Some Lebanese are unhappy that Beirut is depicted as a city riven with terrorists on the Showtime series.
- Oct 19, 2012
AceShowbiz - Lebanon government is considering to take a legal action against "Homeland" after the country's capital Beirut was portrayed as a city swarmed with terrorists. Upset with the "serious misrepresentation," Lebanon's minister of tourism Fady Abboud said, "We are following the case legally."
"I raised this at the cabinet meeting and the president asked the minister for justice and the minister of communications to see what can be done," he added. "I am calling on all young Lebanese adults to do what they need to do; to write blogs, to call the BBC and CNN to try to raise awareness that Beirut is not a city of Kalashnikov and war."
In recent episode "Back to Beirut" of the critically-acclaimed drama, Claire Danes' Carrie went undercover in Beirut. However, the scenes were filmed in neighboring Israel. "It showed Hamra Street with militia roaming in it," Abboud pointed out. "This does not reflect reality. It was not filmed in Beirut and does not portray the real image of Beirut."
Ariel Kolitz, a Tel Aviv businessman who was a childhood friend of creator and executive producer Gideon Raff, insisted the show didn't have the option of shooting in Beirut. Kolitz claimed the Israeli writer and director was not permitted to visit Beirut and could be in danger. "It's a lot simpler to shoot here. That's it," he further reasoned.
Showtime which airs the thriller series hasn't commented on the issue.
