Beirut, also known as The Negotiator in the United Kingdom,[2] is a 2018 American political thriller film[3] directed by Brad Anderson and written by Tony Gilroy.

He meets Bernard, a local fixer, and several government officials, including CIA Officer Donald Gaines, CIA Officer Sandy Crowder, Colonel Gary Ruzak of the National Security Council, and Ambassador Frank Whalen, and learns that Cal Riley was recently abducted in Lebanon.

The next day, while Skiles is conducting the lecture at the American University of Beirut (the official reason for his visit), a car bomb is set off outside the building.

Karim brings him to Riley, who covertly tells Skiles that the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) is holding Rafid and that Gaines is not to be trusted.

She reveals that Gaines had been stealing money from the embassy and that Riley has made a written report, but didn't deliver it to CIA authorities, shortly before his disappearance.

Skiles curses Rafid for his past deeds killing innocent people before walking out to negotiate with Karim, staying until his friend Riley is safely back with Crowder.

Crowder announces her intention to apply for the newly vacant station chief job, and Skiles offers his services as a negotiator.

As the film ends, news footage is shown of the subsequent 1982 Israeli invasion of Lebanon, increasing international involvement in the country, and, finally, the 1983 bombings of the U.S. Embassy and the U.S. Marine Corps' barracks.

[5] In May 2015, Deadline Hollywood reported that High Wire Act would be directed by Brad Anderson and that Jon Hamm had signed on to star.

The website's critical consensus reads, "Beirut tells a complex, tightly plotted tale of international intrigue, further elevated by strong central performances from Jon Hamm and Rosamund Pike.

"[18] The Financial Times' Damon Wise wrote that "Beirut proves surprisingly sensitive in its handling of the Middle East, mapping out an area of nuanced power struggle rather than a cartoon Casablanca-style warzone.

He points out that no Lebanese actors are featured in the film, and cites a social media hashtag, #BoycottBeirutMovie, as evidence of the trailer's reception in Lebanon.

[21] Walaa Chahine, writing for the Huffington Post, echoed similar criticisms, arguing that the trailer "seems to follow the same rhetoric so many other Middle East thrillers like to portray - Arabs are barbaric and uncivilized, and their countries are a mess".