Arab actresses call for more complex, authentic portrayals of women on screen

Dubai: Arab actresses are increasingly challenging one-dimensional portrayals of women on screen and bringing more of their own experiences and perspectives to the characters they play, leading stars said during the Arab Media Summit 2026. Dina El Sherbiny, Karess Bashar and Carmen Bsaibes discussed female representation, the challenges facing actresses and the roles that shaped their careers during a session titled "Arab Women Who Make the Scene”, held as part of the Films Forum at the Summit. Syrian actress Karess Bashar said female characters were still too often written at opposite extremes - either as victims or as women judged negatively by society - leaving much of women’s real experience unexplored. Bashar questioned whether enough space was being given to female characters to reflect the contradictions, vulnerabilities and strengths women experience in everyday life. She said she had increasingly found herself resisting roles in which women were portrayed purely as victims, looking instead for ways to give those characters greater strength and agency. Reflecting on her role as Samaher in "Bi Khams Arwah”, she described the character as "many women within one woman” - someone fighting for what she believed was her right while also confronting the judgement of those around her. Lebanese actress Carmen Bsaibes said performers sometimes need to bring more of themselves to a role when a character feels too narrowly written. "You have to give the character something real, something that resembles actual people and the women around you,” she said. Bsaibes said "Arous Beirut” marked a major turning point in her career, with the series’ popularity across the Arab world giving her greater freedom to choose roles and express her views about the characters she portrayed. Egyptian actress Dina El Sherbiny highlighted the wider challenges women face within the industry, including the pressure to prove themselves professionally while balancing their personal lives. "For women, the journey begins with challenges,” El Sherbiny said. She added that authenticity across the entire creative process was essential to producing work that audiences could connect with. "When a project succeeds, I genuinely believe it is because it has been created honestly - not only by the actors, but by the writers, directors and the entire team,” she said. El Sherbiny cited "Grand Hotel”, "Kamel El Adad” and "La Torad Wa La Tostabdal” as projects that reflected different stages of her development as an actress. The actresses also reflected on how experience had shaped their choices and given them greater confidence in approaching their work. Bashar said that confidence had developed throughout her career, allowing her to become clearer about what she accepted or rejected in a role. "If I have an opinion, I want it to matter in the end,” she said. For the three actresses, growth has meant becoming more selective, more vocal and more certain about the kind of work they want to be associated with.