Film
Ahmed Zaki: he didn’t act, he disappeared into the role
The Emperor, the Black Panther: remembering one of Egyptian cinema’s greatest actors.
Ahmed Zaki didn’t act; he disappeared inside the character. Born in Zagazig in 1949, he became one of the most admired actors in the history of Egyptian cinema, known to fans as the Emperor and the Black Panther, after two of his most famous roles.
He played presidents Gamal Abdel Nasser in Nasser 56 and Anwar Sadat in Days of Sadat, as well as ordinary men in films such as Al-Bari’ and Ard El Khof. He died in 2005, while filming the life of Abdel Halim Hafez.
