Saudi’s delayed $150m historical epic ‘Desert Warrior’ to premiere at Zurich

Desert Warrior, an upcoming historical action drama billed as the first Hollywood-style feature shot wholly in Saudi Arabia, is finally set to premiere, four years after being filmed.

Made for a reported $150m with a cast led by Captain America star Anthony Mackie, Aiysha Hart and Ben Kingsley, the feature is set to receive its world premiere as a gala screening at Zurich Film Festival.

Directed by UK filmmaker Rupert Wyatt, whose credits include Rise Of The Planet Of The Apes, it is produced by Saudi’s MBC Studios and Jeremy Bolt’s US-based JB Pictures. AGC International, the sales and distribution arm of Stuart Ford’s AGC Studios, will handle worldwide sales.

The film was the first to shoot at Neom, Saudi’s megacity project. After prepping in late-2020, production shut down for four months because of Covid, before picking up again in June 2021, and then shooting for 81 days from September through to Christmas.

Hoped to serve as a showcase for the striking locations and state-of-the-art facilities being built at Neom, the release of the film has been dogged by reports of original differences, which saw Wyatt removed from the project but later reinstated by MBC.

The story, co-written by Wyatt, Erica Beeney (Captive State) and David Self (Road To Perdition), is set in 7th century Arabia, when feuding tribes fought for power. Hart plays Princess Hind, who refuses to serve as concubine to the merciless Sassanid Emperor Kisra, portrayed by Kingsley. Escaping with her father into the desert, she is pursued by a mercenary, played by Sharlto Copley, and his troops. Mackie stars as a mysterious bandit who comes to their aid as Hind works to unite tribes against the Sassanid Empire, leading to an epic showdown.

This project was supported by the Saudi Film Commission through its cash rebate scheme and by the Quality of Life Program, a Saudi government initiative that aims to boost tourism and entertainment infrastructure as part of the Saudi Vision 2030 programme.

It is set to premiere on September 28 in Zurich wit the film’s talent in attendance, according to a statement from MBC Studios.