Jihad Abdallah changed his name to "Alexander" for some reason. Now he's set to play King Gustav III of Sweden for Netflix.
To be fair to Abdallah, he was born in Sweden in the 1980s. He has had a working relationship with Netflix for years. Maybe he truly is the one guy in all of Sweden who is qualified to play the role of a Swedish king. The ONE GUY IN ALL OF SWEDEN.
But I still can't help but report that Netflix did the meme.
Several years ago, Netflix made Edward VI of England a gay disabled black man, because of course.
It also made the last pagan king of Norway a black woman, because of course.
And British Queen Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz was a black woman, because of course.
As for why Netflix continues to do this, there are several explanations.
Beyond the woke ideology of Netflix executives and the producers it hires, Hollywood now refuses to offer awards to films and shows that don't have specific quotas of "minority" representation. This motivates studios to be extra woke.
The audience for this show is not men. The "Von Fersons" is a "romantic drama" that will focus on the steamy relationships between characters, not historical details of kingdoms and conquest. Consider Netflix's Bridgerton, a fictional drama set in London in the early 1800s, which is rated mature for pornographic scenes.
Here is how Netflix describes the "Von Fersens":
...following the glamorous and tumultuous lives of historical figures Sophie and Axel von Fersen. Born into one of the most influential and noble families, the siblings quickly became the ultimate it-duo of their time. When their status is stripped away, they fight to protect their family's future — and discover that love might be the key to saving it.
When your show is aimed at the same kind of women who read raunchy "romance" novels, why be historically accurate?
P.S. Now check out our latest video 👇
