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
Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End (2007)
as Askay / Pusasn
The Bad Guys 2 (2025)
as Mr. Soliman (voice)
The Mummy (1999)
as Gad Hassan
Notting Hill (1999)
as Coffee Shop Cashier (uncredited)
Over the Hedge (2006)
as Tiger (voice)
The World Is Not Enough (1999)
as Foreman
Shaun the Sheep Movie (2015)
as Trumper (voice)
The Nutcracker and the Four Realms (2018)
as Cavalier
In Your Dreams (2025)
as Sandman (voice)
Spy Game (2001)
as Doumet
Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again (2018)
as Greek Official
Deep Cover (2025)
as Sagar
Casanova (2005)
as Lupo
Sex and the City 2 (2010)
as Mr. Safir, Hotel Manager
Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow (2004)
as Kaji
Love Again (2023)
as Mohsen
The Love Guru (2008)
as Guru Satchabigknoba
Molly Moon and the Incredible Book of Hypnotism (2015)
as Barry Rix
Journey to Bethlehem (2023)
as Melchior
My Family and Other Animals (2005)
as Spiro
Mean Machine (2001)
as Raj
Retrospective (2014)
as Nabil Sr
About A Bell (—)
as Sami Shehadi
Anita and Me (2002)
as Uncle Amman
Big Fat Gypsy Gangster (2011)
as Jik Jickkles
Modigliani (2004)
as Pablo Picasso
A Grand Night In: The Story of Aardman (2015)
as Self - Voice of Trumper
Alien Autopsy (2006)
as Melik
The Calcium Kid (2004)
as Herbie Bush
Dead Man Running (2009)
as Fat Bald Man
Dinotopia 2: The Temptation (2002)
as Zipeau (voice)
The Infidel (2010)
as Mahmud Nasir
The Way Out (2020)
as Guide
Omid Djalili: Live in London (2009)
as Omid Djalili
Mr. Nice (2010)
as Saleem Malik
Omid Djalili: No Agenda (2007)
as Omid Djalili
Just Like Us (2011)
as Self
The Secret Policeman's Ball: The Ball in the Hall (2006)
as Self
Tomorrow Morning (2022)
Actor
Dying Laughing (2017)
as Self
One-Night Stand: Omid Djalili (2005)
as Himself
Dinotopia 4: New Horizons (2003)
as Zipeau (voice)
Dinotopia 3: The Election (2002)
as Zipeau (voice)
Performance Live: The Way Out (—)
as Guide
We Are Most Amused and Amazed (2018)
as Self
We Are Most Amused (2008)
as Self
The Comedian's Guide to Survival (2016)
as Himself
Christmas Comedy Club with Lost Voice Guy (2021)
as Self
Comic Aid (2005)
Actor
Dinotopia 5: The Virus (2003)
as Zipeau (voice)
Omid Djalili: Tour of Duty (2012)
as Self
Cold War Steve Meets the Outside World (2020)
as Self
Mad Cows (1999)
as George
Grow Your Own (2007)
as Ali
Deadlines (2005)
as Abdul Sayyaf
World's Greatest Stand Up: Volume One (2006)
as self
Chopratown (2005)
as Ali Ergun
Les Dawson Lost Tapes (2021)
as Self
Dinotopia 6: The Exit (2003)
as Zipeau (voice)
New Town (2009)
as Walter
Coming Soon (1999)
as Amir Hassan
Cinema Iran (2005)
as Self - Presenter
The Egyptian Job (2011)
as Himself (Narrator)