Desdemona the mouth of the lady) that European women are unwise to marry the temperamental males of other nations. While Shakespeare followed Cinthio's tale very closely in composing "Othello", he deviated significantly in some details. He invented Desdemona's father, Brabantio, and her dissolute Venetian admirer, Roderigo. He invented the entire first act in which Iago arouses Brabantio's prejudices against Othello, and Desdemona defends her choice of husband before the King. Shakespeare considerably expanded the role of Cinthio's ensign's wife. In Cinthio, she is simply Disdemona's companion but in Shakespeare she becomes Desdemona's attendant and confidante. In Cinthio, the ensign filches Disdemona's
Desdemona been numerous screen modernisations and adaptions of the play. During 1999 Edinburgh Film Festival, Adil Hussain, cast as Othello, fell in love with Kristen Jain, who was playing Desdemona. He ended up tightly hugging her, much to her & audience shock, instead of "killing" her as per the script and thus forcing the curtains to be brought down immediately. They eventually got married, 8 years later, in 2007. In "O" (2001), Julia Stiles played a character based on Desdemona in a version of "Othello" set in a contemporary high school. A 2001 British made-for-television film featuring Keeley Hawes as Desdemona