Despite being in Netflix's top 10 series, Queen Cleopatra has majorly crashed in audience ratings. Currently, the docu-series has scored a mere two per cent out of 100 from viewers on Rotten Tomatoes - giving it one of the worst audience scores on Rotten Tomatoes ever.
The historical four-part show also stands at a woeful 1.1 out of 10 on IMDB and sports a Tomatometer of 11 per cent with critics. The dismal scores come as the Netflix 'African Queens' series received widespread backlash upon its release last Wednesday (May 10).
Many viewers have expressed fury at the show's portrayal of Cleopatra VII as a black woman, sparking controversy around the docuseries' historical accuracy. A lot of historians have said Cleopatra VII was likely Greek Macedonian, and not Black.
However, due to gaps in the pharaoh's family history, many have argued back that her portrayal as black could actually be historically accurate The race row has led Netflix to accused by some of 'blackwashing', which is a term used to describe when a traditionally white character is replaced with a black person in the name of diversity.
There has even been a lawsuit against Netflix from Egyptian lawyer Mahmoud al-Semry. The Egyptian government has also issued a denouncement of the Netflix series.
Last week, Adele James - who plays Cleopatra - responded to al-Semry's lawsuit. Speaking on The Wayne Ayers Podcast, she claims it is "rooted in racism".
She said: "I know I shouldn't laugh, but it's quite funny. I think it's quite funny. The level of threat that you must feel, just on my skin tone, to file a lawsuit against an entire streaming service. That to me is really extreme. It's a really extreme reaction, and it's a hundred percent fundamentally rooted in racism.
"Which is a very modern ideology. The Ancient Egyptians, they don't think about race the way that we do, because race really has only been contextualized, as we understand it, since the Trans-Atlantic slave trade. That's just not how people thought back then, right? So it's really bizarre but to me, again, I find it very sad. I feel sad for them."
On Rotten Tomatoes, one viewer called Noriva gave the show 0.5 out of five stars, writing: "I really had high hopes for this.. but it failed spectacularly." Mary, who also gave the same score, typed: "Plot was meh, but the so-called 'experts' ruined it for me. Shouldn't be advertised as a documentary, more Bridgerton-esque b/c of the historical fiction aspects of it."
However, not everyone has disliked it. Gerson gave five stars and put: "It's a very nice history, it shows the power of a woman that changes the way we are used to see things." And Fab added: "Loved it, Great casting, finally a believable Cleopatra, a real African queen, what an interesting life she had, an intelligent, powerful women for sure."
Do you watch the series? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.
Netflix's Queen Cleopatra is the second instalment in the streaming service's African Queens series, by executive Producer Jada Pinkett Smith. The latest series features one of history’s most famous, powerful and misunderstood women, Queen Cleopatra.
A description about the series by Netflix reads: "From Executive Producer Jada Pinkett Smith comes a new documentary series exploring the lives of prominent and iconic African Queens. This season will feature Cleopatra, the world’s most famous, powerful, and misunderstood woman - a daring queen whose beauty and romances came to overshadow her real asset: her intellect.
"Cleopatra’s heritage has been the subject of much academic debate, which has often been ignored by Hollywood. Now our series re-assesses this fascinating part of her story."
The documentaries aim to explore female figures of power throughout African history. The first instalment focused on Queen Njinga, who was a Southwest African ruler and served as queen of the Ambundu Kingdoms of Ndongo from 1624 to 1663.
