Hesham Selim

Acting

Hesham Selim

Born 1958-01-27 · Alexandria, Egypt

Hesham Saleh Selim (January 27, 1958 - September 22, 2022) was an Egyptian film and television actor. He graduated from the High Institute of Tourism and Hotels in Cairo and later studied at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art in London. Hesham was the son of Saleh Selim, an Egyptian football legend and former president of Al Ahly Sporting Club. His sister-in-law was the iconic actress and singer Yousra. He began his acting career at the age of 12, playing one of Faten Hamama’s children in Empire M (1972). Four years later, he played a lead role in Youssef Chahine’s Return of the Prodigal Son (1976), which embedded in him a passion for acting for the rest of his life. Selim acted in many TV shows, among them El Helmeya Nights (1987-1995), Arabesque (1994), and The White Flag (1988). He has appeared in many known films such as Alexandria Again and Forever (1989), The Puppeteer (1989), and Land of Dreams (1993). In the wake of the 2011 Egyptian revolution, Selim became the host of the talk show Hiwar Al Qahira (Cairo Dialogue), a weekly program featuring live discussions with guests on political, social, and economic issues on Sky News Arabia in 2012. On May 5, 2020, he spoke on television about having a transgender son, in a rare public show of support for LGBT+ rights in Egypt. This segment and Selim’s acceptance of his son Nour in a country where gender issues remain taboo have won praise on social media, with many applauding Selim for his position and his decision to speak about it on Egyptian television. Hesham Selim passed away at 64 after a long battle with lung cancer. He is survived by two daughters and a son.

Acting credits

First Time in Love poster
4.5

The film revolves around a young man, who lives with his uncle after the death of his father. He is a reckless young man who relies on the money of his billionaire uncle, until his uncle decides to leave him to rely on himself, causing him problems in many comedy situations

First Time in Love

2007

Atshanh poster
NR

No synopsis available yet.

Atshanh

1987

The Headmaster poster
7.7

Ashour, Salaah’s father, runs his school with severity and cruelty. after Ashour's death, Salah inherits the job and lets Sayed, his deputy, take charge. Hussein the teacher makes a great effort to guide Salah to succeed in managing the school and achieve good results, while salah is dealing with his trust issues and his need to prove himself by getting out of his father's shadow. with the help of Hussien, his girlfriend Wafaa, and his two friends Atef and Lemby .. can he run the school his own way?

The Headmaster

2000

Granita poster
NR

A young Egyptian man travels with his family to Hurghada on a work trip, where he works with foreign tourists. There, he meets a woman with an Egyptian father and an American mother. Despite his family's objections, he falls in love and marries her after she becomes pregnant. However, their marriage soon faces challenges as cultural differences emerge—he is deeply rooted in Upper Egyptian traditions, while she embraces a modern American lifestyle.

Granita

2001

Empire M poster
6.3

Well off widow working Mother "Mona" is struggling raising 6 kids at different ages ranging from elementary school to University graduating students. The day she thinks to bring a new husband home proves to be a very difficult task.

Empire M

1972

Alexandria Again and Forever poster
5.1

Set in 1987 against the backdrop of a hunger strike by the Egyptian film industry, Chahine himself steps in to play Yehia, the famed Egyptian director whose life is chronicled in "Alexandria, Why?" and "An Egyptian Story". Obsessed with Amr, the handsome actor he discovered and cast as his alter-ego in parts one and two of The Alexandria Trilogy, Yehia pressures Amr to star in various film projects that change even as Yehia's perception of the young actor begins to change. He first casts Amr as Hamlet, which the actor deems too demanding for his talents, then as the lead in a musical biopic of demigod Alexander the Great, who founded the city of Alexandria in 332 B.C.

Alexandria Again and Forever

1989

Mousa poster
6.8

An engineering college student invents the first of its kind robot in the Middle East, in an attempt to avenge his father's death and achieve justice, which gets him pursued by the authorities.

Mousa

2021

I Want a Solution poster
7.5

It is impossible to live between Doria and her diplomatic husband, Medhat, who asks him for a divorce, but he refuses. She is forced to go to court and file a divorce. Doria falls into the maze of the courts and is exposed to a series of problems and obstacles that undermine her dignity. Things get complicated when the husband comes with false witnesses testifying against her in secret. She loses her case after more than four years.

I Want a Solution

1975

Don't Ask Me Who I Am poster
6.7

When the impoverished Aisha sells her daughter Zeinab to the barren wealthy woman Soraya, she insists on being Zeinab's nanny to raise her. But as her other children grow up and get prestigious jobs, they ask their mother to quit her job, ignorant of the fact that she is staying for their sister.

Don't Ask Me Who I Am

1984

Al Haggama poster
NR

A Drama movie

Al Haggama

1992

Land of Dreams poster
6.8

Nargis, a middle-aged woman, is preparing to leave Egypt for the United States to reunite with her grown children, who are mesmerized by the allure of the "Land of Dreams". However, as her departure draws near, she is plagued by deep reluctance and fear of leaving her life and identity behind.

Land of Dreams

1993

The Puppeteer poster
9.0

Muhammad Jad al-Karim Aragouz in the village, he had a son and he was Bahloul, he was able to teach him until he graduated, but the son was rebellious against his father’s profession. His great ambition put him in the way of a businessman who was from the people of his town. A large tourism project in agricultural land, for which Al-Aragouz stands.

The Puppeteer

1989

Playing with demons poster
NR

Abdul Basit, Jaber, Fathi and Radwan are colleagues at the university who share the same housing and work to provide for their livelihood.

Playing with demons

1991

O, Mehalabeya poster
1.0

(Shukri) Director and his friend (Marei) screenwriter, cooperate and struggle in front of all obstacles to make a film about (reproach) popular dancer during the British occupation, which has a sense of national duty, it helps guerrillas with money and information, and contribute to the assassination attempt on King Farouk.

O, Mehalabeya

1991

Return of the Prodigal Son poster
6.4

Freed after spending years in prison, an activist's homecoming turns into a dark affair as his disillusion clashes with his family's expectations. Demonstrating Chahine’s eclecticism, this is an elegant melodrama, exuberant musical, layered allegory, and profound portrait of personal and political disillusionment.

Return of the Prodigal Son

1976

Qesma W Nasib poster
9.0

A university girl wants to get married, but she fails both times she gets engaged for various reasons. Dr. Rajaee’s circumstances prevent him from hastening his marriage to Sally. At the same time, the worker Firdous gets engaged to Ashour, the car mechanic. The family covets Ashour, who fulfills all her needs for Firdous. Sally separates from Rajai succeeds in wooing Ashour.

Qesma W Nasib

1990

Gamal Abdel Nasser poster
6.0

The biography of the iconic leader Gamal Abdel Nasser, from his birth to igniting the revolution to the defeat of 67 and his disagreement with Abdel Hakim Amer, then his planning for the War of Attrition and his sudden death that stunned the world in 1970.

Gamal Abdel Nasser

1998

Fingerprints On Water poster
8.0

A happily married couple with their daughter are being pursued by the ghost of the husband's sister, as she killed the family's dog and cat and continues to kill several family members in retaliation for a situation that happened to her before her death.

Fingerprints On Water

1985

The Storm poster
6.7

Ever wonder what it was like to be in the middle east during the Gulf War of the early 90s? Sure, many films and TV shows have portrayed what it was like for the UN forces. This film takes you into the melee from the perspective of Egyptians -- who were sharply divided about the war -- and their daily lives, which, as one sees, form the basis of their foundation for understanding/approaching the war. And it really is these "every day" realities that make up the bulk of the film.

The Storm

2001

You Are My Life poster
6.7

Youssef, a successful architect is married to a beautiful woman, Hend, with a child. His life was steady until he discovers that he has cancer. He refuses to tell his family and travels for treatment alone where he met a ballerina who has cancer too and they fall in love.

You Are My Life

2004

Too Little Love.. Too Much Violence poster
NR

Talaat, the son of wealthy merchant Morsi, lives under pressure from his father to marry the poor girl Fatima. Talaat rebels on his father and divorces Fatima. He meets Eng. Younis, the son of a senior politician and decides to marry his sister to gain power and money.

Too Little Love.. Too Much Violence

1995

Revenge poster
NR

Saadia abandons Salah and marries his rich brother, Gaber. When Saadia loses her child, the police find a baby and she claims that he's her baby while another woman is fighting over the child.

Revenge

1986

Talking About Love poster
6.3

(Nahid) is a waitress from an average family,after she gets divorced,she tries to overcome her loneliness by looking for a new love. Her colleague (Salma) is attracted to (Hassona) the assistant director,who had the opportunity to direct a music video,so he turns to (Salma) to be in the clip.

Talking About Love

2004

45 Days poster
4.8

Admitted to a psychiatric hospital after being accused of murdering his parents, a young man makes a vow of silence weeks away from his trial.

45 Days

2007