History Channel’s Satan Looks Like Obama, but Producers Deny Ulterior Motives
by Steve Eastman, Faith Issues
Last night’s episode of The Bible mini-series surprised many viewers with actor Mehdi Ouzaani’s resemblance to Barack Obama.
Producer Roma Downey, remembered for her lead role in Touched by an Angel, and her husband Mark Burnett, have responded with a joint statement:
“This is utter nonsense … The actor who played Satan, Mehdi Ouzaani, is a highly acclaimed Moroccan actor. He has previously played parts in several Biblical epics — including Satanic characters — long before Barack Obama was elected as our President. Both Mark and I have nothing but respect and love [for] our President, who is a fellow Christian. False statements such as these are just designed as a foolish distraction to try and discredit the beauty of the story of The Bible.”
Perhaps Downey and Burnett can take comfort in the old Hollywood adage — “Bad publicity is better than no publicity.” Just imagine this. A lot of people who tune in next time just to check out the controversy may discover something else unexpected — the engaging power of the Bible and the God behind it. The next episode of “The Bible” airs on the History Channel at 8 PM EDT, Sunday, March 24th.
© 2013 Faith Issues
