The movie was bankrolled by Saudi Arabia to set up infrastructure for the entire filmmaking industry there. That’s why it was so expensive.
Also, a large chunk of the $150 million budget was literally putting infrastructure in place to manage a production of this size. “On-set insiders say Saudi production hub Neom Media was effectively laying the infrastructure for an entire industry on the budget of ‘Desert Warrior,’” the report noted.
Neom media, huh? But the line (NEOM) isn’t finished yet, so i wonder if they set up shop i na bunch of trailers in the desert, probably costing more, or if they set up shop in a different town and will then move the entire business over to NEOM when it’s actually built
Much of the city was planned to be completed by 2030, as it is one of the focal points of Saudi Vision 2030.[7] Experts expressed skepticism about the ambitions of the megaproject.[8] Initially estimated to cost $1.6 trillion,[2] the project’s estimated costs were by 2025 in excess of $8.8 trillion (more than 25 times the annual Saudi budget).[9] By July 2022, only two buildings had been constructed, and most of the project area remained bare desert.[10] In 2024, Neom was reported to have been substantially scaled back from its original plan.[9][11] An internal audit of the megaproject found extensive problems, including “evidence of deliberate manipulation”, by the managers of the project.[9] By 2025, new contracts for Neom dried up and there was no mention of Neom in Saudi Arabia’s pre-budget statement for 2026.[12] In March 2026, large contracts for tunneling work[13] and the Trojena ski resort were cancelled.[14]
The movie was bankrolled by Saudi Arabia to set up infrastructure for the entire filmmaking industry there. That’s why it was so expensive.
https://www.slashfilm.com/2160537/anthony-mackie-desert-warrior-one-of-biggest-box-office-flops-ever/
Neom media, huh? But the line (NEOM) isn’t finished yet, so i wonder if they set up shop i na bunch of trailers in the desert, probably costing more, or if they set up shop in a different town and will then move the entire business over to NEOM when it’s actually built
EDIT:
https://maps.app.goo.gl/LL8ucz1xi8tj7NSo8
Gonna be a long wait. NEOM is canceled in all but name:
Let’s get some more movies to see if the entire exercise was a waste.