Why this TV series causes high drama between Cairo, Ankara
After a decade of Ottoman splendors shown in popular Turkish soap operas, "Kingdoms of Fire" casts Selim, the Grim as the villain.
Turkish series, including shows about Ottoman sagas, have enticed audiences in the Middle East and beyond for the last decade. Particularly “The Magnificent Century,” a hundred-episode series of love and intrigue at the Palace of Suleiman the Magnificent, created a strong audience in the first half of the 2010s. However, a new series, “Kingdoms of Fire,” shows the dark side of the empire that ruled Egypt after 1517.
“Kingdoms of Fire” ("Mamlakaat al-Nar") tackles the struggle between the Mamluks and the Ottomans over the control of the Middle East, particularly in Syria and Egypt. Produced by the Emirati production company Genomedia, it is shown both on Saudi channel MBC and Netflix. However, it is not being streamed in Turkey.
The 15-episode series, directed by Peter Webber, brings together a group of Egyptian, Syrian, Moroccan and Tunisian actors. Webber made “The Emperor” in 2012 and “Hannibal Rising” in 2007 — both of which did well in the Middle East.
The historical drama revolves around two central figures: Sultan Selim I, the Ottoman ruler (r. 1512-1520) known as Selim the Grim, who is played by young Syrian actor Mahmoud Nasr. Toman Bay, the Mamluk sultan, is played by Khaled Nabawy, an Egyptian actor known for his leads in historical drama ever since his discovery by award-winning director Youssef Chahine in 1994.
