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Lieutenant Troy “Assassin” Kelly is a gifted United States Navy pilot trusted with a secret mission inside Soviet territory at the height of the Cold War.
The operation fails.
Troy, played by Ryan Reynolds, becomes stranded in the Russian wilderness with Soviet forces searching for him and no reliable way to contact home. His military training may keep him alive temporarily, but escaping the country without assistance appears impossible.
Help arrives from the last person an American pilot should trust: Nikolai Ustinov, a former KGB agent played by Kenneth Branagh.
Nikolai discovers the injured pilot and takes him into his home. He is fascinated by American films and popular culture, but Troy cannot assume that interest makes him an ally. The man sheltering him once worked for the same state Troy was sent to infiltrate.
Their strange meeting begins Mayday, an action comedy about two men trained to regard each other as enemies who may need to work together to survive.
Troy’s mission collapses over Soviet territory
Troy enters the story with the confidence suggested by his call sign.
As a Navy pilot, he is accustomed to danger, speed and clear objectives. He understands what to do while sitting inside an aircraft with a mission in front of him.
Becoming stranded on the ground removes those advantages.
He cannot fly away, openly request assistance or trust the people he encounters. His uniform and nationality could expose him as an enemy operative, while capture may create an international crisis neither government wants to acknowledge.
The mission’s secrecy also means Troy cannot expect an ordinary rescue. If American officials deny knowledge of his presence, he may be left to escape on his own.
The film takes a character who is comfortable controlling a powerful aircraft and places him in a country where he cannot control the language, the territory or the people deciding whether to hide him.
Who is Nikolai Ustinov?
Nikolai is a gruff former KGB agent with an unexpected fascination for American culture.
That interest makes him curious about Troy, but it does not explain whether he can be trusted. A retired intelligence officer does not forget how to interrogate, manipulate or recognise a lie simply because he enjoys foreign movies.
Nikolai treats Troy’s injuries and gives him shelter. Those actions create a debt the pilot cannot easily dismiss, even while every instinct warns him to remain suspicious.
For Nikolai, the American pilot represents something he has previously experienced only through entertainment and government propaganda. Troy is not a screen character or political symbol. He is a frightened, injured man standing inside Nikolai’s home.
That direct contact begins changing their relationship.
Troy needs Nikolai’s knowledge of the country, while Nikolai may see helping Troy as an opportunity to step outside the life the Soviet system has chosen for him. Neither man can complete the journey alone.
Can a former KGB agent rescue an American pilot?
Escaping Soviet territory requires more than finding transportation.
Nikolai understands checkpoints, local authorities and the habits of the people pursuing Troy. He knows which roads are dangerous and how quickly information can travel through the security system.
Troy brings military training and the determination to return home, but his presence increases the danger for everyone who assists him. If Nikolai is discovered hiding an American serviceman, his past with the KGB will not protect him.
Their partnership must develop while they are moving. They have no time to build trust slowly or verify every promise. Each man must place part of his life in the hands of someone he was taught to consider an enemy.
Nikolai’s estranged daughter, Anna, played by Maria Bakalova, also becomes involved in their attempt to escape. Her presence complicates the mission because Nikolai is no longer risking only himself. Helping Troy may give him a chance to repair one damaged relationship while placing another person he loves in danger.
Why is Mayday also a comedy?
The political situation is serious, but Apple describes Mayday as a buddy action comedy that turns the traditional spy thriller in a different direction.
Much of the humour is expected to come from the contrast between its central characters.
Troy looks like the reckless American action hero, yet he is the vulnerable stranger who needs to be rescued. Nikolai appears to be the threatening former spy, but his enthusiasm for American culture makes him unpredictable in a different way.
Ryan Reynolds often plays characters who hide anxiety behind quick remarks. Kenneth Branagh can make Nikolai sincere, eccentric and potentially dangerous without reducing him to a joke.
The comedy should arise from their behaviour under pressure rather than ignoring the risk surrounding them. Soviet forces are still searching for Troy, and one careless decision could expose everyone helping him.
The lighter tone makes the developing friendship possible, but the danger gives that friendship meaning.
What does the title mean?
“Mayday” is an international distress call used when an aircraft or vessel faces immediate danger.
Troy’s failed mission creates the obvious connection. He is a pilot stranded in hostile territory who urgently needs help.
The title also describes the film’s central relationship. Troy may be unable to send a conventional distress signal, but Nikolai recognises that he needs assistance. The person who answers is not an American rescue team or another pilot. It is a man from the opposing side of the Cold War.
The story therefore turns a military emergency into a personal choice: will Nikolai answer the call when helping Troy could destroy his own life?
A Cold War story about two individuals
Mayday is set in 1987, when decades of suspicion still separated the United States and Soviet Union.
That political background matters, but the film is not designed as a detailed account of diplomatic negotiations. It reduces the conflict between two superpowers to a relationship between two men.
Troy has been trained to see Soviet intelligence officers as threats. Nikolai spent his career inside a system that treated Americans as enemies. Their journey forces both men to compare what they were taught with the person directly beside them.
The film does not need to pretend their governments’ differences are meaningless. Its story is more specific: political enemies can still recognise fear, loyalty and courage in each other.
Who made Mayday?
John Francis Daley and Jonathan Goldstein wrote and directed the film. The pair previously directed Game Night and Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves, two films that combined large comic situations with characters who take their relationships seriously.
Their involvement suggests that Mayday will not treat action and comedy as separate genres. The chase, escape plan and growing friendship are intended to develop together.
The filmmakers used real aerial footage and Soviet-era equipment to give the action a more physical quality. That practical foundation should help the comedy exist inside a believable Cold War setting.
The cast includes:
Ryan Reynolds as Troy “Assassin” Kelly
Kenneth Branagh as Nikolai Ustinov
Maria Bakalova as Anna Ustinov
Marcin Dorociński
David Morse
Lovell Adams-Gray
Clark Johnson
The film is rated PG-13 and runs for approximately one hour and 50 minutes.
Who should watch Mayday?
Consider watching if you enjoy:
Action comedies built around mismatched partners
Cold War escape stories
Ryan Reynolds’ fast, nervous humour
Kenneth Branagh playing an eccentric character
Films such as Midnight Run or The Man from U.N.C.L.E.
Adventures where friendship becomes as important as the mission
Viewers looking for a severe, historically detailed espionage drama should expect something lighter. The Cold War provides genuine danger, but the film’s main attraction is the relationship between Troy and Nikolai.
Flicklevel story outlook
The clever part of Mayday is its reversal of the expected rescue story.
Troy begins as the highly trained American pilot performing a secret mission, yet Nikolai becomes the man with the knowledge and freedom needed to save him. The apparent action hero must accept help from someone he has every reason to distrust.
For the story to succeed, Nikolai cannot exist merely as an eccentric sidekick, and Troy cannot rely only on familiar Ryan Reynolds humour. Their friendship needs to grow from difficult choices made while both men are in danger.
If Daley and Goldstein maintain that balance, Mayday could deliver an entertaining escape story without losing the human idea beneath it: sometimes the person who answers a distress call comes from the other side.
Mayday premieres globally on Apple TV on September 4, 2026.
Trusted sources: Apple TV Press | Official Apple TV film page | Entertainment Weekly’s filmmaker interview