After years of not hearing his name in the news, actor Osama Abbas’s name started trending online out of the blues.

It turned out Osama Abbas’s name was trending because a fake account decided to make a tweet on Twitter saying, “If producers think I’m no longer alive, I’m alive and want to work.”

Who is Osama Abbas?

If you’re unfamiliar with Osama Abbas, he started acting in 1969 with “Tholathy Adwa2 el Masrah” for 6 years, presenting the Ramadan riddles alongside them. Highlights from his work include Raafat Al Haggan (1990), Bawabat Al Halawani (1992), Fi Saif Lazem Nihib (1974), Mamnou Fi Laylat El-Dokhla (1975), with his last appearance being in 2017 with Saabe’ Gaar.

The Truth:

According to Masrawy, Abbas’s son, Ahmed, denied the tweet. He said they have been receiving numerous calls asking about the tweet, which is causing disturbance for his father, who is vacationing in the North Coast.

He said,

“My father has voluntarily moved away from art years ago, and he does not have any account on Twitter, and my father’s artistic balance is large and honorable.”

Not the First time This happens:

This isn’t the first time a fake account pops up claiming that an older retired actor is begging for work online. This online trend started after some older actors, in fact, made similar statements.

The fake accounts then generate followers with this scheme, then they delete said tweets, change names, and start new accounts with a big following from the fake tweets.

Actors Syndicate’s Actions:

The syndicated issues a press statement about the incident stating:

“The Actors Syndicate expresses its deep appreciation of Osama Abbas, one of the symbols of the art of Arab acting, who excelled in presenting some of the most complex roles in our history.

Based on the recent fake accounts, the Syndicate warns any attempt of any kind to defame Egypt’s artistic symbols, whether by statement, reference or false insinuation, of serious consequences and legal prosecution.

The Syndicate will not not allow this behavior to go unpunished.”

Final Thoughts:

Creating a fake account is bad on its own, but creating one that is capitalizing on the elders is just a whole new level of disgust.

We see actors as actors, but barely as humans. Imagine someone making a fake account for your grandparents and begging for work on it?

The biggest issue, however, is the fact that the media reports such fake tweets as facts. This account was using pixelated images, and the username wasn’t even related to Abbas, yet it was reported as a fact. People were retweeting. People were attacking producers who had nothing to do with anything.

We’re glad the syndicate took action, but here’s to hoping the said action does actually get implemented.