Egypt's heartthrob talks new films, career choices and difficulties

Egyptian star talks about new projects Egypt's Ahmed Ezz is a sure-footed actor who likes to make deliberate career choices to keep his fans on their feet. Ezz gave Arabstoday an exclusive interview to talk about his new film, el-Hafla (The Party), which he described as "a bit of a thriller."
On the film being released ahead of Egypt's January 25 revolution anniversary, the actor said: "I had nothing to do with the timing of the release because that's the producer's decision, but cinema contributes to national income. If we stop releasing films, the industry grinds to a halt. Besides, the film is good and my part in it is good, not too small. I just loved the script and the character and it was a good surprise for moviegoers to see me in that role. It's a bit of a thriller, with a twist at the end."
Not all who saw the film were moviegoers, however. A pirated version of the film appeared online one week after the premiere. Ezz said: "What major actors do not have their films pirated? It's a problem for everyone, but, thankfully, my film did well at the box office."
Ezz was set to play the lead in the dramatisation of author and broadcaster Ibrahim Eissa's novel, Mawlana (Our Master) but has pulled out of the project. He said: "It's not for any fault in the novel itself, quite the contrary, I loved the book. It's just that I found out that there were several dramas about religious figures going out in Ramadan and I like being different, so that's why I pulled out. I will, however, work with [director] Sandra Nashaat on a project for 2014. It's going to be novel and different."
On the turmoil in his country, Egypt, the actor said: "It's extremely heart wrenching. It's like things are going backwards. People, children, are getting killed, security is deteriorating, acts of vandalism everywhere. I'm very saddened by it. I pray to God that this crisis will pass and that Egypt will survive."