Seventeen years after Ridley Scott’s Body of Lies explored the murky depths of U.S. intelligence operations in the Middle East, its long-awaited fictional sequel—Body of Lies: Shadows of Truth—has arrived, delivering a smart, intense continuation with surprising emotional weight.
Set in 2024, the sequel finds Roger Ferris (Leonardo DiCaprio) living in obscurity in southern Italy, retired from field work and estranged from both the CIA and his former Jordanian contacts. But when a string of targeted assassinations hits high-profile intelligence operatives in Europe and North Africa, Ferris is pulled back into a world he thought he had left behind.
The plot centers around a mysterious figure known only as “Al-Mirr,” a digital-age terrorist strategist who manipulates global crises using misinformation, AI-driven networks, and rogue elements within Western agencies. When Ferris discovers the operation may be linked to someone he once trusted, he reconnects with Hani Salaam (Mark Strong), now retired but still influential in Jordanian intelligence. Their uneasy reunion sets the tone for a thriller built on shifting allegiances and unresolved consequences from their past lies.
Directed by Denis Villeneuve, Shadows of Truth trades the original’s kinetic realism for a more meditative, politically charged atmosphere. The action is precise and well-staged, but it’s the film’s exploration of disinformation, surveillance culture, and the erosion of moral clarity in a post-truth era that gives it depth.
DiCaprio delivers a nuanced, world-weary performance, portraying Ferris as a man torn between loyalty and regret. Mark Strong once again brings gravitas to the role of Hani, now facing a new kind of warfare where truth is no longer a weapon, but a liability. Newcomer Sofia Boutella impresses as a Moroccan data analyst turned whistleblower, adding both emotional and thematic tension.
Though some viewers may find the pacing slower than expected, the film’s patient build-up pays off in its third act, culminating in a nerve-racking moral dilemma reminiscent of the first film—but now refracted through modern-day geopolitics.
