Joe Carnahan Sets ‘The Rip’ Follow-Up: Netflix Action Thriller ‘The Operator’ Starring Mark Wahlberg

EXCLUSIVE: Joe Carnahan, director of the Netflix hit The Rip, has inked a deal to direct another action thriller for the streamer — Mark Wahlberg starrer The Operator.

Written by Harrison Query, The Operator follows an ex-Tier One Operator (Wahlberg) who earns a living as one of the CIA’s invisible clean-up men. When he’s ordered to shepherd his most hated target to safety, the mission turns into a high-stakes cat and mouse game for survival.

The Picture Company partners Alex Heineman and Andrew Rona will produce along with Wahlberg and Stephen Levinson and their Municipal Pictures banner, as well as Scott Glassgold and his 12:01 Films.

Set to exec produce, Query sold his original spec to Netflix in a highly competitive situation in December 2025. News of Carnahan’s attachment to The Operator comes following Netflix’s recent acquisition of Query’s series The Murder of JonBenét Ramsey. Netflix and A24 enter production on his Joel Edgerton series Trigger Point in January.

Carnahan’s Miami cop thriller The Rip, starring Matt Damon and Ben Affleck and produced by their Artists Equity, scored more than 41 million views in its first three days on Netflix in January, bringing the service its biggest film opening since Happy Gilmore 2. The film opened at No. 1 and charted in 93 countries. A long-time veteran of the action and thriller genres, his earlier films include the likes of Narc, Smokin’ Aces, The Grey and Copshop. He is repped by CAA and Paul Hastings.