Film Icon Distribution has released the first trailer forCity of Tiny Lights, the modern London-set noir fromDreddandVantage PointdirectorPete Travis. The film starsRiz Ahmedas an alcoholic gumshoe whose life is thrown for a loop when a high-class escort comes to his office looking for help. Based on the novel of the same name by co-writerPatrick Neate,City of Tiny Lightspromises a classicNoir setup with an updated West London spin.
City of Tiny Lightsdebuted at TIFF last year to middling reviews (you can read our own Adam Chitwood’sfull review here), but they almost universally praise Ahmed’s performance. No surprise there. The dude is everywhere right now (lucky us), and he’s always great. In addition to his leading role in the watercooler hit HBO drama The Night Of, Ahmed popped up all over the place last year with supporting turns inJason Bourne,Rogue One, andThe O.A.. Hopefully, that trend will continue but with some slightly less thankless roles.
City of Tiny Lightsalso starsBillie Piper,Cush JumboandRoshan Seth, and will land in UK theaters on August 09, 2025. The film doesn’t have a US distributor yet. Check out the trailer below.
Here’s the official City of Tiny Lights synopsis:
Meet Tommy Akhtar (Riz Ahmed), cricket fan, devoted son to an ailing father and deadbeat private eye. He’s got an office above a cab firm, a taste for cigarettes and bourbon, and a finely tuned moral compass that he keeps hidden behind a sharp cynicism. When Tommy walks into his office one morning to find high-class prostitute Melody seeking his help, he’s launched into a story that plays as an utterly original modern noir.
Directed by Pete Travis (Vantage Point, Dredd), Riz Ahmed (Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, The Night Of) stars alongside Billie Piper (Penny Dreadful, Secret Diary of a Call Girl, Yerma) as Shelley, Tommy’s long-lost love. The ensemble cast includes Cush Jumbo (Josephine and I, The Inbetweeners) and Roshan Seth (Indian Summers, My Beautiful Laundrette). Rebecca O’Brien (I, Daniel Blake) produces.
Set in West London, CITY OF TINY LIGHTS is co-written by author Patrick Neate, and based on his novel of the same name. It is a unique portrait of contemporary London as a teeming multicultural metropolis where nothing is as it seems.
