 Out of their frustration with that misrepresentation, the idea for "AmericanEast" began to take shape.Keeping the concept of the frustrated Muslim actor who is always cast as a terrorist, but now giving it a more tragic spin, they began to work on a storyline that touched on their own lives and experiences as Middle Easterners, and the lives and experiences of others, such as Tony Shalhoub’s father, himself a Lebanese immigrant.With Shalhoub providing support as an executive producer with development funds, and Issawi and Badreya writing, the project began to take form.