Ronaldo is set to play himself in an Iranian movie about a Palestine
girl who was killed before realizing her dream of meeting him.
Ronaldo has reached a deal to be part of the movie and will start
filming as early as September in Lebanon, according to officials at the
Brazil-Iran chamber of commerce, which is helping produce the movie.
Still without a title, the movie is based on the true story of Alneyrab,
a 13-year-old girl who dreamed of meeting the soccer star when he
visited the Middle East on a humanitarian mission in 2005. She was only
able to watch her idol pass through along with his entourage, and later
was killed in a conflict in the region.
Ronaldo’s agent, Fabiano Farah, confirmed to Globo’s Web site that
Ronaldo has signed a pre-contract for the movie.
The 32-year-old Ronaldo, who is thriving with Corinthians in his
comeback from the third serious knee injury of his career, will appear
in some scenes that take place in the girl’s dreams, said Farrokh
Faradji Chadan, president of the Brazil-Iran chamber of commerce.
He is expected to spend only a few days in Lebanon shooting the movie.
Chadan would not disclose how much Ronaldo will be paid for what he
called a “humanitarian” production.
Chadan said the deal to have Ronaldo participate in the movie—which is
expected to be finished next year—was reached in June.
Ronaldo has been a goodwill ambassador for the U.N. Development Program
since 2000 and made a trip to Israel and the West Bank in 2005 as part
of his campaign against poverty around the world. He was playing for
Real Madrid at the time.
Ronaldo signed with four-time Brazilian champion Corinthians in December
2008 despite doubts he would ever recover from the knee injury sustained
with AC Milan in February of that year.
After more than a year on the sidelines, Ronaldo returned to action in
March and has already helped Corinthians win two titles in Brazil—the
traditional Sao Paulo state championship and the Brazilian Cup. He has
scored six goals in his last four matches.
Ronaldo was a member of Brazil’s team that won its fourth World Cup
title in 1994 in the United States, and was the team’s top player when
it clinched the 2002 World Cup in South Korea and Japan.
Ronaldo, the career World Cup scoring leader with 15 goals, has also
played for Cruzeiro, PSV Eindhoven, Barcelona and Inter Milan. |