Barkhad Abdi
Barkhad Abdi
Barkhad Abdiis a Somali-American actor and director. He made his debut in the 2013 film Captain Phillips, for which he received various film award nominations, including the Academy Award for Best Actor in a Supporting Role, Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actor – Motion Picture, and BAFTA Award for Best Actor in a Supporting Role, the latter of which he won...
NationalitySomali
ProfessionMovie Actor
Date of Birth10 April 1985
CityMogadishu, Somalia
al chris dave denzel films gangster great kinds lots meet robert usual watch watching
I like 'The Usual Suspects'. Great film. I also like 'Scarface', films like that. Lots of gangster films. I really like watching all kinds of films, dramas, romance. I'll watch comedies. I like Al Pacino, Robert De Niro, Denzel Washington, Chris Rock, Dave Chappelle. I'd like to meet them.
football learn life looking people time
I used to play football all the time. In the U.S., people don't play football, so I had to learn basketball. Looking back, that's what I like about my life - doing new things, having a new perspective.
becoming behind directing front interested music shooting
I was never interested in becoming an actor. I was directing videos. I was never into acting. I was into shooting music videos. I've only ever been behind the camera. Never in front of it.
ask people
It is weird. A lot of people try to ask me political questions. I'm not a politician.
I would DJ pool parties in Minneapolis, but I never swam there!
acting crafts want
I just want to keep acting and better my craft and see how far it goes.
directors realising
When you work with a great director, you realise you are far from being a director.
sea lines fancy
The line was originally, ‘Captain Phillips, get a load of me: fancy-free on the seven seas,’ but I ad-libbed.
country school parent
I was lucky enough to have parents that took me out from country to country and go to school and learn how to be a better person.
believe character hard-work
What I believe will make my acting career successful going forward is hard work. I like to challenge myself. Then it's the people I meet and choosing the projects I want to work on correctly. There's a lot of characters I can play.
dream dad hard-work
When I was leaving Yemen to come to America, things were tough. My dad had just been laid off, and it was a challenge. When I lived in Yemen, I thought America was a perfect place. Everything was bigger and better. I dreamed big. The American dream, you know? You have to work hard for your dream to come true.
jobs character thinking
I dont see myself only as a Somali character. I think of myself as an actor, and if the job fits me and I like the story, I will go for it.
war years seven
I left Somalia when I was seven years old, but I witnessed a whole year in a war.
people political trying
It is weird. A lot of people try to ask me political questions. Im not a politician.