Anthony Mackie, Aiysha Hart to star in Rupert Wyatt's Saudi-set 'Desert Warrior'

' Falcon and Winter Soldier' star Anthony Mackie and 'Mogul Mowgli' actor Aiysha Hart have boarded cast of actioner 'Desert Warrior'.

British filmmaker Rupert Wyatt, best kwn for 'Rise of Planet of Apes', will direct movie. Production on film is underway in NEOM, a futuristic city being built in Tabuk province of rthwestern Saudi Arabia, reported Variety.

Oscar-winner Ben Kingsley, ' A-Team' actor Sharlto Copley and Ghassan Massoud ('Kingdom of Heaven') also round out cast of big-budget period epic set in 7th century Arabia.

tale takes place at a time when Saudi Arabia was made up of feuding tribes forever at loggerheads. st is set for an epic confrontation when Arabian princess Hind (Hart) refuses to become concubine of ruthless Emperor Kisra (Kingsley).

MBC Studios, production arm of prominent Middle East broadcaster MBC Group, has teamed up with American producer Jeremy Bolt and Stuart Ford's AGC Studios on film.

"Desert Warrior" is being touted as Saudi Arabia's first tentpole movie and native MBC's biggest production to date. shoot is expected to continue for three more months, a statement said.

Zeinab Abu Alsamh, MBC Studios KSA general manr, called film "a testament to our ambition towards producing premium content for global audiences" and underlined that it is "a tale of adventure, with a fierce female hero at forefront of story".

"Attracting a production of scale of 'Desert Warrior' as our first feature film highlights confidence film industry has in our ability to deliver a seamless production experience," added Wayne Borg, managing director of media industries at NEOM.