Controversy over Netflix’s “African Queens: Queen Cleopatra” Documentary Series Depicting Cleopatra as Black

2023-04-22 19:28:10

image caption,

African Queens: “Queen Cleopatra” features British actress Adele James as the Egyptian sovereign.

Article information

• Author, David Gritten
• Role, BBC News

• 2 hours ago

A Netflix documentary series that portrays Queen Cleopatra VII as a black African has sparked controversy in Egypt.

A lawyer has filed a lawsuit accusing African Queens: Queen Cleopatra of violating media laws and aiming to “erase Egyptian identity”.

A renowned archaeologist has insisted that Cleopatra had “light skin, not black”.

But the producer said “his legacy is very controversial” and the actress who plays him responded to criticism: “If you don’t like the cast, don’t watch the show.”

Adele James made the comment in a Twitter post that featured screenshots of offensive comments that included racial slurs.

Cleopatra was born in the Egyptian city of Alexandria in 69 BC and became the last queen of a Greek-speaking dynasty founded by Ptolemy, the Macedonian general of Alexander the Great.

She succeeded her father Ptolemy XII in 51 BC. J.-C. and reigns until his death in 30 BC J6C. Subsequently, Egypt fell under Roman rule.

The identity of Cleopatra’s mother is not known, and historians say it is possible that she, or any other female ancestor, was an indigenous Egyptian or from another region of Africa.

Netflix’s companion website Tudum reported in February that the choice of Adele James, a mixed-race British actress, to play Cleopatra in its new documentary series was “a nod to the centuries-long conversation regarding the race of the sovereign”.

American actress Jada Pinkett Smith, executive producer and narrator, reportedly said, “We don’t often get to talk regarding race, we don’t often get to see or hear stories regarding black queens, and it was really important for me, for my daughter and for my community to be able to know these stories because there are tons of them!

But when the trailer aired last week, many Egyptians condemned the depiction of Cleopatra.

Zahi Hawass, a prominent Egyptologist and former minister of antiquities, told al-Masry al-Youm newspaper: “It is a fake. Cleopatra was Greek, which means she had light skin, not black. “.

Mr Hawass said the only Egyptian rulers known to have been black were the Kushite kings of the 25th Dynasty (747-656 BC).

“Netflix is ​​trying to confuse people by spreading false and misleading facts that the origin of Egyptian civilization is black,” he added, calling on Egyptians to take a stand once morest the streaming giant.

On Sunday, lawyer Mahmoud al-Semary filed a complaint with the Attorney General, asking him to take “the necessary legal measures” and block access to Netflix services in Egypt.

He claimed the series included visual material and content that violated Egyptian media laws and accused Netflix of trying to “promote Afrocentric thought. […] which includes slogans and writings aimed at distorting and erasing Egyptian identity”.

Three years ago, plans for a film regarding Cleopatra starring Israeli actress Gal Gadot sparked heated debate on social media, with some people insisting the role should instead go to an Arab or African actress.

Gal Gadot later defended the casting decision, saying “we were looking for a Macedonian, we were looking for a Macedonian actress who might play Cleopatra. She wasn’t there, and I was very passionate regarding Cleopatra.”

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