Mena Massoud has traded Aladdin’s Agrabah for ancient Babylon. Daniel and the Fiery Furnace opened in theaters on September 18, with Massoud playing the young prophet Daniel and Elijah Alexander playing King Nebuchadnezzar. The live-action drama is rated PG and runs 1 hour 48 minutes, according to its Canadian distributor.
The film begins during Israel’s exile in Babylon. Daniel rises inside a powerful empire, but the king’s demand for absolute worship creates an impossible test for the people around him. Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego refuse to bow before Nebuchadnezzar’s golden image. The punishment is the blazing furnace promised in the title.
The three men at the center of the furnace story
Sunjay Midda plays Shadrach, Adam Lahraoui plays Meshach and Zaki Ali plays Abednego. Their decision drives the film’s largest confrontation: obey the king and betray their faith, or stand together and face death. The story is not presented as a surprise twist. Its tension comes from watching them choose defiance when they know the cost.
Massoud’s Daniel is positioned as the larger figure connecting the palace and the exiles. He is also one of the film’s producers. Alexander’s Nebuchadnezzar supplies the opposing force, a ruler whose power seems absolute until the furnace becomes the site of a miracle.
Who made Daniel and the Fiery Furnace?
Matthew and Daniel Kooman, known together as the Kooman Brothers, wrote and directed the film. The producing team includes the brothers, Travis Mann and Massoud. The official movie site also highlights music connected to the release, including “Walk Thru Fire” by Trevor McNevan and TobyMac.
The production is openly aimed at faith-based audiences, but it has chosen the scale of a theatrical historical drama: palace rooms, crowds, desert landscapes and a furnace large enough to dominate the screen. Its promise is a familiar biblical story staged as a full movie rather than a short lesson.
The film also has strong Canadian roots. Massoud was born in Cairo and raised in Ontario, while the Kooman Brothers built their filmmaking careers in Canada. Faith Films is handling the Canadian theatrical presentation, and the official campaign has included group-screening resources for churches and community audiences.
The September 18 opening is theatrical. Showtime availability varies by city, and the official site directs viewers to local ticket listings. No streaming date is announced on the sources used for this report.
Daniel and the Fiery Furnace arrives with a clear audience and a clear dramatic question. The king can command an empire, but the film asks what happens when three people decide that fear will not make their choice for them.
