Abhiroop Das
‘Lee Cronin’s The Mummy’ takes the genre of horror epitomized by ‘The Mummy‘ and brings a familial turn to it, through the story of the Cannon family. Nearly a decade after a girl named Katie is kidnapped in broad daylight, her parents learn that she’s been found alive. However, the more they learn about the circumstances of her rescue, the clearer it becomes that something supernatural is at play. For Officer Dalia Zaki, who was first assigned to the case as a rookie, this is a chance to right the wrongs and discover the truth behind Katie’s disappearance. However, what remains on the other side of the veil is almost too sinister to face, and forces Dalia to twist her definition of what is possible in life and beyond.
May Calamawy Pours Life and Energy Into the Character of Dalia Zaki
Egyptian-Palestinian actress May El Calamawy steps into the role of Officer Dalia Zaki, who essentially serves as the movie’s second pair of eyes into the mystery of the demonic possession. As one of the characters who is key to unlocking the truth about Nasmaranian, Dalia has emerged as one of the most important characters in the ‘The Mummy’ franchise, and we might see more of her if there are sequels to this project. For Calamawy, this means several more opportunities to flex her creative process and potentially cement her name in the horror canon.
Born on October 28, 1986, to an Egyptian father and a Palestinian-Jordanian mother, May Calamawy spent most of her childhood in Bahrain before moving to Boston, Massachusetts, at the age of 17. Having discovered her love for acting after watching the film ‘Death Becomes Her,’ Calamawy applied to Emerson College for a B.A. in theatre studies and was accepted. Though her family initially wanted her to have a career in something other than acting, they soon came to champion Calamawy’s decision.
In 2009, Calamawy moved to Dubai to take care of her mother, who was battling stage 4 lung cancer. It was the heartbreak after losing her mother in 2011 that compelled Calamawy to completely devote herself to acting. “Losing such a close parent,” the actress recalled in a conversation with Madame Arabia, “I was like, ‘What actually matters anymore?” All my friends around me were getting married, and the relationship I was in probably wasn’t moving in that direction.” Soon thereafter, she moved from Dubai to New York, where she enrolled at the famous William Esper Studio and restarted her acting journey.
May Calamawy Was Impressed by The Mummy’s Attention to Authenticity and Detail
May Calamawy’s first big break came with the Emirati movie ‘Djinn,’ where she plays the role of Aisha. From there, her resume expanded to cover TV shows like ‘Madam Secretary,’ ‘The Brave,’ ‘The Long Road Home,’ and ‘BKPI,’ where she essays the roles of Mona Alsnany, Mina Bayoud, Faiza, and Ameena, respectively. Some of her most beloved roles come from popular shows such as ‘Moon Knight,’ where she plays Layla El-Faouly AKA Scarlet Scarab, and ‘Ramy,’ where she plays Dena Hassan. Some of the other titles she features in include ‘Night Feeds’ and ‘The Closet,’ where she steps into the roles of The Mother and Annie, respectively.
When going into the production of ‘Lee Cronin’s The Mummy,’ Calamawy was at first skeptical of the movie’s incorporation of Egyptian history and symbolism. However, all of her doubts were quelled when she began working with Cronin, who was not only sensitive to his approach towards mythological storytelling but also ensured that their working environment echoed those values. In a conversation with Vogue Arabia, she described the process as “nourishing,” adding that “No one was there (at the set) saying, ‘This is our version of how things are, you’re just going to have to deal with it.’ I felt that I had an equal say.” With her work in the film, Calamawy has raised the bar for authentic expression in film, especially when it comes to the ever-expanding horror genre.
Read More: Lee Cronin’s The Mummy: Is Nasmaranian Based on a Real Demon?
