Criminal

A CIA agent named Bill Pope is tracking a shadowy hacker known as The Dutchman. During the chase, Pope is killed under mysterious circumstances. In a drastic attempt to salvage the mission, scientists transplant Pope's memories into a dangerous ex convict who has just left prison. Waking inside a stranger's body, Pope relies on his old skills while learning to live with a new identity. He must parse clues, outsmart lethal enemies, and keep pace with a ticking clock as The Dutchman accelerates a global cyber plan. If it succeeds, ICBMs could be launched and World War III could begin, all fueled by memory and motive. The stakes feel personal even as the scale expands.

Directed by Ariel Vromen, Criminal comes from a screenplay by Douglas S Cook and David Weisberg. The film assembles a star ensemble led by Ryan Reynolds, with Kevin Costner, Gary Oldman, Tommy Lee Jones, and Gal Gadot delivering solid support in an action driven thriller that keeps a brisk rhythm.

With a production budget of 31.5 million, the movie grossed about 14.7 million worldwide, underscoring a box office shortfall relative to its cost and the expectations for a high concept memory swap thriller for audiences everywhere.

Critics were mixed, praising the sharp premise and some performances while noting uneven pacing and overloaded plot. The film probes questions of identity and ethics when memory becomes a tool for crime and wartime tactics, showing how a person in a new body wrestles with loyalty and motive and purpose.

The film did not leave a lasting cultural footprint, but its memory swap premise sits among science fiction thrillers that explore how brains and choices intersect. It occasionally surfaces in discussions of brain data and identity in genre storytelling, and fans debate how convincingly the memory transfer is handled.