If Desert Warrior was one of Saudi Arabia’s biggest blockbusters, so it looks like it was a swing and a miss, based on the film’s box office take. It’s playing Captain AmericaAnthony Mackie and Oscar winner Ben Kingsley, Desert Warrior endured an arduous five-year journey to the screen, but was finally released in theaters last weekend in the US and the Middle East.
Produced by Riyadh media giant MBC Group and acquired by Vertical, the film has been hit hard by its performance in the US, where it grossed $596,000 on 1,010 screens as of Thursday, and was billed as one of the biggest box office hits in history.
Vertical marketing has dramatically exposed Mackie, Kingsley, and Rise of the Planet of the Apes Director Rupert Wyatt’s impressive shot of the Saudi sands, but cinemagoers were not the only ones to react Desert Warriorloud cry, and it seems unlikely to recoup its $150M budget.
Not that hopes were ever so high. Those who are close Desert Warrior they were right about the film’s appeal, especially at a time when war was raging in the Middle East. There were hopes Desert Warrior it could crack $1M in America, but still, it’s far from a Vertical disaster.
Industry sources said Vertical is unlikely to break the bank Desert Warriorwhich means that the path to profit is entirely viable for the distributor if all theatrical and home entertainment revenues are accounted for. Vertical is said to be focused on premium video on demand, where it will be Mackie’s hero in the art work following the same tactics as films like Height.
MBC did not respond to a request for comment. He stood his ground and refused to comment.
Middle East Box Office
The box office picture isn’t particularly bright in Middle Eastern markets, according to figures seen by Deadline. Desert Warrior grossed $87,000 from 6,100 admissions in Saudi Arabia on its opening weekend, making it the country’s eighth-biggest grosser.
Some of Saudi’s biggest hits in recent years have done more than ten times better than that Desert Warrior. This includes Shabab Al Bombwhich grossed $1.24M in its opening weekend but gained based on one of the most popular TV franchises in the Arab world.
Empire Entertainment, the Saudi distributor that handled it Desert Warrior of MBC and taking care of Sony’s releases in the area, there have been big hits this year, at least Project Hail Marygrossed $700,000 in its opening weekend.
From Thursday in Saudi Arabia, Desert WarriorTicket sales topped $110,000, per Comscore. In the UAE, this figure was $37,000, while across the Middle East, Desert Warrior grossed just $225,000, though local sources said the film has yet to sell well.
Why Was ‘Desert Warrior’ Abandoned?
MBC will surely hope for the best from the project that was announced in the fire of prestige, but it did not have an easy journey to the screen between the creative split with the director Wyatt (who left the project and later returned), and the budget that increased with delays and filming in Saudi.
Time worked against MBC. Moviegoers don’t want a desert war movie during a real desert war, said one observer. MBC considered pushing Desert Warrior after Donald Trump bombed Iran, but the company didn’t want to delay again after years of false dawns.
Aiysha Hart in ‘Desert Warrior’
Others point to fundamental creative problems with the film. A Middle East distribution source told Deadline that Desert Warrior it has fallen into the mainstream, it does not appeal to Arab or Western audiences. “I’m not sure who it’s for,” said the person. “It looks like another big-budget Hollywood movie that just took place in Saudi.”
This concern was echoed after the unfinished version of the Desert Warriorwhich was not edited by Wyatt, was tested by the audience in July 2023, yielding negative results. Sources told Deadline that the research led people in the film to question whether there was a need for a Western interpretation of the Arab story.
For some, that is Desert Warrior he has even been released is a reason to celebrate. There were times, between the film being shot in 2021 and its post-production limbo period, when crew members openly speculated that it would never see the light of day.
“Of course, there was a fear among the filmmakers and talent that this matter has become such a white elephant that MBC will just bury it,” said the source. “It would have been easy for them to go straight to broadcasting, so MBC deserves credit for going the extra mile. They believed in the good things about film, and it did some of the things they intended to show what could be achieved on screen in the region.”
Deadline reported that Desert WarriorBox office returns won’t be the only measure of its success. We pointed out that the management of MBC discussed the importance of Mohammed bin Salman’s decision and how this could affect the company’s funding in the future. Will the Saudi Crown Prince continue to authorize radical change, or will the kingdom withdraw from movies, as it has done from sports?
Team members will tell you: Desert Warrior$150M didn’t just buy a movie, it bought Saudi Arabia’s filmmaking infrastructure. As the nation restructures its economy away from fossil fuels, some believe important lessons can be learned Desert Warrior to support future filmmaking efforts.
