Queen Cleopatra Helmer Tina Gharavi Tapped to Co-Direct Iranian Royal Family Drama Serie

Posted by Jenniffer Sheldon on Tuesday, September 24, 2024

Another screen project about Iran’s Royal Family is in the works.

“Queen Cleopatra” director Tina Gharavi is set to co-direct a new drama series titled “The Shah, The Spy, The Madman” alongside Iranian-American series creator Shahriar William Raee.

The project, produced by Caspian Pictures, is envisioned as a returning series and aims to bring the story of Iran’s last emperor, Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, to the screen.

“The Shah, The Spy, The Madman” is set to go into pre-production in late 2024, with the pilot and first season ready to go. Casting is in the works.

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The first season will focus on the U.S.’s covert plot to overthrow Pahlavi in the early 1950s as operatives oust his Prime Minister Mohammad Mosaddegh and install a pliable young King in order to thwart the Soviet Union. Two more seasons are also planned.

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“This series requires filmmakers experienced in telling stories of larger-than-life historical figures and having Tina’s collaboration is invaluable. I am thrilled to have her on board as a director,” Raee said of Gharavi, who directed Netflix’s “Queen Cleopatra.” “Her talent will elevate the storytelling and add depth to the Shah’s remarkable story.”

Niousha Noor (“The Persian Version”) has also joined the project as a co-producer, bringing her extensive knowledge of Iran’s heritage and culture to the series. Michael Becker is executive producing.

“In similar fashion to ‘The Crown,’ subsequent seasons will explore the Shah’s reign, the grand 2,500-year celebration of the Persian Empire, and the 1979 Iranian Revolution,” reads the synopsis. “The series aims to provide an authentic, unbiased, and candid portrayal of the Shah’s life and the foreign influence on Iran during his reign.”

Raee is repped by Magnet Management. Gharavi is represented by Independent Talent Group, and Niousha Noor is represented by TalentWorks.

The series is the third project about Pahlavi unveiled over the past couple of months. As Variety exclusively revealed in May, a drama series titled “The Last Shah” is in development at Random Access Media, created by Morrie Rosmarin, while Pahlavi’s third wife, Empress Farah, recently inked a deal with Serendipity Group and John Powers Middleton for her life rights, with a documentary and scripted project in the works.

The race to get Pahlavi’s story to the screen has been turbocharged by recent geopolitical events, including destabilization in the Middle East and the unexpected death of Iran’s President Ebrahim Raisi in a helicopter crash last month.

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