Black Adam costar Sarah Shahi is hopeful Warner Bros.’ DC Extended Universe film will help to shatter Middle Eastern stereotypes on the big screen.
Shahi, who is Persian-American, talked about her role in Black Adam and what it means to her, telling The Hollywood Reporter, “[There’s] not a lot of Middle Eastern representation out there, so being in a movie like this really helps make a statement for my culture and where I come from. There are other Middle Eastern actors that I know who are either getting cast in terrorist roles or they’re really being stereotyped by how they look.”
Black Adam has drawn criticism for its Middle Eastern representation, starting with Dwayne Johnson’s casting as the titular character, who began as a villain before evolving into an antihero in DC’s comic books. Whereas Johnson’s father is Black Nova Scotian and his mother is Samoan, Black Adam’s revamped comic book origin story revealed he was born Teth-Adam, the ruler of the fictional ancient Middle Eastern country Kahndaq. Moreover, some fans have expressed concerns about Dutch-Tunisian actor Marwan Kenzari possibly being cast to play a stereotypical Middle Eastern villain in the film.
All the same, Shahi believes Black Adam has the potential to “break open” the stereotypes around the casting of MENA (Middle Eastern/North African) actors in movies. “And hopefully, Hollywood will become more colorblind in a way, and will open itself up to more Middle Eastern actors and storylines,” she said, adding, “And on top of that, this is the first thing I’ve been a part of that my kids can actually watch. (Laughs.) So that’s nice.”
Shahi also seemingly reaffirmed she’s playing the DCEU’s Adrianna Tomaz/Isis during her interview with The Hollywood Reporter, describing her as “a freedom fighter that’s leading this big resistance against an evil, malicious group called Intergang.” A criminal organization powered by weaponry and technology from the planet Apokolips, Intergang was created for DC’s comic books by Jack Kirby and first appeared during Oct. 1970’s Superman’s Pal Jimmy Olsen #133.
Directed by Jaume Collet-Serra, Black Adam stars Dwayne Johnson, Noah Centineo, Aldis Hodge, Pierce Brosnan, Quintessa Swindell, Pierce Brosnan, Mo Amer, Marwan Kenzari, Bodhi Sabongui, James Cusati-Moyer, Sarah Shahi and Uli Latukefu. The film arrives in theaters July 29, 2022.
Source: The Hollywood Reporter
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