Spike Lee began his interview with Variety at the Red Sea Film Festival — where he’s serving as jury president — in a jocular mood, talking about soccer and his love for the U.K. Premiere League team Arsenal.
Asked whether he’ll be in Saudi Arabia for the 2034 FIFA World Cup, he laughs: “The key question is whether I’m still alive — I’ll be 77 in 2034. But if I’m around, I’ll be there!”
While attending the Red Sea Fest, Lee accompanied Vin Diesel and Michael Douglas to watch Cristiano Ronaldo’s Al-Nassr play against Al-Ittihad.
This is Lee’s third trip to Saudi Arabia, after his first visit in 1991 to secure permission for an all-Muslim unit to shoot in Mecca for his biopic, “Malcolm X” — the first time that a (non-documentary) film crew was allowed to shoot in the holy city. He returned in 2022 to watch the pic’s first public screening in the kingdom, during the second Red Sea Film Festival.
It was 60 years ago, in April 1964, that Malcolm X traveled to Jeddah to start his pilgrimage to Mecca, the Hajj. On Nov. 18, Lee posted on Instagram to mark the film’s 32nd anniversary: “I suggest you might want to watch this joint epic again, especially after the daughters of Malcolm X have sued the CIA, FBI and NYPD for $100 million for involvement with the assassination of their father.”
Lee is adamant: “They’re guilty. I showed that in the film. In the scene after he’s shot, we see the NYPD officer coming in, as if he’s strolling through Central Park. When Malcolm travels to Egypt we see that he’s being followed by the CIA. So it’s in the movie!”
Last month, the FBI stated to the Associated Press that it was its “standard practice” not to comment on litigation, the CIA did not immediately respond to a request for comment and the NYPD stated it would decline commenting on pending litigation. The FBI, CIA and NYPD did not immediately respond to Variety‘s request for comment.
Lee said that serving as jury president this year, and watching the 16 films in the official competition, has given him different perspectives on how filmmakers see different parts of the world. “I don’t want to get too specific because we haven’t yet unveiled the eight winning films, but we had lengthy discussions and we could easily have given out more awards,” he says. “We’re very happy with the films we’ve chosen.”
Lee reveals that he would like to visit for a longer period of time, so he can get a better sense of the country and culture. “Every time I’m here, I learn more about the local culture, the Saudis,” he says. “Every time I’ve been embraced and many people here know my films. So I feel at home!”
The helmer adds that he would be very interested in attending further editions of the Red Sea Film Festival and also visiting local film schools, if the right opportunity arose.
“I would be more than willing to come here and speak to the film schools, because they can make a real difference,” Lee says. “One of my jury colleagues here is the Egyptian director, Abu Bakr Shawky, who was a student of mine at NYU. He’s now a great filmmaker. Back in the day he was in my class!”
Asked about his next projects after finishing “Highest 2 Lowest,” his reinterpretation of Japanese director Kurosawa’s 1963 crime drama “High and Low,” Lee refrains from revealing any details.
“Here’s the thing. I’m very superstitious to talk about things until they actually happens,” he says. “I’ve heard a lot of people over the years saying ‘I’m doing that, I’m doing this.’ That’s their choice, but for me I just like to keep it close to my chest and let stuff happen.”
