Ahmad 
The film “The Atheist”, starring Ahmed Hatem and written by Ibrahim Eissa, has sparked a wave of controversy and widespread criticism in Egypt, despite it not being shown yet.
The film’s crises and its sensitive topic, which deals with the issue of atheism, have dominated the discussion on social media, where activists launched campaigns calling for a boycott of it.
The film has faced several challenges since the beginning, as its release was delayed for more than three years, and one of the most prominent crises was the withdrawal of the late artist Mustafa Darwish from the work.
This withdrawal came against the backdrop of controversial statements made by the film’s writer, Ibrahim Eissa, about “Isra and Mi ‘raj”, which angered some.
On the other hand, the film’s makers and critics defended the work, stressing the need to watch the film before judging it.
Egyptian critic Magda Khairallah considered the attack on the film to be a kind of unjustified controversy, noting that such campaigns reflect an attempt to cancel reason and repeat criticism without actually watching the film.
For his part, director Ahmed El-Sobky commented on the criticism, explaining that the film had been reviewed by Al-Azhar, which confirms that it does not conflict with religious values. El-Sobky stressed that the attack on the film is due to its name only and not its actual content.
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