Barkhad Abdi Boards 'Maalstroom': Teddy Cherim's Dutch-Belgian Thriller Wraps With First-Look Image
Barkhad Abdi, Jim Deddes, and Tenzing Woing lead the cast of Maalstroom, a Dutch-Belgian co-production that has just wrapped production, with a first-look image revealed alongside the announcement (Variety).
The film is written and directed by Teddy Cherim and produced by Marten van Warmerdam. It follows Jan, a struggling barge skipper who takes on an urgent shipment of sand from Dunkirk to Rotterdam in a last attempt to stave off financial ruin. Shortly after setting off, Jan discovers eleven refugees hidden in his cargo — and the voyage becomes something else entirely.
Deddes plays Jan, reteaming with Cherim after their collaboration on the series Joardy Season. Woing, previously the lead of the TV film Happy Palace, plays Jan's deckhand Edward. Abdi takes the role of Bahdoon, a part Cherim wrote specifically with the actor in mind.
Abdi's casting carries some weight. He received Academy Award and Golden Globe nominations and won a BAFTA for his breakthrough performance in Captain Phillips (2013), playing the Somali pirate leader Muse opposite Tom Hanks. His subsequent credits include the Safdie brothers' Good Time and Denis Villeneuve's Blade Runner 2049. In Maalstroom, his character Bahdoon sits at the centre of the film's central tension between the skipper and the people he finds in his hold.
The supporting cast is large: Abdulaal Hussein, Hana Hussein, Anas Derow, Merhawi Kesete, Hiba Ali, Issa Musa, Sabine Berhe-Hagosse, Orwa Zaid, Hanna Mussie, and Mohammed Terwis round out the ensemble.
Graniet Film produces in the Netherlands, with Marc van Warmerdam joining Marten van Warmerdam as producers. Czar Film & TV in Belgium co-produces, with Eurydice Gysel and Koen Mortier serving as co-producers, alongside Dutch public broadcaster NTR. The production drew support from a broad coalition of public funds: the Netherlands Film Fund, the Netherlands Film Production Incentive, the Flanders Audiovisual Fund (VAF), CoBO, the Belgian Tax Shelter, Eurimages, and RTL Film LLC.
Czar first signalled that the cameras were rolling on 29 July 2026, announcing the shoot across its official Facebook and Instagram accounts. The wrap now comes roughly two weeks later.
For Cherim, Maalstroom is a step up in scale and visibility. He co-wrote and co-directed the Dutch-Belgian feature Sterke verhalen in 2010, becoming the youngest Dutch director at the time, and later earned a Golden Calf nomination for the VR documentary Meet the Soldier in 2019. His television work includes the series Joardy Season and Vakkenvullers.
Paradiso Filmed Entertainment expects to release Maalstroom in the Benelux — the combined market of Belgium, the Netherlands, and Luxembourg — next year. No international distribution or festival premiere has been announced.
