Faysal Ahmed
| Faysal Ahmed فيصل احمد | |
|---|---|
| Born |
Faysal Ahmed 1985 |
| Residence | Los Angeles, California |
| Nationality | American |
| Ethnicity | Somali |
| Occupation | Actor |
| Years active | 2010–present |
| Agent | Musa Syeed |
| Style | Drama, action, adventure |
| Home town | Minneapolis, Minnesota |
| Height | 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) |
Faysal Ahmed (Somali: Faysal Axmed, Arabic: فيصل احمد) (born 1985) is a Somali-American actor and youth program coordinator from Minneapolis.
Early life
Ahmed was born one of six children in 1985 in Yemen, where he grew up. In 1999 he moved, along with his mother and some of his siblings, to the United States at the age of 14.[1]
Career
In a professional capacity, Ahmed served as a Youth Program Coordinator at the Bedlam Theater in Minneapolis. He worked there on plays and poetry. He has also participated in an enrollment push for MNsure, a health insurance program in Minnesota.[2]
In 2013, Ahmed appeared in the film Captain Phillips. He played Najee, a ship hijacker and the movie's main villain.
Ahmed and three other actors were picked from among more than 700 participants at a 2011 casting call at the Brian Coyle Community Center in Cedar-Riverside, Minneapolis. According to the search casting director, Debbie DeLisi, the four were selected because they were "the chosen ones, that anointed group that stuck out."[3]
In early 2014, he revealed that he was going to Los Angeles by the spring season in order to continue his acting career.[4] In 2016 he partook in A Stray that was directed by Musa Syeed.[5]
Filmography
- Captain Phillips (2013)
- A Stray (2016)
References
- ↑ http://www.chromecastdownload.com/throwback-thursday-somali-actors-in-captain-phillips-jumped-in-ocean/
- ↑ Tim Lammers. "MN sure hits 96 percent of enrollment goal as deadline looms". Rick Kupchella's - BringMeTheNews.com.
- ↑ Seavert, Lindsey (October 8, 2013). "4 Mpls. men co-star in Tom Hanks film 'Captain Phillips'". KARE. Gannett Company. Retrieved October 8, 2013.
- ↑ Los Angeles Times (6 February 2014). "Barkhad Abdi, pirate leader in 'Captain Phillips,' treasures his nomination". latimes.com.
- ↑ http://www.patheos.com/blogs/poptheology/2016/03/a-stray-interview/