<span>The Dubai International Film Festival’s opening night red carpet is always a star-studded affair, so for all the celeb-spotters and selfie stars out there, here’s our pick of who to watch out for when the festival opens tonight.</span> <strong><span>Patrick Stewart</span></strong> <span>Patrick Stewart needs little introduction. To describe the list of the legendary British thespian's appearances on stage and screen as exhaustive would be an understatement, but it does him no disservice to say he is probably most celebrated for not one, but two iconic roles. On TV, Stewart played Captain Jean-Luc Picard in </span><span><em>Star Trek: The Next Generation </em></span><span>from 1987 to 1994, reprising the role for a series of big screen outings between 1994 and 2002. Not content with making one indelible mark on the public consciousness, in 2000 Stewart signed on to play the part of Professor Charles Xavier in the </span><span><em>X-Men</em></span><span> film franchise, appearing in seven movies before bowing out earlier this year in </span><span><em>Logan</em>. </span> <strong><span>Rob Reiner</span></strong> <span>Perhaps more one for the movie geeks than the celeb spotters, Reiner is better known for his work behind the camera than in front of it. That said, he has served his time as an actor too, winning two Emmys for his role as Michael Stivic in the '70s sitcom </span><span><em>All in the Family</em></span><span>, and also appearing in films such as </span><span><em>Throw Momma from the Train</em></span><span> (1987), </span><span><em>The First Wives Club </em></span><span>(1996), and more recently playing Jordan Belfort's dad, Max, in </span><span><em>The Wolf of Wall Street</em></span><span>. As a director, meanwhile, Reiner's CV is up there with the best, covering comedy (</span><span><em>This is Spinal Tap</em></span><span>, 1984), drama (</span><span><em>Stand by Me</em></span><span>, 1986), fantasy (</span><span><em>The Princess Bride</em></span><span>, 1987), romance (</span><span><em>When Harry Met Sally</em></span><span>, 1989) and horror (</span><span><em>Misery</em></span><span>, 1990). Reiner comes to Diff with his latest film, </span><span><em>Shock and Awe</em></span><span>, a political thriller dealing with the machinations of the United States government in the run-up to the 2003 invasion of Iraq.</span> <strong><span>Alesha Dixon</span></strong> <span>Dixon found fame with the UK R'n'B outfit Mis-Teeq, and has released four solo albums since the band split in 2005. Currently, however, she is probably best known to fans of reality TV, having won the UK's </span><span><em>Strictly Come Dancing</em></span><span> in 2007 before going on to become a judge on that show; and for </span><span><em>Britain's Got Talent </em></span><span>and </span><span><em>The X Factor</em></span><span><em>,</em></span><span> where she has deputised on various occasions for talent show judges Nicole Scherzinger, Sharon Osbourne and Simon Cowell.</span> <strong><span>Irrfan Khan</span></strong> <span>Khan is one of a select band of Bollywood actors who have made the leap to international stardom, in Khan's case through successfully transitioning to both British and Hollywood cinema. His first flirtation with international fame came with a minor role in 2007's </span><span><em>A Mighty Heart</em></span><span>, and he has since gone on to star in films including </span><span><em>Slumdog Millionaire</em></span><span><em>, </em></span><span><em>The Amazing Spider-Man</em></span><span> and </span><span><em>Life of Pi</em></span><span><em>.</em></span> <strong><span>Sarah Jessica Parker</span></strong> <span>The </span><span><em>Sex and the City </em></span><span>star flies into town to fill in for the absent Eva Longoria at this year's Global Gift Gala. Prior to her rise to fame as Carrie Bradshaw in HBO's blockbuster TV series, starting in 1998, she had also appeared in '80s cult classic films such as</span><span><em> Footloose</em></span><span> and </span><span><em>Girls Just Want to Have Fun</em></span><span>, and she is back on the small screen in the HBO black comedy </span><span><em>Divorce</em></span><span>, for which she was nominated for a Golden Globe Award last year.</span> _________________________ <strong>Read more about Diff 2017:</strong> _________________________
