Iron Maiden guitarist Adrian Smith has shared his thoughts on the band's upcoming feature documentary, Iron Maiden: Burning Ambition, set for a limited theatrical release on May 7, 2026.
Speaking with Brazil's Kazagastão, Smith described his reaction to seeing the film: "Yeah, I have. And I really enjoyed it, which might sound funny, but when there's something on a big screen about you, it can be a bit – you wanna hide behind the chairs.
"But I think it's a good document of the band, and I think fans will enjoy it. There's a few things in there that have never come to light before, and it goes into depth on a few things. So I think people are really gonna enjoy it."
Directed by Malcolm Venville (Churchill At War) and produced by Dominic Freeman (Spirits In The Forest – A Depeche Mode Film), the documentary charts Iron Maiden's five-decade evolution and includes on-camera reflections from high-profile admirers such as Javier Bardem, Lars Ulrich, and Chuck D.
Smith also reflected on the band's recently published hardback, Iron Maiden: Infinite Dreams – The Official Visual History, which was released globally in autumn 2025 to celebrate the band's first 50 years.
"I love some of the old photos. It's almost like a different life back in the '80s when I was in the band, a different person. But I love the stuff in it, like [founder] Steve Harris's diary, talking about getting just a couple of bucks to do a show and having to buy guitar strings and petrol and counting all the pennies. Stuff like that is priceless. It's great that he's kept that stuff," Smith said.
Asked whether he and Bruce Dickinson helped take the band to another level when they joined, Smith credited Dickinson's professionalism and determination as pivotal: "Bruce definitely did, because as much as we love [former singer] Paul [Di'Anno], I don't think he had the same mindset as Bruce, the same determination to succeed, commitment.
"Bruce was all about commitment and professionalism, and he could sing night after night after night. And that's what the band needed to do. They needed to go on the road for six, eight months at a stretch… No one's gonna hand them success with, 'Okay, we'll play you on the radio. You'll be stars.' There's none of that."
Smith also highlighted his own contributions as a songwriter: "A lot of the singles that we used, 'Flight Of Icarus' and 'Wasted Years' and stuff like that, were my ideas, my songs – '2 Minutes To Midnight' – co-writes, really. So I feel like I hopefully contributed in that way."
