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Rabat — “Aldam Almashrouk” (Shared Blood) is one of the latest Moroccan dramas airing this Ramadan on Moroccan channel 2M. Fans are buzzing about the new characters and scenarios, but that’s not the only reason it’s getting talked about. The series is under controversy for accusations of cultural appropriation ever since the producing company revealed that the story belongs to Egyptian scenarist Hajar Ismaili, in cooperation with Moroccan script writers.
Ismaili who has been working on the story for four years, denied the appropriation accusations, stating that she herself has been living in Morocco for eight years along with her Moroccan husband and two Moroccan children.
The screenwriter commented on the controversy surrounding the series in an interview with alarabiya.net, stating people wouldn’t have noticed anything regarding the identity of the film if they hadn’t found out about her nationality. “I don’t think there would have been any squabble if people didn’t know that I am Egyptian,” she said.
People, however, have noted that it wasn’t just the screenwriter’s nationality that alerted them to the intrusive nature of the storyline, everything from the decor, furniture, dark costumes to the events allude to stories from Egypt Sa’id (Upper Egypt).
“My role as a screenwriter ends when I handover the episode [to the distribution company] and I never intervene in the selection of costumes or decor, that’s entirely the director’s choice,” Hajar responded.
The same carousel of actors
Moroccan audiences have also shown discontent with the repeating of the same actors across the main channels; which is especially noticeable during Ramadan given the fact that programs for the holy month are aired one after the other after the Maghrib prayer, when people break their fast.
Art and film critic Abdelkarim Ouakrim commented on this occurrence in an interview with Alyaoum24, saying that “using names that repeat across all dramas and comedies confuses the viewer and makes him unable to distinguish the personas.” He added that “[the viewer] would certainly confuse the characters because only the costumes change while most actors repeat the same performance despite the diversity of characters.“
Ouakrim echoed Moroccans’ concern that this repetition hurts other actors who seem to have been forgotten by filmmakers in recent years. “Focusing on the same actors is unfair to talented actors and actresses that are ostracised and aren’t given opportunities that they deserve simply because they are not part of the clique,” he said.
The critic added that the same faces are also used across commercial advertisements, because he says the companies have a hand in selecting the same actors.
Ouakrim was especially disapproving in this context of Moroccan actress Dounia Boutazout who, according to him, repeats the same act in every role she plays. “She doesn’t make an effort to develop her acting, you can even notice how, for instance, she plays the role of a business woman the same way she plays that of a bedouin.”
This monopoly, particularly in the case of Boutazout, who currently leads four programs across three television channels – Al Aoula, 2M and MBC5 — has been criticized by Moroccan audiences.
The actress responded to the rising criticism during her appearance on Al Aoula talk-show “Maa Lfamila,” saying that it is normal and artistically “healthy” for actors to appear across multiple films and series.
“We studied for four years so we can work, why would you deprive us of work? We have obligations and responsibilities, and we are professional actors, so it is illogical for anyone to ask us to stop working just because we appear in more than one series,” she stated.
Mounting criticism of 2M
Moroccans have been especially vocal on social media about their disdain for national television programming in general. Many have even opted out of watching Moroccan television due to their belief that the content disagrees with Moroccan principals and values.
2M has faced the bulk of denunciation, with there even being calls to boycott the channel across the years. This especially peaked in October 2024, when 2M cast Israeli actress Eva Kadosh in public television series “Nass El Mellah.” This sparked great anger and disgust among Moroccans — especially that the series was aired during Israel’s genocide on Gaza and war on Lebanon.
The series revolves around the lives of Muslim and Jewish families in El Mellah quarters of Essaouira, with Kadosh playing the role of Messaouda, a beloved Jewish restaurant owner, aiming to spotlight Morocco’s diversity and historical coexistence between Muslims and Jews.
Some noted that while the harmony between Morocco’s Muslim and Jews is important, it could have been shown by casting any other actress. They criticized the filmmakers choice with Kadosh, commenting that Kadosh has poor acting skills and her Darija is forced and hard to understand. In fact, Kadosh doesn’t seem to have any acting credits at all, and her social media is instead dominated by baking recipes along with posts in support of the Israeli Occupation Forces.
One thing is for certain, Moroccan programmers seem to be disconnected from the audience that they are supposed to cater to, many of which believe that they can’t opt out of supporting the national channels since their tax is allegedly embedded into the water and electricity bill.
