The new Cliffhanger, with Lily James replacing Stallone, was supposed to be in cinemas this August. Financial trouble means that Neon may step in as its distributor… The behind-the-scenes story of Cliffhanger is turning into a right old saga. After all sorts of personnel changes during its pre-production, there’s now a separate drama as it ... Cliffhanger reboot stuck up mountain; no longer out in August
The new Cliffhanger, with Lily James replacing Stallone, was supposed to be in cinemas this August. Financial trouble means that Neon may step in as its distributor…
The behind-the-scenes story of Cliffhanger is turning into a right old saga. After all sorts of personnel changes during its pre-production, there’s now a separate drama as it sits on the cusp of release.
Directed by Jaume Collet-Serra (Nonstop, Carry-On), Cliffhanger was shot some time ago, and was originally due for release this August. Its debut is now in question, however, with its original distributor, Row K, facing financial trouble.
According to Deadline, the label is now looking around for another company to help shoulder the burden of putting it in cinemas. Although another firm may yet step in, it looks as though Neon will sign the deal; the boutique studio is better known for its off-beat horror stuff, including Oz Perkins’ Longlegs and Steven Soderbergh’s POV chiller, Presence. Cliffhanger would represent a shift into bigger budget action territory for the company.
The knock-on effect of all this deal-making is that Cliffhanger is unlikely to appear in 2026 – word has it that it’ll appear in the first quarter of 2027 instead.
A remake of the 1993 action thriller of the same name, Cliffhanger stars Lily James as an expert mountain climber whose father, played by Pierce Brosnan, is kidnapped from the luxury chalet they run in the Dolomites.
Originally, Sylvester Stallone was set to reprise his role as Gabe Walker, who would have been the kidnapped father. He then backed out over an alleged pay dispute, and the whole project teetered on the brink – original director Ric Roman Waugh also left.
So too did another filmmaker, Jean-Francois Richet. Russell Crowe was attached for a while, then wasn’t. Finally, in came Collet-Serra, Lily James and Brosnan. Filming finally got underway in October 2024.
We’ll bring you more on Cliffhanger’s shifting release date as it comes in.
