See First Images from Karen Gillan, Michelle Yeoh, Angela Bassett Assassin Thriller Gunpowder Milkshake

Even by Hollywood standards that give us action movie titles like Atomic Blonde, Gunpowder Milkshake does feel like it was assembled via some kind of random word generator, does it not? We could spend hours theorizing about how one might actually work the phrase “gunpowder milkshake” into a winking piece of dialog, but let’s just move on instead and take a gander at the first photos from star Karen Gillan’s (Avengers: Endgame) upcoming assassin thriller. It certainly feels like part of the modern “assassin movie” lineage that also includes the likes of John Wick in particular, even if the photo above is giving us more “Ryan Gosling in Drive” vibes.

Directed by Navot Papushado, Gunpowder Milkshake stars Gillan as Sam, the daughter of an international assassin portrayed by Lena Headey of Game of Thrones fame. When her mother disappears when Sam is 12, Gillan’s character is raised by The Firm, a crime syndicate/cartel, where she becomes a skilled assassin. Years later, she must then reconnect with her mother and her team “The Librarians” after going rogue with an 8-year-old girl (Chloe Coleman). If that sounds like a familiar plot structure, it’s because you’ve seen roughly a dozen similar films, including Cathy Yan’s 2020 Birds of Prey.

Still, Gunpowder Milkshake stands out especially for its cast, and not just for its title. In addition to Gillan and Headey, the film stars Michelle Yeoh, Angela Bassett and Carla Gugino as the three “Librarians,” in addition to supporting turns from Paul Giamatti, Ralph Ineson and Freya Allan. That’s a pretty bang-up lineup for an action movie, which is intended to be released with an as-yet-unknown date in 2021 by Studiocanal.

Check out the photo of Gillan above, and the trifecta of Yeoh, Bassett and Gugino below—we especially enjoy the pixie-like posture of Gugino on the right. Keep an eye out here for further news on Gunpowder Milkshake.