Kudüs Fatihi Selahaddin Eyyubi

 Kudüs Fatihi Selahaddin Eyyubi (English: Saladin: The Conqueror of Jerusalem) is a Turkish television series produced by Turkey's Akli Films and Pakistan’s Ansari and Shah Films. The series is based on the life of Saladin, the founder of Ayyubid dynasty. The television series started production in summer 2022. The producers asserted that the main target of the series are non-Muslims who are unaware of the Muslim history. The series is being written by numerous Turkish historians and assisted by Pakistani historians and research writers.

Plot
The television series focuses on the life of 12th century Muslim ruler Saladin and how he conquered Jerusalem Furthermore, it focuses on his struggles and battles against the Crusaders and his goal to unite the Muslim territories of Syria, northern Mesopotamia, Palestine and Egypt under his rule.

In the show, Saladin is depicted as the adopted son of Nur ad-Din Zengi who doesn't know that he is adopted and doesn't know his real parents.

Selahaddin Eyyubi
Kudüs Fatihi Selahaddin Eyyubi Dizisinde Uğur Güneş Tarafından Canlandırılmış Karakter(1-)


 * Ugur Gunes as Saladin, also known as Salah ad-Din Yusuf bin Ayyub bin Shadi. Saladin establishes the Ayyubid dynasty and becomes the first ruler of Egypt and Syria in the TV series.


 * Mehmet Ali Nuroğlu as Nur ad-Din Zengi, a renowned Muslim ruler and military commander, is depicted as leading the Zengid dynasty during the Crusader period in the TV series. He and Saladin will be portrayed as serving as commanders under the Zengid dynasty, although not closely related. Nur ad-Din will be depicted as ruling over parts of Iraq, Syria, and Egypt, and holds the title of Emir of Aleppo and Damascus.


 * Seda Yıldız as Ayyub ibn Shadi, a soldier and politician from Dvin and the father of Selahaddin Eyyubi.


 * Zeynep Kumral as Fatma Hatun, the wife of Ayyub ibn Shadi and mother of Selahaddin.


 * Burak Sarimola as Shehinshah, the oldest son of Ayyub ibn Shadi and brother of Selahaddin.


 * Ali Ersan Duru as Turan-Shah, an elder brother of Saladin.


 * Sezgin Erdemir as Asad ad-Din Shirkuh, the brother of Ayyub ibn Shadi and uncle of Saladin.


 * Dilin Döğer as Süreyya Khatun, will play a key role in defending the Muslim lands and establishing the Ayyubid dynasty in the TV series.


 * Sezin Akbaşoğulları as Ismat ad-Din Khatun was the daughter of a regent of Damascus.
 * Barış Bağcı as Rashid ad-Din Sinan.
 * Noor ul Hassan as Abdul Qadir Gilani.

Development
On 20 August 2021, the agreement between Emre Konuk, owner of Akli Film Production and Pakistan's Ansari & Shah Films producers Dr. Kashif Ansari and Dr. Junaid Ali Shah, on the production of this new series titled Selahaddin Eyyubi was signed in Belgrade. Emre tweeted:
 * "A happy news on a blessed Friday night! Contract signed between Akli Films and Ansari&Shah Films about ‘Sultan Selahaddin Ayyubi’. May this international project, which will be prepared with the cooperation of Turkey and Pakistan, be beneficial to our country and our art world."

On 18 October 2021, the delegation from Turkey landed in Islamabad International Airport to begin auditions for the drama series in Lahore and Karachi. The delegation visited Faisal Mosque and met with the prime minister to officially announce the Pak-Turk collaboration. They also met with various other government dignitaries. The auditions in Lahore and Karachi took place at Nishat Hotel and DHA respectively. The judges were Berna Kürekci and Ahmet Faruk.

Shooting began on 2 September 2023.

Casting
The series will feature actors from both Turkey and Pakistan. 75% of the show cast will be Turkish including Selahaddin and the rest of 25% cast will be from Pakistan. In this regard, Turkey's Akli Film Production announced to scout for talent in Pakistan from October 28 to November 1 of 2021 in Lahore, Karachi, and Islamabad. The series received 10,000 applications in Pakistan from people who wish to have a part in it. Out of more than 6,000 candidates, a total of 60 Pakistani artists got golden tickets in auditions, out of which 18 are from Lahore and 42 from Karachi.

Filming
The TV series is being shot in Turkey and is planned to have three seasons. Each season will have 34 episodes as revealed by Adnan Siddiqui. Production began on January 29, 2022, as producer, Emre Konuk posted an image with the caption, "Selahaddin Eyyubi yakında!" (Selahaddin Eyyubi soon) on his Instagram. Almost 240 acres of land is procured in Istanbul where replicas of Makkah, Jerusalem, Tikrit and various cities of Syria and Egypt will be constructed. The cities constructed were supposed to be inaugurated in Turkey between 15 and 20 March 2022, with Turkish President, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and Pakistani Prime Minister, Imran Khan as special guests, but that was cancelled, due to a No-confidence motion against Imran Khan, which resulted in his removal from office.

Writing
Selahaddin Eyyubi will use sixteen writers over its three seasons. The historical series is being written by Turkish historians with the assistance of Pakistan's palaeographers and research writers. Kashif Ansari imparted that screenwriters for the series have enlisted the help of Turkish historians, researchers and authors to make it as close to reality as possible. The initial work on the series was completed in September, after that, screen testing began once the casting was done.

Turkey
Kudüs Fatihi Selahaddin Eyyubi premiered in Turkey on 13 November 2023 on TRT 1.

Pakistan
The series first episode premiered in Pakistan on Hum TV on 6 May 2024.