2020. júl 24.

Actors born in the Arab world

írta: musafir

In the following compilation, we present actors and actresses who were born in the Arab world. Most of them (except Omar Sharif) are not ethnically Arab, but were born in an Arab country. The list shows that the parents of these celebrities chose their child’s homeland as their residence, mainly for better circumstances or for security reasons.

1. Jean Reno
The actor Jean Reno was born in Casablanca. His parents were Spanish from Andalusia who fled from the fascist regime of General Franco to Morocco, which was then a French protectorate. Jean was a teenager when he moved to France with his family. It was around this time that his name was changed from Moreno to Reno. He speaks several languages: Spanish, French, Italian, English and Japanese, and according to some information, he also learned the Moroccan Arabic dialect in his youth. He starred in movies like Léon, The Professional, The Da Vinci Code, The Crimson Rivers and Les Visiteurs.
Jean Reno

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2. Keanu Reeves
Keanu Reeves is a Canadian actor, musician, film producer and director. Born in 1964 in Beirut, Lebanon. His mother is English and his father is of Chinese-Hawaiian-English-Portuguese descent. When Keanu was born, his parents were living and working in Beirut. After his parents divorced, he moved to Australia and then to New York with his mother. Due to his learning disabilities, he left high school and enrolled in theater school. He starred in several plays here, and in 1986 he appeared on the screen in Youngblood. He starred in movies like Sweet November, The Devil's Advocate, or The Matrix.
Keanu Reeves

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3. Omar Sharif
Omar Sharif (عمر الشريف) was an Egyptian film and television actor. He won three Golden Globe Awards and a César Award. He was born in Alexandria, and his original name is Michel Demitri Chalhoub. He became an icon in Egypt and the Arab world in the early ’50s, but gained world fame in 1962 because of Lawrence of Arabia. Throughout his career, in addition to his native Arabic, he has filmed in 5 different languages: English, French, Italian, Greek and Turkish. Omar Sharif comes from a Syrian Christian (Roman Catholic) family. He adopted Islam only in 1955 because of his marriage to Faten Hamama (فاتن حمامة). He starred in movies like The 13th Warrior, Lawrence of Arabia, Doctor Zhivago, Funny Girl, Top Secret, or The Night of the Generals.
Omar Sharif

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4. Melora Walters
Melora Walters is an American actress and director. She was born in 1959 in Dhahran (الظهران), Saudi Arabia. She played Wanda Henrickson in the television series Big Love. Melora grew up in Saudi Arabia and the Netherlands. She has starred in films such as Magnolia, Butterfly Effect, Underdogs and Boogie Nights.
Melora Walters

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5. Isla Fisher
The Australian actress Isla Fisher was born in 1976 in the capital of Oman, Muscat (مسقط). Her father worked as a banker in Oman. She was 6 years old when she moved to Australia with her family. She studied acting in Paris and England. Her husband is the famous comedian and actor Sacha Baron Cohen (Ali G, Borat). Isla has starred in films such as The Great Gatsby, Now You See Me, Life of Crime and The Wannabes.