Netflix has announced plans to develop its first ever original Arabic series entitled Jinn. The series will feature Middle Eastern talent and be filmed in Jordan later this year. Executive produced by Elan and Rajeev Dassani (SEAM), this young adult fantasy adventure comes from Lebanese director Mir-Jean Bou Chaaya (Very Big Shot) and Jordanian screenwriter, Bassel Ghandour (Theeb), partnering with the twin producers.
Jinn will be a contemporary supernatural teenage drama focused on young Arab characters. It will follow a group of teenagers whose lives are disrupted when a spirit known as a Jinn takes the form of a teenage boy that appears to them in the ancient city of Petra. Their friendships and young romances are tested when they set out to stop an even greater darkness that is threatening to destroy the world. Can they come together in time, and find the answers needed, in order to save everything?
Chaaya referred to the series as being a “great opportunity to portray Arab youth in a very unique way.” He continued by stating “the level of authenticity Netflix is trying to achieve with this show is definitely what attracted me the most to be part of this project.”
IHS Markit expects the video streaming market in the Middle East and North Africa to grow “rapldly” through 2021. It expects subscriptions to reach 4.2 million by then, but that will still represent just 1% of the global market.
21st Century Fox (FOX) is also tapping into a growing demand for Arabic content. The media giant announced in September its first Fox-branded Arabic channel.
