The Dissident (2020)

Last updated:
March 24, 2026

A man walks into his country’s consulate for simple marriage paperwork. However, this routine visit turns into a meticulously planned assassination. The Dissident reconstructs this chilling event with forensic detail. Moreover, it exposes the vast web of digital espionage and political power that led directly to a journalist’s murder.

Table of Contents

Detailed Summary

Introduction to a Dissident

The film introduces Jamal Khashoggi, a prominent Saudi journalist and insider. For decades, he moved within the royal family’s circles. Consequently, his views were once aligned with the state. His perspective shifted dramatically with the rise of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (MBS). Fearing for his safety due to his increasingly critical columns for The Washington Post, Khashoggi ultimately chose self-exile in the United States.

The Digital War and Omar Abdulaziz

Meanwhile, in Montreal, a young Saudi activist named Omar Abdulaziz wages a digital war against the Saudi regime. He uses social media to mock and critique the government. Khashoggi, seeing a kindred spirit, secretly connected with Omar. Together, they planned to create a “bee army” of online activists to counter the government’s pro-MBS propaganda on Twitter. However, their communications were not secure.

The documentary shockingly reveals that Omar’s phone was infected with Pegasus, a sophisticated piece of spyware. This infection allowed the Saudi government to read all of his messages and listen to his calls, including his private conversations with Khashoggi.

The Trap in Istanbul

Jamal Khashoggi plans to marry his Turkish fiancée, Hatice Cengiz. To do so, he needs a document from the Saudi consulate in Istanbul proving his divorce. He visits once and is told to return on October 2, 2018. This, however, was a calculated trap.

The film meticulously details how a 15-member Saudi kill team, including a forensic doctor, flew into Istanbul on private jets just for this purpose. They waited inside the consulate for Khashoggi’s arrival.

The Assassination and Cover-Up

On October 2, Khashoggi enters the consulate while Hatice waits outside. The film presents translated transcripts from audio recordings captured by Turkish intelligence. These transcripts are harrowing. They detail Khashoggi’s final moments as he is ambushed, suffocated, and dismembered. Following the murder, the Saudi government engaged in a frantic and clumsy cover-up. They initially claimed Khashoggi left the consulate.

Later, as Turkish authorities leaked damning evidence, the official story changed multiple times, from a fistfight gone wrong to a rogue operation. Ultimately, the evidence points directly to an operation sanctioned at the highest levels of the Saudi government.

Movie Ending

The ending of The Dissident is sober and infuriating. Despite a UN report by Special Rapporteur Agnès Callamard finding “credible evidence” linking Mohammed bin Salman to the murder, there are no real international consequences. The United States, under the Trump administration, refuses to directly sanction the Crown Prince, citing the importance of the US-Saudi alliance. Therefore, MBS effectively gets away with it.

In addition, the sham trial held in Saudi Arabia convicts several low-level operatives but absolves the masterminds. Omar Abdulaziz continues his activism from Canada, though he is now burdened by immense guilt, believing the spyware on his phone led directly to his friend’s death. Hatice Cengiz is left to mourn and tirelessly advocate for justice on the world stage.

The film concludes with a chilling message: in a world of unchecked authoritarian power and sophisticated cyber warfare, no critic is truly safe.

Are There Post-Credits Scenes?

No, there are no post-credits or mid-credits scenes in The Dissident. The film presents its complete narrative and ends conclusively before the credits roll.

Type of Movie

The Dissident is a documentary that is expertly crafted to feel like a political thriller. It forgoes typical documentary tropes like excessive talking heads. Instead, the film uses high-quality reconstructions, kinetic editing, and a tense musical score to build suspense. It presents real-world events with the pacing and urgency of a spy movie, making its factual revelations all the more impactful.

Cast

The individuals in the documentary appear as themselves, providing firsthand accounts of the events.

Omar Abdulaziz – Saudi Arabian dissident and activist
Hatice Cengiz – Fiancée of Jamal Khashoggi
Agnès Callamard – UN Special Rapporteur on extrajudicial executions
Fahrettin Altun – Former Communications Director for the President of Turkey
John O. Brennan – Former Director of the Central Intelligence Agency
David Ignatius – Columnist for The Washington Post

Film Music and Composer

The score for The Dissident was composed by Adam Peters. Peters is known for his work with director Bryan Fogel, having also scored the Oscar-winning documentary Icarus. The music is a blend of tense, electronic synthesizers and subtle orchestral elements. Consequently, it perfectly complements the film’s thriller-like atmosphere, heightening the sense of paranoia and danger, particularly in scenes depicting the Pegasus spyware and the events inside the consulate.

Filming Locations

The primary filming locations were essential to telling the story authentically. Key locations include:

Istanbul, Turkey: This is where the central crime occurred. Director Bryan Fogel and his team filmed outside the Saudi consulate, interviewed Turkish officials, and retraced Jamal’s and Hatice’s final days together in the city.
Montreal, Canada: The film spends significant time with Omar Abdulaziz in his new home. This location highlights his isolation and the long reach of the Saudi state, which continues to harass him even in exile.
Washington, D.C., USA: As the hub of international politics and the home of The Washington Post, this location underscores the geopolitical stakes and the failure of Western powers to hold Saudi Arabia accountable.

Awards and Nominations

The Dissident received critical acclaim for its investigative rigor and compelling storytelling. Notable accolades include:

Winner: Writers Guild of America Award for Best Documentary Screenplay
Nominee: BAFTA Award for Best Documentary
Winner: Boulder International Film Festival Award for Best Documentary

Behind the Scenes Insights

Director Bryan Fogel and his team were given unprecedented access to the Turkish government’s evidence, including the complete, 400-page intelligence report on the assassination.
The film faced significant distribution challenges. Many major streaming platforms, including Netflix and Amazon Prime Video, declined to acquire it, reportedly out of fear of angering the Saudi Arabian government and jeopardizing business interests in the region.
The sophisticated CGI used to visualize the Pegasus spyware hack was created by a top visual effects company. The goal was to make the abstract concept of a digital attack feel tangible and terrifying to the audience.

Inspirations and References

The film is not inspired by a fictional work but is a direct documentation of a true event: the state-sponsored assassination of journalist Jamal Khashoggi on October 2, 2018. It draws on extensive investigative journalism from outlets like The Washington Post and The Guardian, official reports from the United Nations and Turkish authorities, and firsthand interviews with the people who were closest to the events.

Alternate Endings and Deleted Scenes

There are no known alternate endings or publicly released deleted scenes for The Dissident. Director Bryan Fogel has stated that the version released is his definitive cut. The narrative is a factual recounting of events as they unfolded, so an “alternate” ending would be contrary to the film’s entire purpose.

Book Adaptations and Differences

The Dissident is not an adaptation of a book. It is an original documentary feature based on primary source materials, interviews, and real-world investigations. Several books have been written about the Khashoggi case, but the film stands as an independent work of investigative journalism.

Memorable Scenes and Quotes

Key Scenes

The Pegasus Visualization: A chilling CGI sequence shows how the Pegasus spyware infects Omar Abdulaziz’s phone. It breaks down the process link by link, transforming a vague cyber threat into a visceral home invasion.
The Audio Transcript: In a stark, quiet scene, the text of the murder transcript scrolls across a black screen. Reading the banal conversation of the killers followed by Khashoggi’s final, desperate words is one of the most haunting moments in documentary history.
Hatice Outside the Consulate: The raw footage of Hatice Cengiz waiting for hours, her hope slowly turning to panic and dread, is utterly heartbreaking. Her genuine anguish grounds the geopolitical thriller in profound human loss.

Iconic Quotes

“Jamal was a reformist. He was not a revolutionary. All he wanted was a little tweak in the system.” – Omar Abdulaziz, on Khashoggi’s motives.
“They suffocated him. We hear him gasping for air. We hear the sound of the saw.” – A Turkish official, describing the audio evidence.
“This is not about money. This is about our dignity.” – Omar Abdulaziz, explaining his refusal to be silenced by the Saudi regime.

Easter Eggs and Hidden Details

As a factual documentary, The Dissident does not contain traditional “Easter eggs.” However, it is filled with subtle but powerful details:

The film makes a point to show Omar Abdulaziz looking at pictures of his younger brothers, who were arrested in Saudi Arabia as leverage against him. This adds a layer of personal sacrifice to his activism.
In the background of one scene, a news report on Donald Trump praising Mohammed bin Salman plays quietly. This subtly reinforces the theme of the West’s complicity.
The CGI sequences depicting Twitter’s interface show not just the “bee army’s” tweets but also the flood of pro-regime bots, visually representing the scale of the information war.

Trivia

The film’s title, The Dissident, refers not only to Jamal Khashoggi but also to Omar Abdulaziz and countless other activists silenced by authoritarian regimes.
Bryan Fogel intentionally structured the first act to feel like a story about two friends before revealing the darker murder plot, aiming to build an emotional connection to Jamal and Omar.
Due to the distribution boycott by major streamers, the film was ultimately released by the independent studio Briarcliff Entertainment, founded by Tom Ortenberg, who had previously distributed controversial films like Spotlight and Fahrenheit 9/11.

Why Watch?

This film is essential viewing. It transforms a headline into a devastating human story. As a real-life thriller, it uncovers the terrifying intersection of technology and tyranny. This documentary demands your attention and refuses to let you look away from the truth.

The Dissident (2020)