The Cello (2023 film)

The Cello is a 2023 Saudi Arabian horror film directed by Darren Lynn Bousman and written by Turki Al Alshikh. It is based on Alshikh's novel of the same title and stars Jeremy Irons, Samer Ismail, Elham Ali, Souad Abdullah, Tobin Bell and Muhannad Al Hamdi. The story revolves around an aspiring cellist who acquires an insidious cello that begins to wreak havoc around him.

Production for The Cello took place in late 2021. It premiered in Boulevard Riyadh City on September 8, 2023, and was released in the United Arab Emirates on September 14, 2023.

Production
The Cello is based on Turki Al Alshikh's novel of the same name, who also wrote the script. Darren Lynn Bousman was hired to direct with Lee Nelson producing. Principal photography completed in October 2021 after more than 100 days of filming in Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Vienna, Prague, and Iceland.

In February 2023, as the film entered post-production, Bousman told horror news website Bloody Disgusting, "This movie has been a beast. We finally finished it a few weeks back and are currently in the middle of a deal for its release. So, hopefully, an announcement soon! Since the movie was shot primarily in Arabic, mixing it, doing the ADR, and then having to translate it has taken longer than we were expecting. Our hope is the movie will be released later this year".

Release
The Cello had its world premiere in Boulevard Riyadh City on September 8, 2023. It was released in the United Arab Emirates on September 14, 2023, where it grossed $5,314. The film was released onto 288 theater screens in the United States by Destiny Media Entertainment on December 8, 2023.