Accidental Villains

An Egyptian man faces a moral dilemma when coerced to betray his chosen family to secure US asylum.

Team

synopsis

Seif, a 22-year-old idealist who just moved to NYC meets Tito, a witty and ambitious 24-year-old, in an immigration office. The two Egyptian asylum seekers form an unexpected friendship. Seif finds acceptance and community in Tito’s world, especially with Mariam, a 25-year-old Saudi non-binary activist. When Seif’s asylum case is denied, he gets flagged by immigration as a person of interest. Jeremy, a 52-year- old NYPD officer has been monitoring Tito for a year and believes he’s connected to a terrorist suspect. Jeremy threatens Seif with deportation unless he spies on Tito for the NYPD and infiltrates the queer Arab community. Seif is caught between his American dream and betraying his bestie. When Jeremy thinks Mariam is convincing Seif to not become an informant, he uses information provided by Seif to deport Mariam. Devastated, Seif hatches a plan to get back at Jeremy and redeem himself, but the price may be too high.

Director’statement

Accidental Villains is inspired by events and characters I had encountered when I moved to NYC in 2002. After 9/11, having a Muslim name meant you were a threat to America until you could prove otherwise. 22 years later, that has barely changed. Seif has never been accepted for who he is until he meets Tito, who introduces him to the Arab queer diaspora in NYC, where Seif finally feels at home. When Jeremy recruits him to spy on Tito, Seif’s American dream takes an unexpected turn. I want to explore the complexity of Muslim queer immigrants in America, shedding light on illegal police surveillance and its effects on the community and one’s sense of home. I hope to authentically portray an extremely misrepresented group of people, both in their birthplace and host country. Watching shows like Homeland and 24, I’ve always wondered about the effect of flipping the narrative, where the Muslim villain becomes the hero, and the underdog immigrant comes out on top. This series is my experiment with that narrative.

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