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Updated 14th January 2021
Who was the real Cleopatra?
Written by Christobel Hastings, CNN
The history of the ancient world abounds with stories of all-powerful women. Take Nefertiti, the 18th-dynasty Egyptian queen who established a new religion and kickstarted a cultural revolution as the wife of Pharaoh Akhenaten; or Zenobia, a third-century warrior queen of Palmyra, who conquered Egypt and defied the Roman Empire.
But perhaps the most legendary of all is Cleopatra. The final ruler of Egypt s Ptolemaic dynasty, she used her political tact, personal connections and endless capacity for reinvention to become the sole woman of the ancient world to rule alone.
Greek-American Laeta Kalogridis to write new ‘Cleopatra’ Movie
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Everyone’s favourite Pharaoh is heading back to the movies.
Paramount Pictures won the rights to a new “Cleopatra” movie, with Greek-American screenwriter Laeta Kalogridis selected to write the new film.
As opposed to 1963’s legendary, Elizabeth Taylor-starring
Cleopatra, which was helmed by director Joseph L. Mankiewicz and written by a small group of men, women will lead the charge on this new movie.
The new movie will be written by Laeta Kalogridis, directed by Patty Jenkins and will featuring Israeli actress Gal Gadot.
“Incredibly excited to get the chance to tell the story of Cleopatra, my favorite Ptolemaic Pharoah and arguably the most famous Macedonian Greek woman in history. Never thought I’d have the opportunity to tell a story like this, with women who have inspired me beyond words,” Kalogridis tweeted.
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JTA Gal Gadot is pushing back against claims that she is whitewashing Egyptian history by portraying Cleopatra in an upcoming film.
“First of all, if you want to be true to the facts, then Cleopatra was Macedonian,” the Israeli actress said in an interview Tuesday with BBC Arabic. “We were looking for a Macedonian actress that could fit Cleopatra. She wasn’t there, and I was very passionate about Cleopatra.”
After the blockbuster project was announced in October, critics took to social media to argue that the character should be portrayed by an Arab actress. Cleopatra was the last monarch of the Ptolemaic Kingdom of Egypt, which ruled the country from 305 BC to 30 BC, but she was a descendant of Ptolemy I Soter, a Macedonian Greek general.
The Cleopatra Controversy
Fri Dec 25 2020 at 0:37:47
A specter is haunting the Internet the specter of manufactured controversy. Every day, there s something new guaranteed to rustle a few jimmies in at least some segments of the online hoi polloi. I like to pretend that I am immune to this sort of thing because I ve understood for a long time that, in the words of the great Eric Bischoff, controversy creates cash. Generally speaking, I practice what we might call meta-outrage, where I reserve my opprobrium and vitriol not so much for the topics of ragebait articles but rather their very existence or at least the manner in which they are compiled. Today, however, I found the perfect intersection of content and form that had me scrambling for my don t-kill-people meds.
Fri Dec 25 2020 at 0:37:47
A specter is haunting the Internet the specter of manufactured controversy. Every day, there s something new guaranteed to rustle a few jimmies in at least some segments of the online hoi polloi. I like to pretend that I am immune to this sort of thing because I ve understood for a long time that, in the words of the great Eric Bischoff, controversy creates cash. Generally speaking, I practice what we might call meta-outrage, where I reserve my opprobrium and vitriol not so much for the topics of ragebait articles but rather their very existence or at least the manner in which they are compiled. Today, however, I found the perfect intersection of content and form that had me scrambling for my don t-kill-people meds.