Adrian Smith has seen the upcoming Iron Maiden documentary — and says fans are in for a few surprises.
Speaking to Brazil’s Kazagastão, the guitarist weighed in on Iron Maiden: Burning Ambition, which hits theaters for a limited run starting 05/07. “Yeah, I have [seen it]. 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,” he said. “But I think it’s a good document of the band, and I think fans will enjoy it. There are 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,” Smith said (via Blabbermouth)
Smith also touched on Iron Maiden: Infinite Dreams – The Official Visual History, the hardcover book published globally in autumn 2025, covering the band’s first five decades. For Smith, the most compelling material is the mundane stuff — the kind that puts 100 million records sold into perspective.
“I love some of the old photos,” he said. “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 [Maiden 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.”
Asked whether he and Bruce Dickinson took the band to another level when they came on board, Smith deflected on his own behalf but was direct about Dickinson‘s impact. “I can’t really talk about myself, but Bruce definitely did, because as much as we love [former Iron Maiden singer] Paul [Di’Anno], I don’t think he had the same mindset as Bruce, the same determination to succeed, commitment,” he said.
“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 — they needed to go on the road for six, eight months at a stretch. And that’s what rock bands have to do. 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.”
On his own contributions, Smith pointed to his songwriting track record. “I’ve been a part of it. I think we all worked hard to get to another level. Maybe, hopefully, my contributions, writing-wise, helped,” he said. “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, or do contribute.”
Directed by Malcolm Venville (Churchill At War) and produced by Dominic Freeman (Spirits In The Forest – A Depeche Mode Film), Iron Maiden: Burning Ambition traces the band’s five-decade run and features on-camera appearances from Javier Bardem, Lars Ulrich, and Chuck D.
The film arrives as Iron Maiden continues its two-year “Run For Your Lives” world tour, with over 50 shows planned for 2026 — including EddFest, a one-off celebration at Knebworth Park, England on 07/11.
