by Nick Overall
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| Adele James in the title role of “Queen Cleopatra”… “If you don’t like the casting, don’t watch the show.” |
Streaming columnist NICK OVERALL looks at the casting controversy around the upcoming Netflix drama “Queen Cleopatra”.
NETFLIX has well and truly kicked the hornet’s nest this time.
The streaming giant is the subject of outrage after releasing a trailer for its upcoming blockbuster documentary series, “Queen Cleopatra”, in which it was revealed the famous matriarch of Egypt would be portrayed by a black actress.
That’s despite many archaeologists, scholars and historians widely believing she was of Macedonian and Greek heritage, leading scores of people to accuse Netflix of “blackwashing” the project.
“The creative choice to cast a bi-racial actor to play Cleopatra is a nod to the centuries-long conversation about the ruler’s race,” says Netflix in defence of the highly anticipated show.
“Our series re-assesses this fascinating part of her story.”
It’s no surprise the company was swift in turning the comments off on the YouTube upload of the trailer, which has already clocked up close to three million views since its debut.
The four-part docudrama, which debuts next week, comes from executive producer Jada Pinkett Smith who says she wanted to be part of the show so that she could represent black women.
But the controversial casting decision may limit just how far the story can reach.
The backlash in Egypt itself has been so intense that many are calling for it to be blocked in the country, some going as far as accusing it of attempting to “erase Egyptian identity”.
An online petition on change.org to cancel the series reportedly racked up more than 85,000 signatures before it was taken down.
Some are so enraged they’re even taking legal action against Netflix.
Mahmoud al-Semary, an Egyptian lawyer, is attempting to sue the streaming company. He not only wants the show blocked in Egypt but Netflix entirely.
So the question at the core of the whole fiasco: Was the famed Pharaoh black?
The uproar has seen a swathe of experts weigh in.
Prominent Egyptologist Zahi Hawass has been very vocal, saying Cleopatra was of Greek and Macedonian ancestry, and therefore was “light-skinned”.
But others maintain she may still have had some African heritage, including Netflix’s associate Egyptologist Sally-Ann Ashton who was consulted during production.
“Cleopatra ruled in Egypt long before the Arab settlement in North Africa. If the maternal side of her family were indigenous women, they would’ve been African, and this should be reflected in contemporary representations of Cleopatra.”
Here we find the missing link.
Cleopatra was the final active ruler of the Ptolemaic dynasty, which began with General Ptolemy, a Macedonian-Greek companion of Alexander the Great, but what has never been confirmed is the identity of her mother, leading many to speculate on her origins.
“Cleopatra’s heritage has been the subject of much academic debate, which has often been ignored by Hollywood,” reckons Netflix.
It is true that, in the past, Cleopatra has ubiquitously been portrayed as white in film, perhaps the most famous example being Joseph L Mankiewicz’s 1963 epic “Cleopatra”, which starred Elizabeth Taylor as the titular ruler.
For those interested, the famous film can today be streamed on Disney Plus but, be warned, it goes for an absolute bladder-testing four hours.
This whole drama does make one wonder, if Netflix and Pinkett Smith did indeed want to make a show to represent black women, why not choose a historical figure who was definitively of African origin?
For a lot of people, Netflix’s casting choice represents an attempt to inject modern politics into what should be a historically accurate project.
It’s interesting that on the internet movie database (IMDb) the show is listed as a “fictionalised” account of Cleopatra’s rule.
Whatever one believes, it is sad that Adele James, the actress playing Cleopatra, has become the subject of a vicious and senseless hate campaign, even receiving hundreds of death threats.
“If you don’t like the casting, don’t watch the show,” she said in response to the backlash.
That, in all this debacle, seems to be the most sensible course of action.
First published at City News, May 7, 2023
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