The film stars Gina Carano as a black ops agent who is betrayed by her employers and targeted for assassination in a conspiracy she is forced to unravel.

Haywire premiered on November 6, 2011 at the AFI Fest and received a wide release on January 20, 2012 by Relativity Media.

One week earlier, the firm's director (and Mallory's ex-boyfriend) Kenneth gave her an assignment offered by CIA agent Coblenz: to rescue Chinese national Jiang being held hostage in Barcelona.

Back in the United States, Kenneth gives Mallory an apparently simple assignment: pose as the wife of MI6 agent Paul during a mission in Dublin.

Trapped, he reveals that Jiang was a journalist being protected after exposing Studer's ties to a human trafficking ring.

The film was shot mostly in Ireland, with principal photography spanning from February 2, 2010 to March 25, 2010 with a budget of approximately $25 million.

In preparation for her role, Gina Carano underwent a six-week intensive tactical training course with former Duvdevan Unit officer Aaron Cohen,[citation needed] who has a cameo appearance in the finished film.

During a particularly harrowing two-week period when Cohen was teaching Carano the art of surveillance and counter-surveillance, he and his team tracked her via a GPS system installed in her car.

Two locations[7] included the former homes of Ireland’s Leeson family who as the Earls of Milltown were once described as “Arch Rebels” of the ascendancy.

The film was originally set to be released in late 2010, but re-shoots and a change in distributor from Lionsgate to Relativity Media delayed it for more than a year.

[10] Following the change in distributor, Soderbergh's re-shoots and re-edits focused on reshaping the film to be more in line with his original vision.

[12] David Holmes composed the score for the film and had worked with Steven Soderbergh on various other projects such as Out of Sight and the Ocean's trilogy.

The site's critical consensus reads, "MMA star and first-time actress Gina Carano displays ample action-movie chops in Haywire, a fast-paced thriller with a top-notch cast and outstanding direction from Steven Soderbergh.

[15] Claudia Puig of USA Today stated that the film was "a vigorous spy thriller that consistently beckons the viewer to catch up with its narrative twists and turns.

"[18] Keith Uhlich of Time Out New York wrote, "There's shockingly little thrill in watching Carano bounce off walls and pummel antagonists.