Netflix is making moves again, this time spending $30 million to buy the rights to a new Dev Patel movie that marks the actor's directorial debut.

　　The movie has already finished filming. Patel plays a character who gets out of prison and seeks revenge for those who wronged him. According to Deadline, the movie screened for potential buyers at a virtual European Film Market event and there was a lot of buzz around it.

　　The report said Netflix outbid other companies, but it did not mention who. Monkey Man is being produced by Joker studio Bron and John Wick company Thunder Road, which add to the appeal.

　　A source who saw footage from Monkey Man told Deadline that the film is like "John Wick in Mumbai." The movie, which was written by Patel with Paul Angunawela and John Collee, is said to be inspired in part by the Hindu myth of Hanuman, a deity that is half man and half monkey.

　　It's also been confirmed that District 9 star Sharlto Copley will appear in Monkey Man, alongside Sobhita Dhulipala (Psycho Raman) and Sikander Kher (24: India). Netflix is reportedly planning to release it in 2022.

　　Patel told Deadline that filming Monkey Man during the pandemic was "quite challenging to say the least."

　　"The opportunity to reimagine stories from my childhood and infuse them with my love of action cinema has been an absolute joy," he said.