Can I Watch Series With God’s Prophet Depicted?

04 September, 2018
Q There is currently a series shown on satellite TV about the story of Prophet Yusuf (peace be upon him). Is it permissible to watch a series or a film in which the character of a prophet is embodied by an actor?

Answer

In the Name of Allah, Most Gracious, Most Merciful. 

All praise and thanks are due to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon His Messenger.


In this fatwa:

1- Prophets are the noblest people whom all people should respect and dignify as they have brought them Allah’s messages and led them to His guidance.

2- The depiction of the Prophets is impermissible in any form of art.


Responding to your question, Dr. Hatem Al-Hajj, Dean of the College of Islamic Studies at Mishkah University and a member of the Permanent Fatwa Committee for the Assembly of Muslim Jurists in America (AMJA), states:

The depiction of a Prophet is impermissible in any form of art. This means a movie maker should not do that, nor should any Islamic organization, mosque or institute promote such a movie/series, by showing it to their congregation.

This may not be shown to children either, because the content will not be trusted if the makers of the movie weren’t cognizant of the prohibition of depicting the prophets, or, even worse, decided to violate it.

If a discerning adult saw such work for a certain expected benefit, while being alert to the negative aspects of such depiction, and the possible inaccuracy of the content, then there may be room there for permissibility, given the work doesn’t have other violations.

In general, what is permissible in real life is likewise on the screen and vice-versa.

 Almighty Allah knows best.

Editor’s note: This fatwa is from Ask the Scholar’s archive and was originally published at an earlier date.