Waleed Zuaiter and July Namir on their starring roles in Baghdad Central

The duo open up about the StarzPlay show

WE'VE HAD OUR fill of Nordic Noir detective shows, it's time for the Middle East to step into the fold with some homegrown stories. Baghdad Central, available exclusively on StarzPlay, looks to fill that gap and provides a six-part mini-series, which is already garnering international acclaim. Set amidst the chaos of American-occupied Baghdad in 2003, the show follows Iraqi ex-policeman Muhsin al-Khafaji (Waleed Zuaiter) who has lost everything and is battling to keep himself and his sick daughter, Mrouj (July Namir), safe. When he learns his estranged elder daughter Sawsan (Leem Lubany) is missing, Khafaji is forced into a desperate search to find her. He soon finds himself up against her enigmatic university tutor, Professor Zubeida Rashid (Clara Khoury) and discovers Sawsan and her two close friends Sanaa (Nora El Koussour) and Zahra (Maisa Abd Elhadi;) have been leading a hidden life that's led them into great danger.
The show has been created by BAFTA-nominated writer Stephen Butchard (The Last Kingdom), produced by Jonathan Curling and is based on the novel by Elliott Colla.
Lead actors Zuaiter and Namir tell us more.
WALEED ZUAITER
What was the draw of Baghdad Central?
When I got the audition I didn't want to do it - I had not long lost my father so I was really down, but my agent had been tracking it for a couple of years and said: "It feels like it's written for you." I didn't want to play another accented Arab on Western television, but my wife read with me and encouraged me. When I did the self-tape audition and spoke the words, I had a feeling this project and character were special. The writing is so rich and deep and character-driven, and a quarter of it feels like a foreign-language film. There's a beauty in that and it elevated everyone's performances.
How did Khafaji become a policeman?
He was in the Secret Service under Saddam's regime, and got demoted at some point when the coalition forces were coming in. Beforehand, he was following orders and working to survive, caught in a difficult situation as many were at that time. Now, things are coming back to haunt him.
How would you describe him?
When we first meet him, he's at the lowest point of his life. He's willing to call it quits but triumphs because of the love of his family. That is put up against love of country. He has so many qualities that reflected the way my parents raised me with courage, integrity, loyalty, intelligence and trust - he was an easy character to connect to.
Does this feel like a particularly personal project?
Absolutely. I'm a family man, with two kids roughly the same age as Khafaji's daughters in the show. I feel I've been a bad father at times because I travel quite a bit and I've missed certain milestones in my kids' lives. Khafaji was too damaged to be there for his daughters after the death of his wife and his son in a short space of time. He became very distant because the pain was unbearable, and he simply wasn't strong enough other than to barely hang on. The feelings of battling the pain when your own family look up to you for strength, that is very personal to me.
My family has struggled in war and poverty, we have lived from paycheque to paycheque, been evicted unjustly and experienced Saddam's invasion of Kuwait in 1990. I was born in Sacramento, lived in Kuwait from the ages of five to 19, went back to the US for college but returned to Kuwait for my brother's engagement party - then Saddam invaded. Because they'd closed the border to Saudi Arabia, we - me, my parents and my 93-year-old grandmother - had to get to Jordan. It took us three days, but we made it. It was when my adulthood started, a loss of innocence.
How will Baghdad Central resonate with modern audiences?
I've always said good material engages emotionally and intellectually. This is one of those projects. It's great writing that makes you think without getting you ahead of the story - you're always straining a little to catch up. And although the central characters are this Iraqi family, it doesn't feel foreign. There's a sense of home and the loss of home, of family, of country, that I think everyone will be able to relate to no matter where you are.
So, could Khafaji be the next big TV detective?
I think so. The skeleton of the show is this family - it's a show about the tensions that exist between love and loss, where our basic human conditions, aspirations and darkest fears are tested when in conflict, because all is at stake. It's also a show about loyalty, morality, and ultimately real courage.
JULY NAMIR
What was the appeal of Baghdad Central?
I'm a south London actress, my parents are Egyptian, and I was born in Devon. My last four roles have been playing refugees, which says a lot. Baghdad Central gave me an opportunity to have layers and explore a character that isn't a stereotype. It's a lightbulb moment, that a career is possible and I won't be stuck in the same roles over and over again.
Mrouj has kidney disease - how dependent does this make her on her dad, Khafaji? She's been ill from a young age and over a year or so it's developed into kidney failure, which means its dialysis or death for her. She's suffering because of the sanctions. But, funnily enough, if anything she's more a parent to him than he is to her. She's wise beyond her years, selfless, very independent, at no point does her illness characterise her - she's too strong-willed to show it. Every character has a thing they represent and Mrouj is "bravery" throughout.
How did she get on with her sister, Sawsan, played by Leem Lubany?
They're very different. Mrouj is very introverted, Sawsan is not. Although Sawsan is older, Mrouj is wiser. Sawsan is rebellious, Mrouj is the opposite, she thinks things through. She's a watcher but she becomes more vocal as the series goes on. They had quite a close-knit relationship - Sawsan opened up about things to Mrouj and she kept those secrets.
How are her family's lives changed by what's going on around them?
How does war affect any family that goes through it? We don't have to look far to find out. When war puts this level of pressure on your family, you find strength you didn't know you had. That's what we find with these characters - a level of strength and bravery that wouldn't be there without war.
What are Mrouj's hopes and dreams?
She lost her mum and brother at a young age and become a parent to her father. I see her as a carer - she always thinks of others first. Even when she does get to a point of thinking about getting better, it's because she wants others to benefit from her recovery.
How has it been working with Zuaiter who plays your father?
Fantastic. I'm blessed we had such chemistry, we're really similar in how we attack characters. We both feel first, then act. If he throws something at me, I know how to react to it. He's taught me so much and I can't wait for people to see this relationship and how it blossoms. It's beautiful and inspiring.