Bassem Youssef was a heart surgeon in Cairo who harbored a love for Jon Stewart and The Daily Show and who dreamed of becoming a comedian. In the years following the Arab Spring he made that unlikely leap -- first with a YouTube show, and eventually with a live political satire show that drew more than 30 million viewers every week. The new documentary Tickling Giants -- directed by Sara Taksler, herself a Daily Show producer -- follows Youssef’s journey to stardom and ends with him fleeing the country for the United States after the military-backed government forced his show off the air in 2014.
Photo: Egyptian political satirist Bassem Youssef, featured in the new documentary Tickling Giants