Zaki Rostom’s 50th Death Anniv.: Some Facts About Egypt's Iconic Actor

Today marks the 50th death anniversary of the most acclaimed villain in his generation Zaki Rostom.

The most renowned villain of Egypt's cinema, Rostom's strong charisma, and great expressions made him a flawless actor. He mostly played villain roles and is fondly remembered for his performance as a powerful brutal landlord in Youssef Chahine’s “Struggle in the Valley”, besides others.

The actor passed away, on this day, in the year 1977 but is still alive in the hearts of millions of people.

On his death anniversary today, let's know a tad more about the legend closely:

Rostom was born to a very prestigious family in the 1900s. His hobby of acting started when he was a student in the baccalaureate; in 1924 he joined the Egyptian National Theater group and in 1925, he joined the Ramses theater group.

Moreover, the late actor was a successful athlete who came second in the national weightlifting competition in 1923.

His conservative father was appointed minister in the era of Khepe Ismail and he died when Zaki was still a young boy.

According to Elcinema.com, Rostom, who was very fluent in English, was offered a leading role in a global movie by Colombia Productions.

As Rostom got older, he began to lose his hearing bit by bit until he went completely deaf in 1968. This led him to retire from his beloved acting career, as he was left without a choice.

Despite being viewed as an actor who only succeeded in playing the villain in Egyptian cinema, he was able to play other roles that he played with competence, including the roles of the patrician Pasha to the compassionate father, employee, lawyer, and cruel husband.

He is well-known for some of his seminal works, such as Faten Hamama’s “Nahr El Hob“, Omar El Sherif’s “Sera'a Fel Wady” and “Raseef Nemra 5“. However, the late maven actor also played other important roles where he wasn’t the bad guy.

In the mid-1940s, he was chosen by the Paris Match French magazine as one of the best ten international actors.

In his final years, Rostom tried to break the villain or strongman mold by playing human and benevolent roles, perhaps the most prominent of which was a kind-hearted father in “Ana We Banaaty”, Me and my daughters.