It’s impressive that Cleopatra continues to generate so many column inches and ignite so much controversy in 2023, considering the fact the Egyptian ruler died millennia ago.
If anything, things are getting even more heated, with two projects in particular standing out among the pack. Netflix’s documentary series Queen Cleopatra was review-bombed six feet under and then some to end up as the streaming service’s lowest-rated original show of all-time, and that came after it almost caused an international incident.
Meanwhile, Israeli actress Gal Gadot plowing ahead with development on her own version has created no shortage of backlash, with her most recent comments on “changing the narrative” only exacerbating the furor. It remains actively in the works despite being stuck in cinematic purgatory for over a decade at this point, though, with producer Charles Roven confirming to The Hollywood Reporter that The Falcon and the Winter Soldier‘s Kari Skogland also remains attached to direct.
“We moved it from Paramount to Universal, and Kari is still on it. It’s another one where we’re sitting in a stalled situation. We can’t really move the script forward because of the writers’ strike. Kari went off and did the Wind River sequel, but she’s still attached to it.”
The classic 1963 iteration starring Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton cost so much money that it almost bankrupted 20th Century Fox until it started a profit, and while Gadot’s take won’t be quite as much of a financial risk, you’d imagine it’ll cost a pretty penny and be subjected to calls for a boycott if and when it ever makes its way to theaters.