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Black Panther star Chadwick Boseman is back on screen in Avengers: Endgame that's set for a record-breaking $1 billion opening weekend. 

And hours before the Marvel superhero movie opens in North American theatres, a trailer dropped for the actor's upcoming summer action thriller 21 Bridges.

Boseman, 41, stars as NYPD detective Andre Davis who is engaged in a city-wide search for cop killers only to discover a massive conspiracy that links cops to a criminal drug enterprise.

Coming July: A trailer for Chadwick Boseman's upcoming action thriller 21 bridges dropped Thursday, hours before he returned to the big screen as Black Panther in Avengers: Endgame

The trailer opens with a young version of Boseman's character at the funeral for his father, a cop killed in the line of duty.

Fast forward 18 years, he's also a cop and attends the scene of a robbery gone wrong that leaves eight NYPD officers dead.

Two suspects are on the run and Boseman is tasked by superior officer J.K. Simmons to track them down.

He chooses Boseman because of what happened to his father.

'I will find them,' Boseman promises Simmons.

Backstory: The trailer opens with a young version of Boseman's character at the funeral for his father, a cop killed in the line of duty

Drama: It's the worst day in the history of the NYPD until 18 years later, when eight cops are killed after an armed robbery goes wrong 

Mission: Two suspects are on the run and Boseman is tasked by superior officer J.K. Simmons to track them down. He chooses Boseman because of what happened to his father

To that end, he orders the closure of all 21 bridges that connect the island of Manhattan to the rest of the five boroughs.

He also orders the four tunnels shut down, trains blocked and subways confined to a loop. 

'Then we flood the island with blue,' he tells his colleagues. 

That means no-one can enter or leave Manhattan and ultimately Boseman starts to wonder if he is, in fact, not the hunter but the hunted. 

Partner: Boseman embarks on the manhunt with the help of fellow detective Sienna Miller

Unprecedented move: He orders the closure of all 21 bridges that connect the island of Manhattan to the rest of the five boroughs to create a perimeter for the manhunt

He also orders the four tunnels shut down, trains blocked and subways confined to a loop.

Man with a plan: 'Then we flood the island with blue,' he tells his colleagues

The crime drama is directed by Brian Kirk whose credits include episodes of Game of Thrones, Luther and Penny Dreadful.

The rest of the cast includes Sienna Miller, Taylor Kitsch, Stephan James and Keith David. 

Boseman also serves as a producer on the movie along with his Avengers: Endgame directors Joe and Anthony Russo. 

'It’s intense. The action is fantastic,' Joe Russo told slashfilm.com.

'It’s the kind of movie that ... I feel like they’re not really making a lot of anymore. It’s a real throw back to a 70’s thriller. It feels like a Lumet movie,' he said. 

Target? With no-one able to enter or leave Manhattan, Boseman starts to wonder as the hunt goes on if he is, in fact, not the hunter but the hunted

Helmer: The crime drama is directed by Brian Kirk whose credits include episodes of Game of Thrones, Luther and Penny Dreadful

Team: Boseman serves as a producer on the movie along with Avengers: Endgame directors Joe and Anthony Russo. 'It’s intense. The action is fantastic,' Joe Russo told slashfilm.com

For his part, Boseman explained that it was the action and the pace of the plot that drew him to the project.

'When I read the script, I could tell that this was gonna be a ride,' he shared. 

'It’s a ride when you watch it. At the same time, it took me back to my theater days where you have the fast-paced language… I lived in New York for years. I feel like this movie sort of captured that sort of things,' he added.

Summer movie: 21 Bridges is set to open in movie theatres on July 12