Vin Diesel Wheels Michael Caine Along Red Sea Film Festival Red Carpet as Sean Baker Compares Saudi to ‘Early Days of Hollywood’

The fifth edition of Saudi Arabia’s Red Sea Film Festival kicked off on Thursday with a glitzy red carpet for the Middle East premiere of Rowan Athale’s Sylvester-Stallone produced “Giant,” starring Egyptian-British actor Amir El Masry as iconic British-Yemeni featherweight “Prince” Naseem Hamed and Pierce Brosnan as his trainer. 

Stars walking the carpet included Dakota Johnson, Uma Thurman, Ana de Armas, head of jury Sean Baker and jury members Riz Ahmed, Naomie Harris, Nadine Labaki and Olga Kurylenko, as well as Queen Latifah and Nina Dobrev, who engaged in-depth conversations on-stage at the festival earlier in the day. The carpet’s most momentous exchange, however, happened between Vin Diesel and Michael Caine. The “Fast and Furious” star, who received the festival’s Special Recognition Award in 2024, wheeled the legendary British actor onto the red carpet, where they warmly posed for the cameras. 

Related Stories

Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade Draws Record 34 Million Viewers on NBC, Peacock in Early Numbers

'Sunday Night Football': How to Watch Lions vs. Eagles Live Online Without Cable for Free

Diesel and Caine worked together on 2015’s “The Last Witch Hunter,” with the American actor taking to the stage at the opening ceremony to award Caine his honoree prize. Before praising Caine, Diesel pointed at Baker and joked: “You’re making us all want to make independent movies,” then repeating his infamous 2024 line: “You see more people from Hollywood here [in Jeddah] than at the Oscars.”

“Tonight is more special for me personally because I’ve been asked to recognize someone who you all know as one of the best actors who’s ever lived,” said Diesel. “He’s been somebody that, as Uma Thurman said, could play character roles or main roles, and all the while has more charisma in his finger than most people in Hollywood.”

“I’m here to get an award, which doesn’t surprise me. I won two Oscars,” quipped Caine on stage, where he was supported by three of his grandchildren. “I have a fabulous family that I adore beyond belief. I’ve had a fairly fabulous movie family, some who’ve let me down, and I love them beyond belief, including the failures. I kept going until I was 90, which is two years ago. I’m not going to do anything else, I’ve had all the luck I can get.”

“And one of the luckiest things is tonight,” said a clearly moved Caine. “I’m just so happy to be here. I’ve seen it on television but never won anything here, so I’m happy. I want to thank you for the surprise, because in show business you don’t get many surprises, you get a couple of shocks and that’s about it.” 

Caine joins Sigourney Weaver, Juliette Binoche, Rachid Bouchareb and Stanley Tong as festival honorees this year. The stars will continue to make their way through Jeddah this week, with guests including Jessica Alba, Adrien Brody, Darren Aronofsky and “The Voice of Hind Rajab” director Kaouther Ben Hania.

Speaking at the opening ceremony, Baker said he was “incredibly excited” to be in Saudi, which he compared to the “early days of Hollywood” due to the “endless possibilities” in cinema. “While we are fighting to save screens in the U.S., in five years, hundreds of cinemas have opened here. That makes Saudi the fastest growing box office in the world. As a cinephile whose world is movies, the leaps and bounds happening here are insightful, inspirational and heartwarming.” 

Chairwoman of the Red Sea Film Foundation Jomana R. Alrashid spoke about the impact of the foundation over the last five years. “We have quietly but surely built what many thought was impossible: an ecosystem where filmmakers from across [Asia, Africa and the Arab world] were empowered to lead.”

Alrashid emphasized how seven Red Sea Fund-backed projects have been chosen by their countries as Oscar representatives since the beginning of the funding program, a testament to a fund that has supported over 130 projects in the last half decade. The exec also “implored” filmmakers to cease the opportunity to “change perspectives” through changes in paradigm, such as the strength of streamers and new technologies on the rise. “Where creators who once faced barriers now find open doors. This is the most precious gift a creator can have: access and a voice.”

On the honorees front, Bouchareb said he feels “hopeful for Arab cinema.” “Even in challenging times for the Arab world and its people I am glad to see us telling our stories and welcoming artists from all around the world.”

Jessica Alba presented the award to iconic stunt coordinator and regular Jackie Chan collaborator Stanley Tong by praising how his work “shaped how we experience action on screen.” Tong thanked the people who “trusted” him throughout his career. “For all the falls, tough shots and impossible action sequences, it taught me one thing: cinema belongs to those actors who never give up, like Jackie Chan,” he added. Tong went on to say he hopes to return to Jeddah next year to shoot a Chinese-Saudi co-production he has already written for Chan to star in after the duo visited the festival two years ago. 

Binoche got visibly emotional, holding back tears before muttering into the microphone, “I am not going to cry.” In an emotional speech, she said: “Being in an international film festival is very special. It opens your heart even more. It gives so much horizon to your mind. I wish you the best festival ever. Thank you so much for this, it’s very special.”

The Red Sea Film Festival takes place in Jeddah between Dec. 4-13.