Legal adviser and attorney of the Culture Minister, Essam Khalaf, submitted a complaint with the Public Prosecution against the Netflix platform in Egypt for committing several violations due to the release of the documentary film “Queen Cleopatra.”
Khalaf demanded that the movie be canceled from the Netflix platform and permanently prevented from being shown.
In his lawsuit Khalaf accused the platform of allowing the series to be shown without obtaining approvals for reviewing the artistic idea and the way it is embodied, not obtaining the approval of the Antiquities and Culture ministries regarding the embodiment of a historical Egyptian figure, and not obtaining a permit to film works containing archaeological features in Egypt.
Netflix has infringed upon the mental image of historical assets to such an extent that the documentary now classifies as historical forgery, he claimed.
This requires the producing company to put a notice that the scenes and characters are faking real historical assets.
Khalaf also accused the platform of insulting an Egyptian national symbol in violation of the law, while showing contempt for the culture of the Egyptian people and its archaeological heritage, as well as contempt for Egyptian social life.
He noted that the Secretary-General of the Supreme Council of Antiquities, Mostafa Waziri, issued a statement commenting on the appearance of Queen Cleopatra VII with African features and dark skin.
Waziri stressed that the casting is a falsification of Egyptian history, especially since the film is classified as a documentary rather than a drama, which means those in charge must investigate accuracy and rely on historically proven fact.
Former Egyptian Antiquities Minister Zahi Hawass described depicting Queen Cleopatra as a black woman as “falsifying facts”, adding that “This is completely fake. Cleopatra was Greek, meaning that she was blonde, not black.” Queen Cleopatra, the last ruler of the Ptolemaic dynasty, was born in 69 BC and died in 30 BC in Alexandria.
Prior lawsuit
Egyptian lawyer Mahmoud al-Semary previously filed a case with the Public Prosecutor to shut down the Netflix platform in Egypt, following the trailer release of “Queen Cleopatra. ” A new documentary depicting the historical figure as a black woman.
The Egyptian lawyer has demanded that serious legal action be taken against those responsible for the making of the documentary. He blamed the Netflix management team for its participation in “this crime”.
‘They are stealing my culture’!
Egyptian satirist and journalist Bassem Youssef slammed Netflix’s “Queen Cleopatra”, calling it a falsification of history after it released the special trailer for the documentary series which revolves around Queen Cleopatra VII.
Youssef Tweeted: “People from West Africa and other nationalities agree with the point of view that I put forward. It is very important when we defend our point of view or our history that we do this with politeness and respect for other civilizations.”
“It is never true that while we defend our history we insult or underestimate other ethnicities or civilizations, that is why I insisted that I speak with respect about the civilizations of West Africa, because these people are not our enemies and they will respect us when we respect their history.”
Critically panned
Netflix’s “Queen Cleopatra” documentary has received the worst audience rating ever in TV show history on Rotten Tomatoes, according to a Forbes report. The series got a one percent audience approval rate due to the great turnout of Egyptians to express their anger at its falsification of history, Forbes reported. The Netflix film about the story of Cleopatra made her appear dark-skinned as if her origins were African and not Macedonian.
