Mark Wahlberg stars in the new film Flight Risk, and the latest trailer has viewers LOL’ing about the hairstyle that Wahlberg’s character has in the film. As you can see in the footage below, Flight Risk tells the story of FBI agent Madelyn Harris (Michelle Dockery) who is forced to pivot in a big way while transporting Winston (Topher Grace), a key witness in a mob trial. Agent Harris has to take a crop-duster plane flight to get Winston to the courthouse – but when the plane’s eccentric pilot “Daryl Booth” (Wahlberg) is revealed to be a mob hitman, it kicks off a tense and violent aerial standoff, as the only person qualified to land the plane wants to kill everyone else aboard.
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While director Mel Gibson (Braveheart, Hacksaw Ridge) seems to be bringing the classic high-concept B-movie thriller back to theaters, Wahlberg’s hairstyling as Darly Booth is giving viewers deep belly laughs, whether intentional or not.
Wahlberg seems to have crafted a character who leans into his roots as a blue-collar hitman from the Boston/New England region. It’s arguable that the hairstyle Wahlberg is going with – bald head flanked by patches of hair around the sides – is actually an Easter egg ode to James “Whitey” Bulger, the Irish mob boss who was a criminal terror from the 1940s – 1990s. Bulger was the subject of the 2015 film Black Mass, where Johnny Depp played Bulger and pretty much sported the same hairstyle we see on Wahlberg in Flight Risk.
…That nuance is certainly being lost on viewers, if social media reactions are any indication.
“I didn’t have Mark Wahlberg bald on my 2025 bingo card😂,” writes @SarahTheBanned. “He looks so freaky in that 😂,” said @TheBoyBlob, while Sarah responded with “Right! It took me a minute to realize who it was😂”.
The costuming seems to be having the desired effect, as @bernardoRJ writes, “Bald Mark Wahlberg is creepy as f*ck! Definitely watching this.”
If you want a real treat: watch this video that proves Mark Wahlberg kept it all the way real for his Flight Risk role, by having his actual head shaved into that hairstyle – rather than wearing a bald cap.
[WATCH: Mark Wahlberg Getting His Head Shaved For Flight Risk Role]
What Is Flight Risk About?
In this high-stakes suspense thriller, Academy Award® nominee Mark Wahlberg (2006, Actor in a Supporting Role, The Departed) plays a pilot transporting an Air Marshal (Michelle Dockery) accompanying a fugitive (Topher Grace) to trial. As they cross the Alaskan wilderness, tensions soar and trust is tested, as not everyone on board is who they seem.
Flight Risk stars Mark Wahlberg (Invincible), Topher Grace (That ’70s Show), Michelle Dockery (Downton Abbey), Leah Remini (King of Queens), Maaz Ali, Paul Ben-Victor , and more. It is directed by Mel Gibson from a script by newcomer Jared Rosenberg. It will be released in theaters on January 24th.
