BBC: The show centres on a Christ-like man who performs miracles around the world. But the character’s name is a huge nod to Dajjal, a false prophet in Islamic theology comparable to the Antichrist.
Many Muslims and Arabic speakers guessed that the “messiah” was Dajjal and joked they would need to “grab a prayer mat” after watching the trailer.In the trailer, the main character – played by Belgian actor Mehdi Dehbi – is seen performing miracles and building a huge international following.
A CIA officer investigates the elusive figure, whom she suspects of being a major global con artist. During an interrogation, the man says he was sent “by his father” to help people.
Netflix tweeted the trailer with the question: “Who do you think he is?” Dehbi’s character isn’t named in the trailer, but he is named on Netflix’s website as Al-Masih – Arabic for “the messiah”. It is the name used for Jesus Christ in Islam, but is also the name with which Dajjal is said to announce himself.