‘The Hypocrite’ Weaves a Drama Thriller of Faith, Fatherhood, and the Uncharted Areas in Between

A man under watch, a life tightening under lingering pressure, and a question that refuses to settle: Who is the hypocrite? That forms the premise of As-Salaam Karim‘s upcoming project, The Hypocrite. Behind the backdrop of a political thriller, the film carries the emotional weight of a viscerally human story, aiming to grip audiences while asking them to reflect on what they believe about truth and loyalty.

Currently in pre-production, the project marks a significant creative undertaking for Karim, who brings more than a decade of experience navigating the film festival circuit. According to him, the film leans into the psychological intensity of espionage cinema, yet the heart of the movie remains grounded in the realities of a father navigating impossible circumstances to care for his children and, in the process, gets caught between personal responsibility and forces far beyond his control.

Karim’s narrative draws from the real events of his tumultuous life in the early 2000s. He highlights how the film portrays his experience through the lens of a broader cinematic language. “It’s a story of a Black American Muslim father, striving to care for his ailing children under mounting pressure, yet finding himself entangled in a web of surveillance and manipulation,” Karim says. Driven by that premise, Karim is intent on delivering a story that can resonate with most, while carrying a moral tension beneath its surface.

“I was just trying to take care of my kids. A lot of parents would do things they never imagined if their children were at risk. That’s a universal instinct,” Karim says, reflecting on the emotional foundation of the screenplay. The film, he notes, uses that instinct as its anchor to allow audiences to enter the story through empathy, not ideology.

An undercurrent of faith runs through the narrative. Karim views The Hypocrite as a medium to relay the raw and intricate realities of religion that may not always appear on the surface. “This isn’t doctrinal work or some attempt to dictate,” Karim insists. According to him, the film integrates aspects of Muslim life organically into the storytelling, allowing the audience to glimpse into the belief system, rituals, and daily practices without disrupting the pace of the plot.

“The film isn’t a story about Islam; it goes far beyond that. It’s a story in which a Muslim man lives, struggles, prays, grieves, and survives, and in doing so, lets the audience absorb the texture of that life organically. How Muslims marry, how they mourn, what their faith actually means when tested against the weight of real circumstances,” Karim explains.

He admits that the project holds particular resonance for the Muslim community, especially given the scarcity of nuanced representation in mainstream cinema. Still, he resists exclusivity, underscoring that it isn’t confined to a single demographic.

The emotional architecture of The Hypocrite, Karim says, is expansive. “We’re looking at a father’s fear, a son’s vulnerability, a community under scrutiny, a system that blurs lines between protection and intrusion. There are a lot of important stories to unpack here,” he states.

He also sees the film as corrective to the narratives that have dominated public perception. “If Islam does appear in the media, it’s not always in a way that allows people to understand it. The Hypocrite can give people a chance to see it through a human story, offering a film that can answer all their questions without them having to ask,” he adds.

Alongside its thematic ambitions, Karim positions The Hypocrite as a compelling collaborative opportunity. Through its Dawah Project or the “300 for 300” campaign, the project will invite 300 individuals to sponsor $1,000 each to fund the comprehensive film investment package. This initiative, Karim notes, is designed to move the film into its next phase, including coverage of essential pre-production elements such as talent attachment, legal structuring, and proof-of-concept materials.

In exchange, he notes that the participants will receive all-access tickets to the movie premiere, VIP passes to dinners with cast members, and special mentions in the movie credits. More significantly, it invites contributors to take part in shaping a film that aims to occupy a distinct space within the industry. “You can be part of a storytelling narrative that isn’t something you often see on television screens. You can be a part of a much-needed change in cinema,” he says.

In the long term, Karim envisions expanding the film beyond a single feature. With its layered narrative and real-life parallels, he believes that The Hypocrite carries the potential to evolve into a broader franchise or series, tapping into the global conversation that continues to unfold.

“This is why I got into filmmaking. To tell this particular story and tell it loud,” Karim says, highlighting that he needed a way to tell stories he never saw in the broader media. Twelve years later, that dream is closer than it has ever been, and the door is open.