Khalid Abdalla
Born	(1980-10-26)26 October 1980 (age 44) Glasgow, Scotland,
Education	King's College School
Alma mater	Queens' College, Cambridge
Occupations	Actor activist
Years active	1998–present
Spouse	Cressida Trew ​ (m. 2011)​

Khalid Abdalla (Arabic:خالد عبد الله,romanized: Khālid ‘Abd Allāh; born 26 October 1980) is a British actor and activist. He came to international prominence after starring in the2006Academy Award-nominated andBAFTA-winning filmUnited 93. Written and directed byPaul Greengrass, it chronicles events aboardUnited Airlines Flight 93, which washijacked as part of the11 September attacks. Abdalla playedZiad Jarrah, the pilot and leader of the four hijackers on board the flight.

Abdalla starred as Amir inThe Kite Runner (2007) and acted withMatt Damon inGreen Zone (2010), his second film with directorPaul Greengrass. Abdalla appears as himself inJehane Noujaim's documentary on the 2011 Egyptian revolution,The Square, which won theAudience Award atSundance Festival in 2013.^[1][2] In 2022 and 2023, he starred asDodi Fayed in seasons 5 and 6 of the historical drama seriesThe Crown, for which he received aCritics' Choice Television Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor in a Drama Series.

Abdalla is on the board of theNational Student Drama Festival. In 2011, he became one of the founding members of theMosireen ("We Insist") Collective inCairo: a group of revolutionary filmmakers and activists dedicated to supporting citizen media across Egypt in the wake ofHosni Mubarak's fall.^[3] Three months after it began, Mosireen became the most watched non-profitYouTube channel in Egypt of all time, and in the whole world in January 2012.^[4]

Abdalla was born inGlasgow, Scotland, to Egyptian parents, and was brought up inLondon.^[5][6] Abdalla's father and grandfather were well-known anti-regime activists in Egypt. His parents were both physicians who immigrated to the UK before he was born.^[7]

Abdalla was educated atKing's College School, anindependent school for boys inWimbledon in south-west London and his classmates included actorBen Barnes and comedianTom Basden.^[8] He became interested in acting after becoming involved in his school's thriving drama scene. In 1998, he directed a production ofSomeone Who'll Watch Over Me byFrank McGuinness, which ended up having a successful run at theEdinburgh Festival and earned five stars inThe Scotsman newspaper,^[9] making him the youngest director to receive this accolade.

After spending agap year travelling around the Middle East, Abdalla went on toQueens' College, Cambridge, where he read English.^[10] He was active in the student drama scene alongside the likes of contemporariesRebecca Hall andDan Stevens.^[11] He was a joint winner with Cressida Trew, his future wife, of the Judges' Award for Acting at theNational Student Drama Festival for his performance inBedbound byEnda Walsh.^[12]

In 2003, Abdalla played the title role inChristopher Marlowe'sTamburlaine the Great at theRose TheatreinKingston, London. This was the inaugural production ofPeter Hall's Canon's Mouth Theatre Company, composed of "young actors intent on discovering a new voice for the great metaphorical dramas of the Renaissance".^[13]

Abdalla's first screen role was in a 2005 episode ofSpooks entitledInfiltration of a New Threat.

In 2006, Abdalla made hisHollywood debut inUnited 93, a film about the11 September attacks, and garnered critical acclaim for his portrayal ofZiad Jarrah.^[14] He was cast in the lead role of the filmThe Kite Runner. In preparation for that role, he spent time inKabul learningDari Persian and kite-flying.^[15]

In 2008, Abdalla appeared as Guy Pringle in theBBC Radio 4 adaptation ofFortunes of War. He starred as Freddy inGreen Zone withMatt Damon and directorPaul Greengrass.^[16]

In 2009–10, Abdalla produced and acted in the independent Egyptian filmIn the Last Days of the City, directed byTamer El Said.

In November 2010, Abdalla was awarded special recognition for achievements in cinema at theCairo International Film Festival.

In 2011, he narrated the documentary filmEast to West, also known asThe River Flows Westward.^[17][18][19]

In 2016, he appeared asMuhammad XII of Granada in the filmAssassin's Creed.

In 2022–23, Abdalla playedDodi Fayed, the lover ofDiana, Princess of Wales, in thefifth andsixth seasons ofThe Crown.^[20] His performance in the sixth season earned his nomination for aCritics' Choice Television Award for Best Supporting Actor in a Drama Series.^[21]

In 2024, Nowhere, a solo play written and performed by Abdalla, premiered atBattersea Arts Centre and was published bySalamander Street.

In January–February 2011, Abdalla was among protesters inTahrir Square inCairo,Egypt in themajor protests against theHosni Mubarak regime.^[22] He also appeared onThe Situation Room with Wolf Blitzer show onCNN on 9 February 2011 andAnderson Cooper^[23] to reflect his views on the protest. He continues to be active in Egypt.^[24]

In 2011 Abdalla became one of the founding members of the Mosireen Collective in Cairo: a group of revolutionary filmmakers and activists dedicated to supporting citizen media across Egypt in the wake of Mubarak's fall.^[3] Mosireen films the ongoing revolution, publishes videos that challenge state media narratives, provides training sessions and equipment and screenings and holds an extensive library of footage. At three months old, Mosireen became the most watched non-profit YouTube channel in Egypt of all time, and in the whole world in January 2012.^[3][25]

Abdalla has been an "outspoken" supporter of Palestinian rights. In March 2025, he was invited to an interview under caution by theMetropolitan Police over his part in apro-Palestine protest in London in January of that year, following "alleged breaches of Public Order Act conditions." Abdalla said that it was evidence that "the right to protest is under attack in this country."^[26]

• Khalid Abdalla atIMDb

• 1980 births
• Living people
• Alumni of Queens' College, Cambridge
• Egyptian activists
• Egyptian male film actors
• Male actors from Glasgow
• Male actors from London
• People educated at King's College School, London
• Scottish Muslims
• Scottish activists
• Scottish male film actors
• Scottish male radio actors
• Scottish male stage actors
• Scottish male television actors
• Scottish male voice actors
• Scottish people of Egyptian descent

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