Paper Tiger, a Brothers’ Money-Making Plan Collides with the Russian Mafia

Paper Tiger is James Gray’s crime drama about two brothers in 1986 New York whose seemingly lucrative scheme draws their family into danger from the Russian mafia. NEON releases it theatrically in the

《Paper Tiger》 is a 2026 crime drama written and directed by James Gray. Set in Queens and Brooklyn in 1986, engineer Irwin Pearl accepts a business proposal from his older brother Gary, a former police officer. But a deal connected to the Gowanus Canal escalates into a threat from the Russian mafia, putting the entire family at risk through the choices the brothers make. NEON will release the film theatrically in the United States on November 13, 2026.

A Brothers’ Deal Shakes the Family

Miles Teller plays Irwin, Adam Driver plays Gary, and Scarlett Johansson appears as Irwin’s wife, Hester. According to the New York Film Festival’s description, Irwin is a family man seeking middle-class stability, but he and his wife and two sons are threatened when his brother draws him into a plan to evade regulations with Russian criminals. Irwin’s decisions between brotherhood and his marriage create the story’s tension.

New York’s Gowanus Canal in the 1980s

The film’s criminal scheme is tied to the problem of oil waste near the Gowanus Canal. Rather than treating pollution as mere background, the film expands it into a situation where a deal driven by money eats away at a family’s everyday life and relationships. The official Cannes description likewise presents the film as a story of family bonds shaken as two brothers navigate a dangerous criminal world.

The Filmmaker’s Perspective in the First Footage

NEON’s first-look featurette previews the period setting and the atmosphere of a family story set in New York. The completed film has a runtime of 115 minutes, unfolding a conflict between brothers alongside the choices made to protect a family within Gray’s tense urban crime drama.