A complaint has been filed against the Netflix documentary series African Queens: Queen Cleopatra, as Cleopatra is depicted as a Black African woman. Cleopatra has long been the subject of many documentaries as she is often referred to as one of the most famous rulers of Egypt and is noted as the last Pharaoh. Netflix recently released a trailer for their upcoming documentary series African Queens: Queen Cleopatra, narrated by Jada Pinkett Smith who is also credited as an executive producer. British actress Adele James has been cast in the iconic role, but this has been met with a mixed reaction from those who have seen the trailer, including outrage from some Egyptians. Watch the trailer below: [[jwplayerwidget||https://cdn.jwplayer.com/videos/Aym6HqrT-YXhMkIor.mp4||Aym6HqrT]] James, who is mixed race, has since uploaded screenshots of racial abuse she has received to her Twitter account, whilst commenting: "If you don't like the casting, don't watch the show." As reported by <a href="https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-65322821" target="_blank" rel="noopener">BBC News</a>, a lawyer from Egypt has filed a complaint against Netflix, accusing them of violating media laws and attempting to "erase the Egyptian identity". Pinkett Smith said: "We don't often get to see or hear stories about black queens, and that was really important for me, as well as for my daughter, and just for my community to be able to know those stories because there are tons of them!" Following the release of the trailer, Netflix was forced to turn off comments after it received heavy backlash from Egyptians who were outraged at the casting choice. Cleopatra's heritage is highly debated, though it is known that she was born in the Egyptian city of Alexandria in 69 BC and came from a Greek-speaking dynasty with Macedonian lineage. <img class="size-full wp-image-1263207642" src="https://img.vt.co/2023/04/Screenshot-2023-04-21-at-11.21.56.jpg" alt="" width="1294" height="1218" />[[imagecaption|| A 1637 painting titled 'Caesar Giving Cleopatra the Throne of Egypt' by Pietro da Cortona. Credit: IanDagnall Computing / Alamy]] As per the <a href="https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/rehabilitating-cleopatra-70613486/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Smithsonian</a>, Cleopatra VII ruled Egypt for 21 years, but her ascendance to power is also a fascinating part of her story. Cleopatra and her brother Ptolemy XIII assumed command of the country, but a rift began to form between the two and soon Ptolemy sought to control Egypt as his own. Around the same time as the siblings were feuding, Julius Caeser was marching through what is now known as Italy in an attempt to cut off his political rival Pompey. Following a battle that Caeser won, Pompey fled to Egypt to seek the aid of Ptolemy, but he was instead murdered and decapitated. Caeser ventured to Egypt where he found himself on house arrest, but soon sided with Cleopatra and the pair established an army to overthrow Ptolemy and see Cleopatra as the Queen of Egypt. With Caeser as the dictator of Rome (not the Emperor), and Cleopatra sitting on the throne of Egypt, the pair struck up a relationship that created a very powerful alliance. <img class="size-full wp-image-1263207643" src="https://img.vt.co/2023/04/Screenshot-2023-04-21-at-11.23.59.jpg" alt="" width="788" height="1226" />[[imagecaption|| An Ancient Egyptian painting of Cleopatra. Credit: Mikhail Kokhanchikov / Alamy]] Both were dedicated to their empires and this would mean they saw less and less of each other, and things began to unravel for the pair. Caeser was famously assassinated by Brutus and other members of the Senate which sparked a civil war that saw Octavian (later Augustus) defeating Mark Anthony and claiming Egypt as his own, per <a href="https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/cleopatra-commits-suicide" target="_blank" rel="noopener">History.com</a>. There is widespread debate about Cleopatra's death, but it is believed that she died by suicide. <h6>Featured image credit: Lebrecht Music & Arts / Alamy</h6>

Egyptians complain after Netflix depicts Cleopatra as Black, legal action taken

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