David Oyelowo will direct and star in a new contemporary adaptation of Shakespeare’s Othello, reprising the title role he played in the 2016 stage production. The announcement was made during Industry Days at the Doha Film Festival.
Oyelowo described the adaptation as “bitingly modern and fearlessly ambitious,” noting that it will center heavily on the relationship dynamics among the four principal characters. Rachel Brosnahan will return as Desdemona, with Cynthia Erivo joining the cast as Emilia. The role of Iago, played by Daniel Craig in the stage version has not yet been cast for the film.
The project marks Eon Productions’ first major undertaking outside the James Bond franchise in several years. It will be produced by Barbara Broccoli and Nicky Bentham for Eon, alongside Oyelowo through his Yoruba Saxon banner. Qatar’s Katara Studios will co-finance the feature, which is scheduled to shoot in Qatar in autumn 2026.
The film reimagines Othello in a contemporary, war-torn desert setting in the Middle East, retaining the core narrative while expanding on the approach used in Sam Gold’s 2016 stage production, which relocated the story from 17th-century Venice to a U.S. military barracks in Iraq.
Production will benefit from Qatar’s newly launched Screen Production Incentive and will receive post-production support from Company 3, which recently established operations in Doha. The announcement aligns with broader efforts by Qatar’s Film Committee, created in 2022, to increase the country’s involvement in international film production.