Tunisian-Chinese international film ‘Agent 86’ in cinemas from September 25

From Tuesday 25 September, fans of action and drama films can enjoy the film ‘Agent 86’ by Tunisian director, actor, producer and screenwriter Bassem Khayati.

Starting next Tuesday, action movie fans can get to know the versatile creative energy of Tunisian Bassem Khayati, who grew from martial arts enthusiast and trainer in China to an internationally known actor and director with 50 films to his name. In these films he worked with Hollywood action movie heroes such as Jackie Chan (7 films) and Bruce Willis.

The press screening of ‘Agent 86’ took place on Friday in the presence of director, producer and lead actor Bassam El Khayati, together with a number of leading actors from the film.

Premiering in Tunisia, ‘Agent 86’ is the second version of the film work that was initially shot in the form of a detective series. It was intended to shoot a second part, but the COVID-19 pandemic prevented this. Therefore, it was decided to make the series in film form.

The story revolves around a secret agent (Dali/Bassem Khayati) and his team who fight against an international mafia that is involved in drug trafficking. This mafia has flooded the market with an extremely dangerous narcotic substance called ‘Devil’s Breath’.

The film stars several actors, including British actor Kevin Lee as Raphael, a mafia boss.

Although the agents managed to arrest Raphael, the drug shipment was still on its way to Tunisia at the end of the film. According to director Bassem Khayati, this is an indication that another part of the film is being shot in Tunisia.

While the direction, acting and plot of the film were good points, the dubbing of the film was in Shami dialect, which led to the question of how this dialect was preferred over Tunisian. Khayati explains that the first reason is commercial to promote the film in the Arab region, and the coronavirus pandemic prevented the director from moving and staying in Tunisia for a long time to follow the dubbing process. However, he stressed that the future will see the participation and dubbing in Tunisian dialect.

Bassam El Khayati is a young Tunisian martial arts enthusiast and trainer in Tunisia. Yet his ambition was big. He traveled to China in 2007 to continue his education and become a trainer, then an action movie actor with Jackie Chan and others before deepening his knowledge in film directing, scripting and production.