Mona Zaki

Mona Ali Mohamed Zaki was born in Cairo to her parents Ali Mohamed and Tahini Zaki on 18 November 1976. Her father was a university professor who held a number of international posts. After living in the United States, the UK and then Kuwait, Zaki returned to Cairo when she was thirteen. Since her Kuwaiti diploma was not accredited in Egypt and not accepted by any school, Zaki had some free time and auditioned on a whim for Bil 'Arabi Al-Fasih (In Formal Arabic), a play directed by Mohamed Sobhi. ^[3]She got the role and put her schooling on hold until the end of the play's year-and-half run, at which point Zaki returned to the United States to enroll in a two-year program at the Heritage Academy in Louisiana. Upon returning to Cairo in 1993 ^[4] she briefly attended the Institute of Dramatic Arts before enrolling at the Faculty of Mass Communication, Cairo University.^[3]

In 1989, when she was 13, Zaki landed her first acting role in Mohamed Sobhi's play Bel Araby El Faseeh (In Formal Arabic) after answering a casting call.^[5] The production ran for a year-a-half. Her next role came in 1994 while a student at Cairo University, in her TV debut in El A'elah, (The Family), a Ramadan television series. She appeared in a succession of popular TV series in the 90s including Layali el Helmiyyah 5 (Al Helmeya Nights) in 1995; Zizinia (1997-2000); Ahalina (Our Kin) in 1997 and El Daw' El Sharid (The Stray Light) in 1998.^[3]

Her first film role was in the 1998 crime drama El Katl ElLaziz (Sweet Killing), starring Mervat Amin, one of Egypt's most popular actresses at the time. Other films followed including Idhak El Soura Titla' Hilwa (Smile, the Photo Comes about Better) (1998); Sa'idi fil Gam'a Al-Amrikiya (Upper Egyptian in the American University) (1998); Omar 2000, El Hobb El Awal (The First Love), and Leih Khallitni Ahibbak all of which were box office hits.

During this period, Zaki continued to take to the stage in several plays, including Le'b Eyal (Child's Play), Ya Messafer Wahdak, (Lone Traveler), and Afrouto.^[3]

The year 2000 was prolific for Zaki who starred in four movies including Mustafa Qamar in El Hobb El Awwal (First Love); Omar, opposite Khaled El Nabawy and her husband, Ahmed Helmy—the first of several films they would subsequently film together; Leh Khalletni Ahebbak (Why Did You Make Me Love You Too) again alongside Helmy and Karim Abdel Aziz.

In 2001 Zaki took on the role of Jehan Sadat in the biopic The Days of Sadat about Egyptian President Anwar Sadat, among that year's highest grossing films in Egypt. She was awarded the Egyptian Order of Cultural Merit for her portrayal.^[6] That same year she starred in the comedy Africano which was a box office success, grossing 8 million EGP^[7] and her second in a series of collaborations with co-star Ahmad Al-Sakka. They starred again in the action film Mafia (2002) which was another commercial hit bringing in about 13 million EGP at the box office ^[8] In 2003 Zaki appeared in Sleepless Nights (2003), a popular film that that pushed Egyptian social boundaries and taboos on issues such as sex, marital issues and parental interference, and that has since become a classic in contemporary Egyptian cinema.^[9][10]

In 2007 she starred in the romantic comedy Taymour and Shafika (2007) once again opposite Al-Sakka, playing childhood sweethearts whose love is put to test when her character is appointed a minister and he is charged as her bodyguard. A comedy, the film intended to show the serious challenges faced by modern-Egyptian women in balancing career ambitions with love and marriage. ^[11]

In 2016, starred in the Ramadan TV series Afrah El-Qoba (The Ooba Weddings) adapted from a novel by Naguib Mahfouz which garnered Zaki the Best Actress Murex D'Or.^[5]

In 2019, Zaki became the first female Egyptian actor to be honored with her own star at the Dubai Stars Walk of Fame in Dubai.^[12]

In April 2021, Zaki appeared in the mega hit Ramadan drama series Newton's Cradle playing a pregnant woman whose plans go awry when she travels to the United States to have her child born on American soil. Egypt's most watched television series of the year, it became a global hit after it was picked up by Netflix and released in January of 2022. ^{[13] [14]}

In 2022, Zaki appeared in Netflix's first ever Arabic language film Perfect Strangers, a huge hit in North Africa and Middle East. A remake of the 2016 Italian film, the film proved controversial with many Egyptians in light of its depictions of sexuality, including homosexuality, and cursing. Particularly strong criticism was directed at Zaki, the sole Egyptian cast member and with the long-held image of "the girl next door."^[15]

In February 2023, Zaki appeared in the Ramadan series Taht El Wesaya (Under Guardianship), in the role of a widow with two children whose struggles after her husband’s death are amplified by the Egyptian Guardianship Law that privileges the parental grandfather or guardian rights over those of the mother. The popular series prompted calls for reforming Egyptian family law.^[16]

In January 2024 Flight 404 was released in Egyptian theaters with Zaki in the starring role. The film was a regional box office hit and broke Egyptian box office records for a female-led film.^[17] In October of that year the film was selected as the Egyptian submission for the Best International Feature Film at the 97th Academy Awards.

In January 2024 Zaki co-founded with publishing entrepreneur May Abdel-Azim an incubator program called HerStory aimed at supporting female Egyptian filmmakers. Its inaugural program funded 20 short films, and in late 2024, they established a sister chapter in Bahrain with the support of the Bahrain Ministry of Information and the Bahrain Film Festival.^[18]

Upcoming projects include El-Set (The Lady), a biopic of the iconic Egyptian singer Umm Kulthum with Zaki in the title role. The film is to be directed by Marwan Hamed with a screenplay by Ahmed Mourad.^[19]

Mona is married to Egyptian actor Ahmed Helmy. They have three children: Lilly (2003), Selim (2014), and Younis (2016).

Zaki has been a UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador since 2009 and in that capacity has appealed for donations surrounding regional events impacting children such as the 2020 Port of Beirut explosion or in, 2023, the conflict in Gaza. ^{[20] [21]} In 2010 she was a spokesperson for the Egyptian Springs of Life blood donation campaign conducted in cooperation with the World Health Organization. ^{[22] [23]}

• 2017 Murex D’Or Best Actress (for the 2016 TV series Afrah El Qoba )
• 2020 Faten Hamama Award of Excellence, Cairo International Film Festival
• 2023 Best Actress Award (for Tahet El Wesaya series), Cairo Drama Festival

• Mona Zaki at IMDb  
• Mona Zaki on Instagram