First BLACKHAT trailer previews Chris Hemsworth in a taut cybercrime thriller

chris hemsworth blackhat trailer header

Chris Hemsworth hacks the planet in Michael Mann’s Blackhat

Forgive the Hackers reference, but as the newest feature film from Michael Mann in six years Blackhat looks an awful lot like an update of that type of cybercrime cinema. This time around we see Chris Hemsworth pick up the mantle of the criminal hacker called in to save the world, but luckily Mann’s presence seems to add a recognizably-welcome edge to what looks like it could be a pretty taught thriller. Think Hackers crossed with some good ol’ nineties-style political pressure points. There’s even some inside-the-computer digital designs at play to let you know how crazy all the hacking’s going to be (I kid).

Watch the first trailer for Blackhat after the jump.

It’s kind of funny to see this and immediately remember the attempt at a high-brow cybercrime thriller that was Paranoia starring Chris Hemsworth’s brother Liam Hemsworth. Unfortunately, that film fell a little flat, so here’s hoping it was Mann’s missing hand behind the camera that’s going to make Blackhat worth the watch. The trailer doesn’t immediately scream “must-watch,” but it’s the first of what will probably be many before the movie makes its way to theaters January 16, 2015.

Here’s a short official plot synopsis for Blackhat:

Set within the world of global cybercrime, Legendary’s BLACKHAT follows a furloughed convict and his American and Chinese partners as they hunt a high-level cybercrime network from Chicago to Los Angeles to Hong Kong to Jakarta.

Blackhat doesn’t boast the background players Paranoia did, but it does star Chris Hemsworth, John Ortiz, Viola Davis, Ritchie CosterSpencer Garrett, and Jason Butler Harner.