David Oyelowo to direct ‘Othello', star with Rachel Brosnahan, Cynthia Erivo

Barbara Broccoli’s Eon Productions has lined up its first post-James Bond project, a new version of Shakespeare’s Othello directed by and starring David Oyelowo.

The film will shoot in Qatar in autumn 2026. Oyelowo will reprise the title role that he played on stage in New York in 2016, alongside Rachel Brosnahan, reprising the role of Desdemona, and Cynthia Erivo as Emilia.

Broccoli will produce the film with Nicky Bentham for Eon Productions, with Oyelowo for his Yoruba Saxon.

The film will reimagine Shakespeare’s text in a contemporary war-torn desert in the Middle East. Othello is backed by Qatar’s Film Committee at Media City Qatar, the body established recently to boost the country’s position as a film production and financing destination. Qatar’s Katara Studios is also co-financing the film.

The production will utilise the newly-launched Qatar Screen Production Incentive, which offers up to 50% cash rebate.

Broccoli announced the project at a panel on the final morning of the Industry Days at Qatar’s Doha Film Festival, where she spoke alongside Oyelowo and Bentham. “In 500 years, the story of Othello has never really been told from the point of view of Othello, which seems ridiculous,” said Broccoli.

“In our production we’re making it more of a four-hander,” said Oyelowo. “We’re making it so you see these four different points of view: Iago, who is threatened by power; Othello, who is beset by insecurity because he’s always had to fight for his place and his personhood, and how that poison then denigrates a beautiful relationship he has with Desdemona. And then Emilia, who is in an abusive relationship with Iago, and in a bid to get to her husband, enables him to do the very thing she is fearful he is going to do to her.

“Our cinematic version of Othello is bitingly modern and fearlessly ambitious,” added Oyelowo. “Cynthia is not only a generational talent but a dear friend with whom I am always keen to collaborate, and Rachel was a dream to play opposite in our original stage production and has been an inspiring pillar to build around for our fresh take on this legendary tale.”

Further cast details will be announced in due course, according to the Film Committee.

Oyelowo played Othello on stage in a New York Theatre Workshop production for Broccoli in 2016, opposite Daniel Craig – the long-time James Bond for Eon Productions – as Iago, and directed by Sam Gold. The setting of that production is being used as inspiration for the film.

Decentralising Hollywood

Eon becomes the latest company to join with Qatar this weekend, after pacts announced with Neon, Miramax, Sony Pictures International Productions, Company 3 and more. VFX and post-production firm Company 3 will work on the new version of Othello.

The session, titled ‘The Role of a Creative Producer in a Changing Landscape’, opened with an Eon Productions showreel, featuring a large amount of James Bond content but also titles including Film Stars Don’t Die In Liverpool, The Rhythm Section and Till.

Oyelowo spoke critically about the current state of Hollywood. “There are some people who are decision makers who are not people who should be making these decisions,” said the filmmaker.

“The world wants new stories,” he continued. “Hollywood is going through something very trying at the moment. Some of it is self-inflicted. The mining of pre-existing IP, the sequel-it is, the pre-sequel-it is – it’s endless.”

In that context, Qatar offers new opportunities, he said. “It may be new to filmmaking globally, but it’s not new to story at all. There are stories here that are centuries old; there are these communities and countries where verbal storytelling is how their history has been passed on.

“One of the good things about streaming is we have seen worldwide phenomena like Squid Game come out of cultural specificity, that becomes embraced globally. Those are not projects that would have been made by the committee in Burbank.

“To add those stories to resources, to global means of distribution, is incredibly exciting for our industry. Hollywood has become decentralised in a good way. This is the heart of that next wave of global storytelling, and we’re elated to be a part of it.”

Bentham suggested she has been working on the Othello project for “about 10 years” when asked which project she had worked on for the longest.

Broccoli also discussed the casting of Daniel Craig as James Bond – the final Eon casting for the role. “When we came to recast the last time, we were going into a new century, so in my head I kept thinking, ‘What does a 21^st century hero look like?’,” said Broccoli. “The headline was humanity, so trying to bring that into the series – that’s why casting Daniel Craig was so key. He could really transform the character into someone who has more depth and emotion.”

Bentham described Broccoli as “a mentor” for when Bentham first started producing 15 years ago. “It’s important for young people coming in – there’s no better way to teach than by example,” said Bentham.

The duo also discussed Raising Films, the organisation Bentham founded in 2015 to support parents working in the film industry with balancing work with parenthood. 

”In the UK, there was 27% retention rate of women after they had their children, which is pretty awful. Raising Films has gone a long way to help address that,” said Broccoli. 

”If the industry doesn’t feel like a welcoming place for everyone, you can lose the best voices and talent that we have,” said Bentham.

The Industry Days at Doha Film Festival close today (Sunday 23), with the festival running until Friday, November 28.

This story originally appeared on our sister site Screen

Image credit: Mark Von Holden/AMPAS / Screen file / Terrell Mullin / Erik Drost