Rami Malek made us all proud when he won the Outstanding Lead Actor In A Drama Series award for his spectacular performance as Elliot Anderson in the American drama-thriller TV series -Mr. Robot. He was able to win all our hearts with only one season in. I think we’ve all thought about what would happen if that show were to air here in Egypt… To our luck, our minds don’t have to wander too far because Al Haram Al Rabea- Egyptian thriller movie- is a rip off of Mr. Robot. Even though Al Haram El Rabea was allegedly stolen from Mr. Robot, it was still portrayed differently because of the contrasting societies each of them represents. Here are 4 reasons why Mr. Robot would never make it in our Egyptian TV industry:
- Ramy Malik wanted to be an actor because he felt like it would be a way for him to make a difference in the world- to speak for the voiceless and make his voice heard by the government and by society. In several interviews, Rami Malek spoke of how the character he plays, Elliot Anderson, could be very relatable in that sense. However, in our TV industry people don’t find the space to voice out their opinions and airing a show that promotes all that would most likely not even see the light of day.
- Egyptian movies nowadays have become so centered on making people laugh than on actually delivering a message that would resonate in the audience’s mind and shed light on current issues we have in our society. Mr. Robot is about a guy who goes around hacking corporates whom he believes are responsible for ruining the world and people’s lives. It is a show that is tailored around the American society and the American Dream. This would most likely not bode well with most Egyptian viewers who are merely looking for ways to distract themselves from their problems- they don’t want to be confronted by a show that reminds them of all the things they can’t change. They want something light so they can let loose for whatever duration of the movie/show and forget their worries and problems.
- In Egypt we don’t have the materials and the resources necessary to make Ramy Malek’s show come to life. Even if we have the script we still won’t be able to portray the show as it was originally supposed to. This is clearly shown through Al Haram Al Rabea, which sadly, even though copied, could still not live up to its counterpart, Mr. Robot.
- In our TV industry we don’t have the concept of seasons and even if we did we’d have to wait until Ramadan of the following year in order to be able to resume the show. This leads to cramming of events and the show ends up not getting the resolution it deserves because of how fast-paced the events are in order for them to be able to fit the show in the 30 day time limit.