ATLANTA — Mark Wahlberg is starring in the historical thriller “By Any Means,” set to begin shooting in metro Atlanta next month.

The movie is based on the true story of a mafia hit man (Wahlberg) hired off the books by Herbert Hoover’s FBI who partners with a young Black special agent (Yahya Abdul-Mateen II) to hunt down the men responsible for the murders of civil rights leaders in Mississippi in 1966.

“By Any Means” is set to begin production April 7 and run through May 15, according to an email sent to members of IATSE 479, which represents most crew members. The home base is Pangaea Studios, which used to be owned by Tyler Perry.

The Newnan Times Herald recently reported that the Newnan City Council rejected the film’s efforts to use the city’s downtown corridor to shoot for two days in mid-April, citing the negative impact it would have on local businesses.

Kyle Henshaw, the film’s location manager, told the council the production company wanted to spend four days in the Newnan area shooting the movie. Closest to the Hole Productions offered $100,000 and pledged to work with local businesses to mitigate any losses.

The council turned down the request, 3-2.

Sterling K. Brown (“This Is Us,” “Paradise”) was originally attached to the project but dropped out over scheduling conflicts, according to Deadline.com. Abdul-Mateen replaced Brown.

Both Wahlberg and Abdul-Mateen have previously worked in Georgia. Wahlberg shot the 2018 comedy “Instant Family” with Rose Byrne (now shooting “The Good Daughter” locally) and the 2023 Apple TV+ action film “The Family Plan” in the area. Abdul-Mateen was in HBO’s “The Watchmen” and 2017’s “Baywatch” reboot film.

Wahlberg’s most recent project was the Mel Gibson-directed film “Flight Risk,” which hit theaters earlier this year and grossed almost $30 million in domestic box office. Abdul-Mateen was last seen in 2023’s “Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom.”

“By Any Means” is part of an uptick in business in Georgia, which has seen a recent flurry of films and TV shows with major stars attached including “The Good Daughter,” Amazon’s ”Judgment Day” with Will Ferrell, ”Madden” with Nicolas Cage, Hulu’s “Murdaugh Murders” with Patricia Arquette and ”Your Mother Your Mother Your Mother” with Mahershala Ali.

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