Ghada Aboud Saudi Gazette CAIRO — Eyad Nassar is known for his exceptional acting skills in the Arab entertainment industry. He is best known for his role of Hassan Al Banna, the founder of Muslim Brotherhood. In an exclusive interview with Saudi Gazette, Jordanian actor Nassar talks about show-biz, actors, success and failures in his real and reel life. Nassar had moved to Cairo in 2007 to try his luck at acting. Bagging a role in an Egyptian drama is not an easy feat despite having talent, especially for non-Egyptians.
"Talent alone is not enough. Intelligent choices are a crucial component in determining an actor's chances to achieve the success he/she desires," said Nassar, adding that many talented actors, Egyptians or non-Egyptians, would refuse small offers, but sometimes these small roles can open many doors for aspiring actors. "I had already played a role in the popular TV drama ‘Al-Amein wa Al-Mamoun.' But I still accepted the supporting actor's role in the Egyptian drama ‘Sarakhat Ontha.' I was criticized in Jordan for playing the small part. However, I took a chance to open other doors," said the Jordanian actor who believes that success came to him through talent and hard work put in by him in his roles. Talking about the only active cinema producer Al Sobky, Nassar said he is against the campaign to boycott Al Sobky films. "I respect those who work on his project, and the audience who admires Al Sobky productions. Cinema is a reflection of our society after all. It is our duty as cinema makers to produce different genres of films and movies. These films have to be attractive enough to attract the audience and become commercially successful as Al- Sobky films." Nassar also said that even though acting is a continuous challenge, he is not yet ready to play an Egyptian ghetto character, which Al-Sobky usually portrays in his films. "Playing this character would be interesting but I am not ready to play it at present, maybe later." The Jordanian actor's latest film "Mesawar Qateel" performed poorly at the box office even though the script was penned by renowned writer Amr Salama and the film directed Karim El Adl. "Primarily it was due to the production's company's neglect to promote the movie. They did not market the movie at all. However, the movie has earned high viewership rates online. If the production company lost money, I don't care. People are watching it online and they love it. It is an original Arabic thriller movie unlike many other Arabic thrillers that are a copy-paste of American movies," he said. Nassar has acted with many talented actress over the years, including Dorra, Dalia El Beheiry, Ghada Abdel Razeq, Ghada Adel and Ranya Youssif among others. Early in his career, Nassar had acted with Ghada Abdel Raziq. "I loved acting with her; I hope that we get to act together again and I am sure it would be a rewarding experience." He admires Dalia El Beheiry's efforts that she puts in her role and her determination to improve herself as an actress with every new character. "I had notable harmony with Siba Mubarak. I only acted one scene with her and it was apparent that she is a talented actress. Dorra and I were more compatible in the drama series ‘Mouja Harra' than ‘Mesawar Qateel.'" ‘Mouja Harra' was aired in Ramadan last year and it was one of the best five TV series in terms of viewership. "It was a successful project and the feedback of the re-runs was also very positive." Talking about his portrayal of Hassan Al Banna onscreen, Nassar said: "We can only pity those who were compelled by their obsession. I pity him, and I pity those who believed in his obsession and followed him. While I was playing the character, I felt the danger of being powerful, how it feels to be very close to your dream, but while looking at the character outside my skin, I could see his mania. Toward the end of his journey (while playing his character) I knew that he only saw the whole world standing against him, but I could see what made him reach that end. It was a matter of time, the ideology of Muslim Brothers contradicts with the principles of humanity." While Nassar was riding high on his success in his reel life, his personal life hit the rocks. "Many people thought that the divorce happened after El Banna. I was falsely accused that I turned on my family after I become famous. This is not true. The divorce happened during the shoot, not after. I was emotionally drained that I had to go back to my house in Cairo to find my children's toys, but not them." Actors usually fail to have a lasting relationship. According to Nassar, actors tend to have a demanding nature. They need a giving, patient partner. Therefore, two actors cannot be in one ship because it ruins the balance of a stable relationship. "The bargain of either a career break through, or a family and children was emotionally consuming; I felt angry and lonely. Life could offer you success, but the price I paid was very high." Nassar is currently working on a TV drama "Nazareyet Adam" with Jordanian script writer Ahmed Moghraby and Egyptian director Amr Al Daly. The project is in its initial phase as actors are still being cast for the project.
