By Any Means is itself a work of fiction. However, this movie by director Elegance Bratton (The Inspection) and writer Sascha Penn (Power Book III: Raising Kanan) is actually based on a true historical crime story. See, back in the 1960s, numerous civil rights activists were brutally murdered by white supremacists, including by members of the infamous Ku Klux Klan. The FBI couldn’t even the bodies of the slain civil rights activists because no one was cooperating with them either out of fear of the white supremacists, or because they were racists who believed the foul murders to be just. Thus, in order to fight crime, the FBI had to turn to a criminal to help find the bodies: Gregory Scarpa Sr.. And now, we will get to see the movie version of this historical oddity very soon. How soon, you might ask? Well…
Paramount Pictures is proud to present a behind the scenes featurette video for their upcoming historical crime movie By Any Means. This featurette not only gives us a look into what went on during the creation of this movie as well as a bit of a teaser into the movie, but it also tells us when we get to see it as well. This historical crime movie will make its U.S. theatrical debut on September 4, 2026. Alas, tickets are not yet on sale. However, you can find out when they will be available to purchase at Fandango.
Now as for that featurette video? Well, you can watch that either on YouTube, or just look below for that and some more details about By Any Means:
The Unbelievable True Story Behind By Any Means (2026 Movie) – Yahya Abdul-Mateen II, Mark Wahlberg
Synopsis:
Inspired by a true story, a young Black FBI agent (Yahya Abdul-Mateen II) is sent into 1960s Mississippi to investigate a wave of brutal killings targeting civil rights leaders. Forced to work alongside notorious mafia hitman Greg Scarpa (Mark Wahlberg), he finds himself pulled into a deadly hunt where justice and vengeance begin to blur.
When the system is broken, two men divided by everything agree on one thing: the law has limits. They don’t.
By Any Means Telling Little-Known Story of Police x Mafia Teamup to Take Down Racists
Truth be told, I’m not normally a fan of crime movies, let alone historical crime movies. However, By Any Means has caught my interest due to the premise of its story and its basis in real life.
The South in the 1960s was truly a very disturbing and horrific time to be anyone other than a white cishet man. This was especially true if you were a civil rights worker, as the murders of James Chaney, Andrew Goodman, and Michael Schwerner proved. Their murders in 1964 by Mississippi members of the KKK after being stalked and then abducted by those very KKK members are the impetus for this very movie. There was a reason why the FBI had to work with a mafioso find the bodies of the slain. Many reasons, actually, including the fact that the Klansmen worked together with the local sheriffs and police department to carry out the murders.
This makes By Any Means a very interesting retelling of those events, since it features a black FBI agent working alongside that very mafioso. Two sworn enemies teaming up in order to fight racists and Klansmen? Honestly, now that’s a story I can get behind. I’ll definitely be eager to see how this story plays out in theaters. Yes, we already know how this ends, but it’s the journey that will be the interesting part rather than the destination.
What do you all think? Are you eager to see By Any Means in theaters after watching that featurette? Tell us your buddy cop thoughts in the comments section below.
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