Joel Edgerton Ignites Streaming Feud in Netflix’s ‘Trigger Point’ Power Play

Olivia Bennett, 11/22/2025Netflix's acquisition of *Trigger Point* ignites a fierce streaming battle, featuring Joel Edgerton in a high-stakes drama from A24. This bold move redefines industry dynamics, showcasing ambition and creativity in the face of a competitive landscape. Can it deliver substance alongside spectacle?

Somewhere between industry chess and a well-heeled barroom brawl, a reported “seven-way bidding war” broke out over this blood-and-bravado drama. Netflix slipped in with the panache of a card shark who knows exactly when to show his hand. The prize? Eight episodes of pure adrenaline, scripted by Harrison Query—whose name, for those not glued to tracking development slates, is currently echoing around all the right circles thanks to *Heads of State* and a JonBenét Ramsey project that’s set Twitter abuzz any time the words ‘true crime’ are mentioned.

Then again, perhaps this brawl was inevitable. A24’s fingerprints are everywhere, their rise from indie darling to prestige puppeteer now impossible to ignore. What began a handful of years back as a scrappy outfit screening midnight movies has mutated—evolved?—into a tastemaker peddling both Oscar dreams and must-stream electricity. Just glance at their 2025 slate to spot the whiplash: *Beef* demolishing comedy tropes, *Hazbin Hotel* serving chaos on Prime Video, and now, *Trigger Point*—an action series with enough testosterone to make old-school network execs clutch their pearls.

What’s striking, perhaps above all, is the casting coup. Joel Edgerton, that rare leading man who seems allergic to being typecast, continues his tour-de-force across every eligible red carpet. He’s been raking in accolades for *Train Dreams* (a performance so understated it’s nearly a magic trick), has his Apple TV follow-up on deck with *Dark Matter* Season 2, and rumor has it Cannes will see him smoldering in *The Plague*. Blink and Edgerton’s probably just inked another exclusivity clause, making his reps’ annual bonuses look like lottery payouts. There is, it must be said, a certain poetry in Netflix claiming him for *Trigger Point*—a move that, for those keeping score, Apple TV probably feels in their bones.

So, what is *Trigger Point* actually promising beneath all this fanfare? Think high-octane set pieces laced with suspicion, betrayal, and a dose of existential dread. Edgerton’s Red—yes, a name practically designed for tabloid headlines—anchors a crew of ex-tier one operators selling their talents to anyone with enough zeros in their bank account. The criminal underworld wears a bespoke suit in this story, with law enforcement forever one move behind (or is it ahead? Saulnier, after all, is directing, and nothing is ever quite as it seems in his hands). Jeremy Saulnier, for those who appreciate their thrillers soaked in atmosphere, brings a track record that all but guarantees tension will hang thicker than last night’s Chanel No. 5 at a Beverly Hills afterparty.

While the press releases drop their usual platitudes—A24’s “commitment to bold storytelling,” Netflix’s “global vision,” and other well-polished gems—the real action, everyone knows, is in the decision-making rooms. Netflix’s straight-to-series order, bypassing the tired “pilot purgatory” trap, signals not just the value it saw but a genuine hunger to stay at the top of the streaming food chain. No more tiptoeing around “development hell”—here’s a project with gasoline in its veins and a guarantee of delivery. In the shifting terrain of post-pandemic Hollywood, maybe that’s become the real currency.

It’s tempting, almost, to ask whether all this spectacle spells true substance. The industry has been burned before—think splashy press, glossy casts, and final products that fizzled by episode three. Yet A24, with its recent TV forays, has earned enough goodwill to merit cautious optimism. Add Query’s penchant for narrative edge (and, just as crucial, his showrunner’s eye) and Saulnier’s flair for genre fusion, and suddenly “just another heist drama” doesn’t seem an apt description. No, if the buzz holds, *Trigger Point* could mark a pivot—a fusion of character complexity and explosive stakes that Hollywood so often promises but rarely delivers.

On second thought, maybe the real drama isn’t even on-screen. Industry chatter is already framing this deal as a shot across the bows—A24 flexing past its indie phase, Netflix flashing its checkbook and creative muscle, the rest left to play catch-up. The phrase “content arms race” gets thrown around a lot, sometimes with a hint of exhaustion, yet there’s a freshness to this battle. Disney, once the town’s big, brash spender, has retreated to safer, sequel-laden grounds post-pandemic. Meanwhile, Netflix and A24 are betting big, not just on scripts, but on the very concept of what prestige can be in an algorithm-driven world.

So pour a glass, as the saying goes, of whatever passes for celebratory in 2025 (biodynamic orange wine? An oat milk cortado spiked with optimism?). Whether *Trigger Point* lives up to its neon-lit promise remains to be seen; Hollywood, after all, loves to fatten a project with anticipation. But for now, among all the suits, scripts, and shifting powerlines, it’s hard to argue: the real fireworks may be happening off-camera. In an industry always addicted to reinvention, this latest move reminds everyone—perhaps even those still clinging to their DVD box sets in storage—that sometimes the spectacle is as potent as the story.

There’s hardly a week when the streaming world doesn’t throw another headline into Hollywood’s ever-bubbling cauldron, but every so often, someone manages to upend the pot entirely. Enter Netflix’s acquisition of *Trigger Point*—the kind of play that has Apple, Amazon, and the rest of the digital dignitaries reaching for the antacids. In the tail end of 2024, if one thing is clear, it’s this: the streaming wars haven’t merely reignited; they’re ablaze, and Netflix seems intent on pouring gasoline straight from the bottle.Somewhere between industry chess and a well-heeled barroom brawl, a reported “seven-way bidding war” broke out over this blood-and-bravado drama. Netflix slipped in with the panache of a card shark who knows exactly when to show his hand. The prize? Eight episodes of pure adrenaline, scripted by Harrison Query—whose name, for those not glued to tracking development slates, is currently echoing around all the right circles thanks to *Heads of State* and a JonBenét Ramsey project that’s set Twitter abuzz any time the words ‘true crime’ are mentioned.Then again, perhaps this brawl was inevitable. A24’s fingerprints are everywhere, their rise from indie darling to prestige puppeteer now impossible to ignore. What began a handful of years back as a scrappy outfit screening midnight movies has mutated—evolved?—into a tastemaker peddling both Oscar dreams and must-stream electricity. Just glance at their 2025 slate to spot the whiplash: *Beef* demolishing comedy tropes, *Hazbin Hotel* serving chaos on Prime Video, and now, *Trigger Point*—an action series with enough testosterone to make old-school network execs clutch their pearls.What’s striking, perhaps above all, is the casting coup. Joel Edgerton, that rare leading man who seems allergic to being typecast, continues his tour-de-force across every eligible red carpet. He’s been raking in accolades for *Train Dreams* (a performance so understated it’s nearly a magic trick), has his Apple TV follow-up on deck with *Dark Matter* Season 2, and rumor has it Cannes will see him smoldering in *The Plague*. Blink and Edgerton’s probably just inked another exclusivity clause, making his reps’ annual bonuses look like lottery payouts. There is, it must be said, a certain poetry in Netflix claiming him for *Trigger Point*—a move that, for those keeping score, Apple TV probably feels in their bones.So, what is *Trigger Point* actually promising beneath all this fanfare? Think high-octane set pieces laced with suspicion, betrayal, and a dose of existential dread. Edgerton’s Red—yes, a name practically designed for tabloid headlines—anchors a crew of ex-tier one operators selling their talents to anyone with enough zeros in their bank account. The criminal underworld wears a bespoke suit in this story, with law enforcement forever one move behind (or is it ahead? Saulnier, after all, is directing, and nothing is ever quite as it seems in his hands). Jeremy Saulnier, for those who appreciate their thrillers soaked in atmosphere, brings a track record that all but guarantees tension will hang thicker than last night’s Chanel No. 5 at a Beverly Hills afterparty.While the press releases drop their usual platitudes—A24’s “commitment to bold storytelling,” Netflix’s “global vision,” and other well-polished gems—the real action, everyone knows, is in the decision-making rooms. Netflix’s straight-to-series order, bypassing the tired “pilot purgatory” trap, signals not just the value it saw but a genuine hunger to stay at the top of the streaming food chain. No more tiptoeing around “development hell”—here’s a project with gasoline in its veins and a guarantee of delivery. In the shifting terrain of post-pandemic Hollywood, maybe that’s become the real currency.It’s tempting, almost, to ask whether all this spectacle spells true substance. The industry has been burned before—think splashy press, glossy casts, and final products that fizzled by episode three. Yet A24, with its recent TV forays, has earned enough goodwill to merit cautious optimism. Add Query’s penchant for narrative edge (and, just as crucial, his showrunner’s eye) and Saulnier’s flair for genre fusion, and suddenly “just another heist drama” doesn’t seem an apt description. No, if the buzz holds, *Trigger Point* could mark a pivot—a fusion of character complexity and explosive stakes that Hollywood so often promises but rarely delivers.On second thought, maybe the real drama isn’t even on-screen. Industry chatter is already framing this deal as a shot across the bows—A24 flexing past its indie phase, Netflix flashing its checkbook and creative muscle, the rest left to play catch-up. The phrase “content arms race” gets thrown around a lot, sometimes with a hint of exhaustion, yet there’s a freshness to this battle. Disney, once the town’s big, brash spender, has retreated to safer, sequel-laden grounds post-pandemic. Meanwhile, Netflix and A24 are betting big, not just on scripts, but on the very concept of what prestige can be in an algorithm-driven world.So pour a glass, as the saying goes, of whatever passes for celebratory in 2025 (biodynamic orange wine? An oat milk cortado spiked with optimism?). Whether *Trigger Point* lives up to its neon-lit promise remains to be seen; Hollywood, after all, loves to fatten a project with anticipation. But for now, among all the suits, scripts, and shifting powerlines, it’s hard to argue: the real fireworks may be happening off-camera. In an industry always addicted to reinvention, this latest move reminds everyone—perhaps even those still clinging to their DVD box sets in storage—that sometimes the spectacle is as potent as the story.