Photo: Nima Benati
Known as one of the MENA region’s biggest stars, Yasmine Sabri is a force to be reckoned with. As an outspoken humanitarian, and an ambassador for coveted brands, the Egyptian actor has had a career spanning the past few years that many dream to achieve in their entire lifetime. Below, Vogue Arabia takes a look at the number of accolades the star has collected under her belt that extends far beyond her screen time.
Two-time Vogue Arabia cover star
Recreating her own Roman Holiday, Sabri’s Italian summer shoot for her first-ever Vogue cover filled the pages of the July/Aug 2019 issue with tailored dresses, oversized hats, and thick feline liner, setting new standards for the meaning of bellissima. “I’m privileged and really honored to be on the cover of Vogue Arabia,” she shared with the team. “Vogue is a brand, it is a trademark. To be the first Egyptian star to have a solo appearance on the cover makes me feel like I achieved something to get this.”
Photographed by Silja Magg for Vogue Arabia July/August 2019.
For her second cover with Vogue Arabia, which marked her return to the big screen after a three-year hiatus with the blockbuster comedy Abu Nasab, Yasmine Sabri channeled her magnetic power. Photographed against projections of fierce yet magnificent creatures like the panther, and stallion, the Egyptian actor reflects on her career, family, and personal growth in the cover story. “I’m a woman born to be in front of the camera and be under the spotlight,” she said. “My grandma raised me well, her manner turned me into a disciplined teenage girl who didn’t commit many mistakes.”
Vogue Arabia, April 2023. Photo: Nima Benati
Roaring fiercely with Cartier
Yasmine Sabri models Cartier’s latest Panthère collection as the first woman from the Middle East to star in one of the brand’s global film campaigns. Photo courtesy of Cartier
In a series of historic firsts, Sabri became the first woman from the Middle East to join the Cartier family and the first to star in one of the luxury French jeweler’s global film campaigns as the latest personality to join the community of fiercely feminine Panthère muses. “It’s such an honor and I’m so proud,” she said about being the first to represent the region. “I hope I can represent the women of the Middle East in the most beautiful, elite, and prestigious way possible. It makes me feel like I have been doing something right, like I have been thinking the right way because I’ve had these kinds of results.”
Leading the small screen
A far cry from her official television debut in 2013 and first break into the industry with Khatawat El Shaytan, Hekayti(MyStory) was Sabri’s first series lead role in which she played Dalida, a woman whose life is turned upside down after witnessing a murder. The Ramadan show was a huge success and not only firmly established her stardom on the small screen but also started her on a path to Hollywood. “No one from my family is in the arts. My dad is a doctor and my mother is an engineer,” she revealed. “I just wanted to be different and have my own path. I was a TV host and then I did a few commercials and that led to me getting some small roles, which then got bigger and bigger.”
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Breaking box-office records
Kickstarting her burgeoning career in Arab cinema, the Egyptian film shot in India Gahim Fel Hend reached number one status in the box office while her next two films, Lielet Hana wa Srour and El-Diesel, followed suit achieving some of the highest revenues in the 2018 Eid movie season. “I don’t want to make a plan and stick to just that,” she previously explained. “I want to keep moving. I’m the person who 100% follows her dreams no matter where they take me.”
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Seeing gold in the pool
After taking a break from a 14-year stint as a competitive swimmer until the age of 18, Sabri returned to the world of sports a few years in a masters championship competition in Egypt where she proved she was still a formidable athlete and emerged a gold-medalist. “How I was raised meant sport was always part of my life and made me feel that I didn’t need surgery or feel the pressure to look a certain way or to have affirmation. Sport makes you look younger and makes you have better-looking skin and a better body.”
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Named Arab Woman of the Year
Recognized as one of the many noteworthy Arab women changing the world, the self-proclaimed feminist received the “Arab Woman of the Year” award from the London Arabia Organization in 2017 for her achievement in promoting women’s advancement. “I think we, as Arab women, should always try to inspire others, be good role models, and help women specifically to be empowered and to believe in themselves and to feel like we are worthy,” she toldVogue Arabia.
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Advocating for human rights
As a longtime champion of human rights, especially for women in the Middle East and Syrian refugees, she often collaborates with the Arab Women Organization and was named “Ambassador of African Women” at the Arab-African Conference on Women’s Empowerment held in Cairo in April 2019. “I’m a feminist. I’ve always been fascinated by strong women. When I started focusing on women’s rights, going to refugee camps, and working with Arab women who had an affliction, I realized that I had a responsibility to help make an impact.”
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Ruling the red carpet
Topping the best-dressed lists at almost every film festival she attends, Sabri has a flair for wearing form-fitting silhouettes with plenty of sparkle from some of the region’s most celebrated couturiers, including Yousef Aljasmi and Antoine Kareh. “I feel like Arab designers, including Elie Saab, Zuhair Murad, are leading the industry. When you look at the Oscars, Grammys, and MTV awards, so many Arab designers are dressing superstars.”
Yasmine Sabri at the 2018 El Gouna Film Festival. Photo: Ämr Ezzeldinn
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