Denzel Washington’s casting as the Carthaginian general Hannibal in an upcoming Netflix film has sparked criticism from Tunisian officials and media.
Historians largely believe Hannibal is of Phoenician descent, coming from an area in modern-day Lebanon, leading to concerns about the portrayal potentially “falsifying history.”
The casting has been labeled as a “historical error” by Tunisian media and has been connected to the “woke” movement. (Trending: Hunter Biden’s Own Memoir Is Coming Back To Haunt Him In Criminal Trial)
Tunisian Member of Parliament Yassine Mami criticized the casting choice as “falsifying history.”
Tunisian culture minister Hayet Ketat-Guermazi said Netflix possessed the “right to do what they want,” she encouraged including filming in Tunisia.
“We are all proud that he was Tunisian,” she added.
According to the Tunisian newspaper, La Presse, it was reported that that choice to exclude Tunisia was considered, “according to Tunisians and many observers, a historical error.”
This isn’t the first time a portrayal of Hannibal as Black has sparked criticism, as a similar portrayal in a 2016 History Channel miniseries also faced backlash.
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