Omid Djalili
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Omid Djalili is a British stand-up comedian, actor, television producer and writer. Djalili was born on 30 September 1965 in St Mary Abbots Hospital in Kensington, London, to Iranian Baháʼí parents Ahmad and Parvaneh Djalili. His parents emigrated from Tehran to London in 1958. He has a brother and sister. His mother was a dressmaker who at one point assisted Iranian singer Googoosh. His father was a liaison officer at the Iranian embassy in which he would provide medical assistance. He was also a photographer whose pictures ended up in the newspaper Kayhan. He attended Holland Park School where he failed A-level exams a record six times and faked his results to gain entry to Ulster University in Coleraine, Northern Ireland, studying English and theatre studies having been turned down by 16 drama schools. Djalili cited Jack Lemmon, Dustin Hoffman, Meryl Streep, Robert De Niro, Christopher Walken and Julia Roberts as influences. The first significant success of his stand-up comedy career was at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe in 1995 with "Short, Fat Kebab Shop Owner's Son", followed by "The Arab and the Jew" with Jewish comedian Ivor Dembina in 1996. Djalili has appeared in a number of films, most notably Gladiator, The Mummy, Mean Machine, The World Is Not Enough, Alien Autopsy, Spy Game, Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow, Grow Your Own, Notting Hill, Mr Nice, Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End, Sex and the City 2 and provides his voice in Over the Hedge. He has observed that he usually appears as a generic Middle Eastern background character in many of these films, often commenting that he appears in the James Bond film as the "Second Azerbaijani oil pipe attendant". He appeared as Nasim in 22 episodes of the U.S. sitcom Whoopi, starring Whoopi Goldberg, and picked up an international film award for Best Supporting Actor in Casanova, starring alongside Heath Ledger and Jeremy Irons. Djalili has won awards for his comedy. These include the EMMA Award, Time Out Award, and LWT Comedy Award for Best Stand-up Comedian, Spirit of the Fringe Award as well as the One World Media Award for his Channel 4 documentary, Bloody Foreigners. He has also been nominated for awards, such as the Perrier Award for Best Comedian, the Gemini Award for Best Comedy Performance of 2003, the South Bank Award for Best Comedy of 2003, the Royal Television Society Award for Best Stand-up, and the European TV Award for his Bloody Foreigners.
Known for
Credits
Gladiator (2000)
as Slave Trader
The Mummy (1999)
as Gad Hassan
Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End (2007)
as Askay / Pusasn
The Bad Guys 2 (2025)
as Mr. Soliman (voice)
Over the Hedge (2006)
as Tiger (voice)
Notting Hill (1999)
as Coffee Shop Cashier (uncredited)
In Your Dreams (2025)
as Sandman (voice)
Deep Cover (2025)
as Sagar
The World Is Not Enough (1999)
as Foreman
Love Again (2023)
as Mohsen
The Nutcracker and the Four Realms (2018)
as Cavalier
Sex and the City 2 (2010)
as Mr. Safir, Hotel Manager
Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again (2018)
as Greek Official
Spy Game (2001)
as Doumet
Shaun the Sheep Movie (2015)
as Trumper (voice)
Casanova (2005)
as Lupo
Mean Machine (2001)
as Raj
The Love Guru (2008)
as Guru Satchabigknoba
Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow (2004)
as Kaji
The Calcium Kid (2004)
as Herbie Bush
Alien Autopsy (2006)
as Melik
Molly Moon and the Incredible Book of Hypnotism (2015)
as Barry Rix
Modigliani (2004)
as Pablo Picasso
Journey to Bethlehem (2023)
as Melchior
Dinotopia 2: The Temptation (2002)
as Zipeau (voice)
The Infidel (2010)
as Mahmud Nasir
Mr. Nice (2010)
as Saleem Malik
Comic Aid (2005)
Actor
Grow Your Own (2007)
as Ali
My Family and Other Animals (2005)
as Spiro
Anita and Me (2002)
as Uncle Amman
We Are Most Amused (2008)
as Self
The Secret Policeman's Ball: The Ball in the Hall (2006)
as Self
Dying Laughing (2017)
as Self
Dead Man Running (2009)
as Fat Bald Man
A Grand Night In: The Story of Aardman (2015)
as Self - Voice of Trumper
Mad Cows (1999)
as George
New Town (2009)
as Walter
Big Fat Gypsy Gangster (2011)
as Jik Jickkles
Just Like Us (2011)
as Self
The Comedian's Guide to Survival (2016)
as Himself
The Way Out (2020)
as Guide
Dinotopia 4: New Horizons (2003)
as Zipeau (voice)
Deadlines (2005)
as Abdul Sayyaf
Coming Soon (1999)
as Amir Hassan
Dinotopia 3: The Election (2002)
as Zipeau (voice)
We Are Most Amused and Amazed (2018)
as Self
Dinotopia 5: The Virus (2003)
as Zipeau (voice)
Retrospective (2014)
as Nabil Sr
Dinotopia 6: The Exit (2003)
as Zipeau (voice)
Tomorrow Morning (2022)
Actor
Cinema Iran (2005)
as Self - Presenter
Chopratown (2005)
as Ali Ergun
The Egyptian Job (2011)
as Himself (Narrator)
About A Bell (—)
as Sami Shehadi
Les Dawson Lost Tapes (2021)
as Self
Omid Djalili: Live in London (2009)
as Omid Djalili
Omid Djalili: No Agenda (2007)
as Omid Djalili
Christmas Comedy Club with Lost Voice Guy (2021)
as Self
World's Greatest Stand Up: Volume One (2006)
as self
Cold War Steve Meets the Outside World (2020)
as Self
Omid Djalili: Tour of Duty (2012)
as Self
One-Night Stand: Omid Djalili (2005)
as Himself
Performance Live: The Way Out (—)
as Guide