The acclaimed second season of Ramy Youssef's semi-autobiographical comedy series had a number of famous faces among the cast: there was a guest appearance by Oscar winner Mahershala Ali and Egyptian actor Amr Waked stars.
But there was another big name that was supposed to feature in the season, according to Egyptian-American actor Youssef.
Mean Girls star Lindsay Lohan was due to make a cameo in the hit Hulu show.
"We were interested in this idea of people that you don't really think are Muslim," Youssef, 29, told Entertainment Weekly in a new interview. "We actually cast Lindsay Lohan, because Lindsay had this whole thing about converting to Islam."
Though the actress, 33, had been officially cast, according to the comic, she failed to turn up on the day of shooting.
"I talked to her and she was down, and then, you know, like Lindsay does, we just kind of stopped hearing from her," he said. "I was trying to get hold of her and she was on the call sheet, and I guess she couldn't make it. I don't know, I never heard from her."
Youssef said "Lindsay is going to be Lindsay", acknowledging that you couldn't "put her in a box, that's what I know".
The actor is still hopeful of enticing Lohan to star in the next series of Ramy, should the sitcom be renewed.
"Season three inshallah," he tweeted this week.
Youssef's eponymous show, for which he won a Golden Globe for Best Actor in a Television Series – Musical or Comedy last year, first premiered in April 29.
The actor's faith forms the crux of the groundbreaking sitcom, in which he plays a Muslim man grappling with his background and religion in the US.
Lohan, meanwhile, embraced Islam in recent years, and in 2017 was seen holding a copy of the Quran.
"My very close friends ... in London are Saudi and they gave me the Quran and I brought it to New York because I was learning," she told Turkish TV. “It opened doors for me to experience spiritually, to find another true meaning. This is who I am.”
The actress moved to Dubai several years ago, and has remained in the city throughout the pandemic. She has often said the lack of paparazzi here is one of the major reasons she lives in the UAE.
“I live here, yep, I have been here for about six years," she told David Spade in an interview last month. "But I go to New York a lot to see my family … and I was in London before this,” she said.
The second season of Ramy will premiere on Hulu on Friday, May 29.
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Best Academy: Ajax and Benfica
Best Agent: Jorge Mendes
Best Club : Liverpool
Best Coach: Jurgen Klopp (Liverpool)
Best Goalkeeper: Alisson Becker
Best Men’s Player: Cristiano Ronaldo
Best Partnership of the Year Award by SportBusiness: Manchester City and SAP
Best Referee: Stephanie Frappart
Best Revelation Player: Joao Felix (Atletico Madrid and Portugal)
Best Sporting Director: Andrea Berta (Atletico Madrid)
Best Women's Player: Lucy Bronze
Best Young Arab Player: Achraf Hakimi
Kooora – Best Arab Club: Al Hilal (Saudi Arabia)
Kooora – Best Arab Player: Abderrazak Hamdallah (Al-Nassr FC, Saudi Arabia)
Player Career Award: Miralem Pjanic and Ryan Giggs
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Stars: Gang Dong-won, Lee Jung-hyun, Lee Ra
Director: Yeon Sang-ho
Rating: 2/5
The specs
Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
Power: 620hp from 5,750-7,500rpm
Torque: 760Nm from 3,000-5,750rpm
Transmission: Eight-speed dual-clutch auto
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh1.05 million ($286,000)
SPECS
Mini John Cooper Works Clubman and Mini John Cooper Works Countryman
Engine: two-litre 4-cylinder turbo
Transmission: nine-speed automatic
Power: 306hp
Torque: 450Nm
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The BIO:
He became the first Emirati to climb Mount Everest in 2011, from the south section in Nepal
He ascended Mount Everest the next year from the more treacherous north Tibetan side
By 2015, he had completed the Explorers Grand Slam
Last year, he conquered K2, the world’s second-highest mountain located on the Pakistan-Chinese border
He carries dried camel meat, dried dates and a wheat mixture for the final summit push
His new goal is to climb 14 peaks that are more than 8,000 metres above sea level
Results
2pm: Handicap (PA) Dh80,000 1,600m; Winner: AF Al Baher, Bernardo Pinheiro (jockey), Ernst Oertel (trainer).
2.30pm: Handicap (TB) Dh100,000 1,600m; Winner: Talento Puma, Xavier Ziani, Salem bin Ghadayer.
3pm: Handicap (TB) Dh90,000 1,950m; Winner: Tailor’s Row, Royston Ffrench, Salem bin Ghadayer.
3.30pm: Jebel Ali Stakes Listed (TB) Dh500,000 1,950m; Winner: Mark Of Approval, Patrick Cosgrave, Mahmood Hussain.
4pm: Conditions (TB) Dh125,000 1,400m; Winner: Dead-heat Raakez, Jim Crowley, Nicholas Bachalard/Attribution, Xavier Ziani, Salem bin Ghadayer.
4.30pm: Jebel Ali Sprint (TB) Dh500,000 1,000m; Winner: AlKaraama, Antonio Fresu, Musabah Al Muhairi.
5pm: Handicap (TB) Dh100,000 1,200m; Winner: Wafy, Richard Mullen, Satish Seemar.
5.30pm: Handicap (TB) Dh90,000 1,400m; Winner: Cachao, Tadhg O’Shea, Satish Seemar.
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Evacuations to France hit by controversy
- Over 500 Gazans have been evacuated to France since November 2023
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Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants
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The biog
Profession: Senior sports presenter and producer
Marital status: Single
Favourite book: Al Nabi by Jibran Khalil Jibran
Favourite food: Italian and Lebanese food
Favourite football player: Cristiano Ronaldo
Languages: Arabic, French, English, Portuguese and some Spanish
Website: www.liliane-tannoury.com
Getting there
The flights
Emirates and Etihad fly to Johannesburg or Cape Town daily. Flights cost from about Dh3,325, with a flying time of 8hours and 15 minutes. From there, fly South African Airlines or Air Namibia to Namibia’s Windhoek Hosea Kutako International Airport, for about Dh850. Flying time is 2 hours.
The stay
Wilderness Little Kulala offers stays from £460 (Dh2,135) per person, per night. It is one of seven Wilderness Safari lodges in Namibia; www.wilderness-safaris.com.
Skeleton Coast Safaris’ four-day adventure involves joining a very small group in a private plane, flying to some of the remotest areas in the world, with each night spent at a different camp. It costs from US$8,335.30 (Dh30,611); www.skeletoncoastsafaris.com
About Karol Nawrocki
• Supports military aid for Ukraine, unlike other eurosceptic leaders, but he will oppose its membership in western alliances.
• A nationalist, his campaign slogan was Poland First. "Let's help others, but let's take care of our own citizens first," he said on social media in April.
• Cultivates tough-guy image, posting videos of himself at shooting ranges and in boxing rings.
• Met Donald Trump at the White House and received his backing.
Name: Peter Dicce
Title: Assistant dean of students and director of athletics
Favourite sport: soccer
Favourite team: Bayern Munich
Favourite player: Franz Beckenbauer
Favourite activity in Abu Dhabi: scuba diving in the Northern Emirates


