In an interview with the director he talked about the difficulty of finding a talented actress of Arabic descent who could also pass for 13.

"Pass to whom?" being the operant question.

I like short women, but like Hayden Panettiere, she doesn't have the look of a 13 year old.

Compare this picture of Summer Bishil ⚠️ ↗ in minimal makeup with her co-star to that of Natalie Portman ⚠️ ↗ at 13 in Heat or Dakota Fanning ⚠️ ↗ at 13 on the red carpet.

Even Peds with a well-trained eye can be fooled by a few adults. But those ones are never cast as kids because they are too few in the population. Instead, regular LG actresses grow into regular sized women like Natalie Portman, Natalie Wood and Elizabeth Taylor and shorties with their petite yet adult bodies like Hayden and Summer play teens when they won't or can't cast a real teen girl.

Dante