The Mauritanian (R)

Detainee Mohamedou Ould Slahi (of the film's title) has stated that his treatment in Guantanamo was much more brutal and inhumane than portrayed in this movie.

Civil rights lawyer Nancy Hollander (played here by Jodie Foster) has stated in an interview that she gasped when she first walked onto the 'Guantanamo' set for this movie, it was so eerily like the very place she'd conducted so many of her interviews with actual detainee Mohamedou Ould Slahi. Hollander also fielded numerous phone calls from the production team in their pursuit of accuracy for the interview line of questioning.

Top-billed French actor Tahar Rahim - playing detained terrorist suspect Mohamedou Ould Slahi - ironically portrayed real-life FBI agent Ali Soufan charged with investigating the 9/11 terrorist threats in The Looming Tower (2018).

Despite playing a Mauritanian, Tahar Rahim is of Algerian descent.

Epilogue: "Although he won his Habeas petition, the Obama administration appealed and Mohamedou remained in custody for a further 7 years. He never saw his mother again. She died in 2013. Nancy and Teri continued to visit Mohamedou on alternate months, working with the ACLU to fight for his release. After years of legal wrangling, in 2015 Mohamedou published his letters under the title 'Guantánamo Diary.' Although heavily redacted by the government, the book became a bestseller and brought public attention to his case. He was finally released on October 17, 2016, having spent 14 years and two months in prison. He was never charged with a crime. Mohamedou Ould Slahi is back living in Mauritania. In 2018, he married Kitty, an American lawyer. They have a son, Ahmed. Due to ongoing visa issues, the family have not been able to live together. They hope that a country will step forward to offer them protection and citizenship. Nancy Hollander continues to work as a defense lawyer. Her clients include one of the 40 men still held in Guantánamo, and whistle-blower Chelsea Manning. Stuart Couch retired from the Marine Corps and now works for the Department of Justice. Theresa Terry Duncan continues to practice criminal law, specializing in specialising in death penalty cases. Neither the CIA, the Department of Defense, nor any other US government agency has ever admitted responsibility, or offered any apology for abuse that occurred at Guantánamo. Of the 779 prisoners who have been held at Guantánamo, eight have been convicted of a crime. Three of these convictions have been overturned on appeal."