Apple TV’s forthcoming action comedy Mayday, starring Ryan Reynolds and Kenneth Branagh, has received strongly positive early reactions from critics. Set during the Cold War, it follows a US SR-71 pilot stranded in the Russian wilderness who must rely on a former KGB agent to escape, and its reception suggests it could be a notable release for the streaming service.

Reynolds plays Troy “Assassin” Kelly, while Branagh plays Nikolai Ustinov, an ex-KGB officer with an affection for American culture; Maria Bakalova, Marcin Dorociński, David Morse and Clark Johnson also appear. Critics have praised the central pair’s chemistry and compared the film’s tone to 1980s buddy-action comedies such as Midnight Run, with one calling it “gripping, compelling & hilarious”; the article says it will arrive on Apple TV on 4 September.