Egyptian actor Ramy Youssef has disclosed the cast of his new cartoon series, #1 Happy Family.
Youssef revealed that US singer-actress Mandy Moore will star in the animated series for Amazon, which Youssef co-created.
The series will also feature actress Alia Shawkat, Egyptian Canadian comedian Salma Hindy, “Ramy” actress Randa Jarrar and US comedians Chris Redd, Akaash Singh and Whitmer Thomas.
According to Yousse, the Amazon animated series will again bring the nuanced experiences of Muslims in the diaspora to global screens alongside a diverse cast.
1 Happy Family USA follows the story of a Muslim-American family learning to code-switch and negotiate their identity in the early 2000s amidst a zeitgeist riddled with fear and war. Youssef will voice the role of Rumi Hussein, a 12-year-old boy eager to fit in and ironically named after Persian poet and Islamic scholar Jalal Aldin Rumi. Iraqi American actress Alia Shawkat will voice Rumi’s sister, while American actress Mandy Moore will voice Rumi’s sixth-grade teacher and crush.
Youssef is the series’s co-creator with US writer and TV producer Pam Brady. The pair will be executive producers of the show with Mona Chalabi. A24 and Amazon Studios will co-produce.
