It centers on disgraced surgeon Patrick Sumner (Jack O'Connell) confronting the psychopathic harpooner Henry Drax (Colin Farrell) amid murder, rape of cabin boy Joseph Hannah, insurance fraud by Captain Brownlee (Stephen Graham), and Arctic survival. The core premise revolves around human brutality, past trauma from colonial India, and raw masculinity in a vicious industry, with no identity politics or systemic oppression narratives as foundational drivers. Casting remains traditional and period-appropriate with an all-male ensemble featuring Colin Farrell and Jack O'Connell as white historical figures in organic roles, avoiding any race or gender swaps of established characters.

Plot and themes stay centered on survival, depravity, and the historical cruelties of empire as drawn from the source novel, without modern activist framing or inserted lecture moments. Incidental period details such as homophobia in the McKendrick suspicion subplot and Inuit supporting roles like Elder Inuk simply reflect the authentic 1850s Arctic setting rather than contemporary messaging, keeping the focus squarely on character-driven brutality and industry violence.