JEDDAH: The Saudi-shot action-thriller “Desert Warrior” came home for its Middle East debut at this month’s Red Sea International Film Festival after making its global premiere at the Zurich Film Festival in September. 

The movie, set in seventh-century Arabia, marks a major milestone for MBC Studios, which bills “Desert Warrior” as the most expensive feature film made in Saudi Arabia — with a reported budget of $150 million. It’s also the first major title to be shot at NEOM. Filming also took place in Tabuk.  

“Desert Warrior” is directed by British filmmaker Rupert Wyatt, whose credits include “Rise of the Planet of the Apes” and “The Mosquito Coast.” Wyatt co-wrote the screenplay with Erica Beeney, David Self and four-time Oscar nominee Gary Ross. 

With an ensemble cast including Anthony Mackie, Aiysha Hart, Sharlto Copley, Ghassan Massoud, and Oscar-winner Sir Ben Kingsley, the film blends historical drama with all-out action and has a narrative centered on one of the Arab world’s most compelling early heroines. 

“Desert Warrior” follows the indomitable Princess Hind bint Al-Nu’man (Hart), who refuses to become a concubine of Sassanid Emperor Kisra (Kingsley). Fleeing with her father, King Numan (Massoud), she teams up with a desert bandit (Mackie) who helps the pair evade capture by mercenaries led by Jalabzeen (Copley). 

The story builds toward the Battle of Dhi Qar — a pivotal moment in the region’s pre-Islamic history — and positions Princess Hind as a unifying hero who persuades disparate tribes to fight together to defend their homeland. 

“This story is historically huge,” Wyatt told Arab News during a press junket at RSIFF, explaining that his entry point was Princess Hind herself. “It’s always the most human story (that is most attractive), isn’t it? So, it’s the story of Princess Hind,” he said. “(We wanted) to tell a story that starts incredibly small and very intimate about this young woman hunted in the desert, and then gradually fill it with every action that she takes and the people around her take and (see) how it grows. 

“(We) start with one person in the desert, the bandit finding this young woman and her father, and from there (we) build, ultimately, to the mountains.” 

Wyatt said the team strove for historical accuracy while ensuring the story remained visually compelling. 

“As with any movie, you have to take a little bit of license. You have to tell the story, but you also have to be faithful to reality, of course,” he said. “I mean, in the seventh century, horses didn’t have saddles and stirrups, you know? But how do you film something like that? It’s not possible.” 

He added that certain details such as belts and costume fastenings also had to be adjusted for practical reasons. “The historical accuracy is something that has to be clear but invisible,” he added.  

South African actor Copley, who plays Jalabzeen, Kisra’s loyal and relentless mercenary determined to capture Hind by any means, said: “I was excited to play a character that was from a part of the world, in a time of the world, that I had never seen on camera before. That was unique. And to be honest, in this day and age, it’s hard to find unique projects.” 

Copley also admitted that he nearly turned down the role. 

“I almost didn’t take the movie,” he said. “I’d always been nervous of horse riding. But I knew a movie was going to come where they’d say, ‘You’re going to have to ride a horse.’ And the very first description (of my character) was that he appears riding the biggest war horse, leading a charge. I read that, and I was, like, ‘Oh god, here’s that movie.’” 

After long conversations with a director friend who encouraged him to take the leap, Copley embraced the challenge and fell in love with it. 

“At the end of the day, they’d let us ride our horses back to the stables,” he said. “We’d just ride as the sun was setting. (It’s given me some) of the best memories of my life.” 

For British-Saudi actor Hart, portraying Princess Hind was a transformative opportunity. 

“It’s such an honor to play a character like this,” she told Arab News. “I didn’t actually know about the history, so, for me, it was a revelation to learn that that’s what a woman did in the seventh century: she united the Arab tribes and faced down the Sassanid Empire — the strongest empire of the time. That’s no small feat, even by modern standards.” 

Like Copley, Hart’s preparation for her role involved intensive physical training. 

“Princess Hind grew up on a horse,” Hart said. “I hadn’t ridden a horse since I was maybe 10. I got thrown off a couple of times (when I was a child), so I stopped riding.” 

Determined to honor her character, she trained daily in Saudi Arabia: “An hour of stunt training, two hours of horse riding, then stunt sword fighting. It’s a really physical role.” 

Hart also said that she connected deeply with Hind’s spirit. 

“I think she has a passion and a fire that I also have,” she said. “I think she’s a bit more courageous than I am. I hope I took some of that courage from her.” 

She added: “I just feel really honored and very lucky to have taken the role, and to have been able to offer it to the world.” 

With its international cast, sweeping cinematography and dramatic portrayal of a defining moment in regional history, “Desert Warrior” encapsulates the ambitions of the Saudi filmmaking industry, and showcases the Kingdom’s rapidly expanding production infrastructure. 

It positions itself not just as a cinematic epic, but also a celebration of identity, resistance and unity.