But after I received attention for seeming to speak out against the totalitarian and violent Assad regime, being famous suddenly became a curse. I knew that the Syrian regime was like an octopus’ mafia — if you were able to escape one tentacle, another one would ensnare you. Since I became a refugee more than a decade ago, the global refugee population has more than doubled. Some Syrian artists who were once my friends became cheerleaders for the Assad regime. In the short drama “Facing Mecca,” I play a Syrian refugee who struggles to bury his wife in accordance with Muslim rites.

Source: Los Angeles Times October 11, 2022 18:36 UTC