Arabic remake of Intouchables set to film in Egypt

Dubai-based production label Front Row and London-based Rocket Science are set to shoot an Arab-language remake of French film Intouchables in Egypt from May this year.  

Screenwriter Amr El-Daly will adapt the screenplay with award-winning advertising director Jad Aouad set to make his feature directorial debut.

The original Intouchables,  which centres on an unexpected friendship that forms between a paraplegic billionaire and his caretaker who is an ex-con, was a huge success making $426m at the international box office in 2011.

The film marks Front Row’s second Arab-language adaptation of a popular European film, following the announcement the company will also be remaking Italian hit Perfect strangers, as it pushes on with plans to develop and produce high-end language content for the MENA region.

Front Row’s president Hisham Alghanim and managing partner Gianluca Chakra said in a joint statement: “This would mark the first co-production for a feature film between Egypt and Saudi touching on a universal story that could bridge two entirely different cultures.”

“It is a very exciting proposition to be able to bring such a globally recognizable property to the territory – the first of many”, added Rocket Science CEO Thorsten Schumacher. 

Front Row and Rocket Science joined forces in 2019 to form Dubai-based Yalla Yalla, a film and TV production company focused on Arab-language projects.

Intouchables was re-made in the US in 2017 as The Upside, starring Bryan Cranston and Kevin Hart.