Many of his films were written by screenwriter
Wahid Hamed and had a strong political message that exposed
governmental and
police corruption. This gave Zaki the image of an "underdog hero of the people" among Egyptian audiences, particularly among the country's youth. He also starred in the famous 1985 television comedy musical series
Howa wa Heya with actress
Soad Hosny. While not generally an "action star", Zaki played the lead in a number of successful
action movies during the mid-and late-1990s, which added to his "hero of the people" status among audiences. Two of his greatest successes were playing
Egypt's presidents in two popular movies that became landmarks of
Arabic cinema. He played presidents
Gamal Abdel Nasser in
Nasser 56 (1996), a movie that centered on the fateful summer of 1956 when then-President Nasser nationalizing the
Suez Canal, and
Anwar Sadat in the movie
The Days of Sadat (2001) with director
Mohamed Khan which he also produced. The movie depicted 40 years of the late president's life. He also had plans to play President
Hosni Mubarak in a third movie. In the 1980s, Zaki acted alongside leading actors from previous generations such as
Salah Zulfikar and
Ahmed Mazhar. He was also known for portraying prominent figures in Egyptian history like
Taha Hussein. Zaki was seen as an icon and spokesperson for the average Egyptian youth; some considered him a successor to
Farid Shawki as film hero for the working class, the two starred together in two movies several years earlier. He was a known heavy smoker. Zaki had been in intensive care at
Dar Al Fouad Hospital in
Sixth of October City, just outside
Cairo, and died of lung cancer complications, after president
Hosni Mubarak offered to send him to France for medical treatment at the government's expense and granted him the
Order of Merit for his work in over 50 movies. A book about Zaki has been released under the title of
Ahmad Zaki wa Symphoniet Ibda (
Ahmad Zaki: A Symphonic Innovation Masterpiece). The book features details of his acting career and includes a compilation of articles by different critics, including
Tarek El Shennawi,
Mohammad Al Shafe’ee, and
Waleed Saif. == Legacy ==