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DUBAI: Israeli actress Gal Gadot will reunite with Wonder Woman director Patty Jenkins in a new historical drama based on the life of the legendary queen of Egypt, Cleopatra.
Gadot, who gained prominence for her role as Wonder Woman in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, will play the Egyptian queen herself in the upcoming Paramount Film production.
“As you may have heard, I partnered with @PattyJenks and @LKalogridis to bring the story of Cleopatra, Queen of Egypt, to the big screen in a way that has never been seen before,” the actress wrote on Twitter Sunday. “To tell her story for the first time through the eyes of women, both behind and in front of the camera.”
She continued: “We are especially delighted to announce this on # International Girl’s Day. We hope that women and girls around the world who aspire to tell stories will never give up their dreams and make their voices heard, by and for other women.
The casting news turned out to be divisive on social media, with some users expressing their discontent with an Israeli actress playing the role of the legendary Egyptian queen who was of Greek and Macedonian descent.
Gal Gadot’s casting is just another blow in the long history of whitewashing and the legacy of colonial Egyptology striving to sever all connections between (broadly defined) Egyptians and the history of their land.
– Alaa Murad (@zarqawiyyah) October 11, 2020
“Gal Gadot’s casting is just another blow in the long history of whitewashing and the legacy of colonial Egyptology striving to sever all connections between (broadly defined) Egyptians and the history of their land,” wrote one user of Twitter
Meanwhile, others on social media believe Gadot’s casting is appropriate.
“I’m going to say this once and I’m not going to repeat it, Cleopatra was Greek,” wrote one user on Twitter. “Yes, she was an Egyptian ruler but she was Greek with Persian and Syrian descent. People who are reacting negatively to this are uneducated and uninformed. Gal Gadot deserves this role. “
The Egyptian queen was played by Elizabeth Taylor in director Joseph L. Mankiewicz’s 1963 epic, “Cleopatra.”
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