'Hotel Mumbai' Trailer: Dev Patel And Armie Hammer Are Caught In A Terrorist Attack

In 2008, as Dev Patel's breakout hit Slumdog Millionaire was in a limited run in North American theaters, a group of ten terrorists organized a series of bombings and shooting attacks in India's financial capital of Mumbai. More than 170 people were killed, and more than 300 were injured. Ten years later, Patel is starring in a movie about those events.

In Hotel Mumbai, Patel plays a newly-promoted waiter who's on the clock at the Taj Mahal Palace Hotel when the attacks begin, and Armie Hammer (Call Me By Your Name) co-stars as a wealthy American who's also caught in the chaos. Check out the first trailer below.

With this and the Best Exotic Marigold Hotel franchise, it seems like Dev Patel has a thing for starring in hotel-related films, doesn't it? But the actor has come a long way since his breakout role on the British TV series Skins, popping up in films like Chappie and shows like The Newsroom and earning particular acclaim for his performance in 2016's Lion. He makes acting look easy, always evoking empathy and able to play a relatable everyman as well as anyone of his generation.

Hammer, who launched into the spotlight in The Social Network, has settled into more of a character actor after a few misses as a leading man. He's far more effective in movies like Sorry to Bother You (where he's allowed to make some big choices) than in things like The Lone Ranger (where you can feel the weight of the movie on his shoulders). However, this trailer doesn't really show him doing much of anything, so hopefully he has an opportunity to shine as part of the ensemble cast in this intense true story.

The film marks the feature directorial debut of Aussie director Anthony Maras, and stars Patel, Hammer, Nazanin Bonaidi, Anupam Kher, Tilda Cobham-Hervey, Jason Isaacs, Suhail Nayyar, and Natasha Liu Bordizzo.

Here's the official synopsis:

Hotel Mumbai is based on the true story of the devastating terrorist attack on the Taj Mahal Palace Hotel in 2008. The terrifying assault brings together the guests and staff of the luxurious hotel including wealthy new parents David and Zahra (Armie Hammer and Nazanin Boniadi), Russian businessman Vasili (Jason Issacs) and newly promoted waiter Arjun (Dev Patel) in a desperate fight for survival. This story celebrates humanity, compassion, courage, resilience and the unwavering desire to survive.

Hotel Mumbai arrives in theaters on March 29, 2019.