Navid Negahban
Known for: Acting
Navid Negahban is an Iranian-American actor, producer, and director whose work spans four decades, three continents, and over 166 credits in film, television, and video games. Born in Mashhad, Iran, he discovered theater at eight years old. He left Iran in 1985, traveling through Turkey and Bulgaria before arriving at a refugee camp in Ingelheim, Germany, where he applied for asylum. He spent eight years performing with the Rheinland-Pfalz Theater in Kaiserslautern before moving to the United States in 1993. He is fluent in Persian, English, and German. He is best known for playing Abu Nazir in Showtime's Homeland (2011–2013), Amahl Farouk / Shadow King in FX's Legion (2017–2019), The Sultan in Disney's live-action Aladdin (2019), General Abdul Rashid Dostum in 12 Strong (2018), Sheikh Al-Obodi in American Sniper (2014), Faraz Hamzad in FX's The Old Man (2022–2024), and Abbas Mansuri in Netflix's The Night Agent (2025). As a producer, his film Baba Joon won five Ophir Awards including Best Picture at the Israeli Film Academy. As a director, his short film The Apple Tree won Best Short Film at the Japan Indies Film Festival (2025). He received a BAFTA Games Award nomination for Best Performer for his work on 1979 Revolution: Black Friday (2017). He is represented by Innovative Artists. Official website: https://navidnegahban.com
Filmography
Series
The Mentalist
Hassan Zarif
2008
Series
Law & Order: Special Victims Unit
Sam Farhidi
1999
Series
Law & Order: Special Victims Unit
Rankesh Chanoor
1999
Series
NCIS
Jalil Shaloub
2003
Series
Law & Order
Imam Ibrahim
1990
Series
Criminal Minds
Hassan Nadir
2005
Series
Homeland
Abu Nazir
2011
Series
Lost
Omar
2004
Series
The West Wing
Maz
1999
Series
CSI: Miami
Rahim Farooq
2002
Series
24
Abdullah
2001
Series
24
Jamot
2001
Series
Arrow
Al Ow-Al
2012
Series
Person of Interest
Ali Hasan
2011
Series
Scene of the Crime
Harun
1970
Series
NCIS: Los Angeles
Aziz Anshiri
2009
Series
JAG
Jamal Bin Fahad Al-Hadi
1995
Series
The Closer
Dr. al-Thani
2005
Series
Fringe
Dr. Malik Yusef
2008
Series
Without a Trace
Nazar Rahim
2002
Series
Curb Your Enthusiasm
Morsi
2000
Series
The Shield
Zayed Al-Thani
2002
Series
The Night Agent
Abbas Mansuri
2023
Series
Scorpion
Agent Khara
2014
Series
Las Vegas
Farouk Naeem
2003
Series
The Cleaning Lady
Hayak Barsamian
2022
Series
The Unit
Faheed
2006
Series
Veep
Abbas
2012
Series
Tehran
Masoud Tabrizi
2020
Series
Castlevania
Sala (voice)
2017
Series
Legion
Amahl Farouk / Shadow King
2017
Series
Pantheon
Farhad (voice)
2022
Film
Aladdin
Sultan
2019
Film
American Sniper
Sheikh Al-Obeidi
2014
Series
Shark
Amir Khan
2006
Series
The Old Man
Faraz Hamzad
2022
Film
American Assassin
Minister Behurz
2017
Series
WondLa
Loroc (voice)
2024
Film
Brothers
Murad
2009
Film
Charlie Wilson's War
Refugee Camp Translator
2007
Series
The Agency
Palestinian Officer
2001
Series
The Agency
Arab Driver
2001
Series
Moonlight
Amir Fayed
2007
Series
The Serpent Queen
Claude de Lorraine
2022
Series
God Friended Me
Hasan
2018
Series
God Friended Me
Hassan
2018
Film
12 Strong
General Dostum
2018
Film
Kandahar
Mohammad 'Mo' Doud
2023
Series
Threat Matrix
Fred
2003
Series
Dark Blue
Ahmad Satar
2009
Series
Splinter Cell: Deathwatch
Reza "Gunther" Karimi (voice)
2025
Series
Alias
Foreman
2001
Series
The Team
Said Gharbour
2015
Series
Over There
Iraqi Father
2005
Film
Sniper: Ghost Shooter
Mothershed
2016
Film
Pretty Persuasion
Mr. Azzouni
2005
Film
Batman: The Doom That Came to Gotham
Ra's al Ghul (voice)
2023
Film
Words and Pictures
Rashid
2014
Film
The Fix
Qasim
2026
Series
Ghosts of Beirut
Ali Reza Asgari (2007)
2023
Film
Powder Blue
Doctor Brooks
2009
Film
Sand Castle
Kadeer
2017
Film
Brain on Fire
Dr. Najjar
2017
Film
Sitting in Bars with Cake
Isaac
2023
Film
The Stoning of Soraya M.
Ali
2009
Film
Atlas Shrugged: Part I
Dr. Robert Stadler
2011
Film
Damascus Cover
Sarraj
2017
Film
Baba Joon
Itzhak
2015
Film
In Full Bloom
The Shepherd (voice)
2019
Film
The Fallen Ones
Ammon
2005
Film
Boundaries
Trombonist
2000
Film
The Power of Few
Sahel
2013
The Marshal
Lenny Gibbs
Film
Jimmy Vestvood: Amerikan Hero
Mohammad Mohammad-Mohammadi
2016
Film
Broken
Keith
2007
Film
Heal
Abdul
2010
Film
The First Goodbye
2021
Film
Window Horses: The Poetic Persian Epiphany of Rosie Ming
Mehran (voice)
2017
Film
The Moment
Malik Jamil
2013
Film
Saving Jessica Lynch
Fedayeen Colonel
2003
Film
Dead Air
Abir
2009
Film
Murder 101: If Wishes Were Horses
Sheik Ahmad
2007
Film
War Stories
Al Qaeda Rebel at Bridge
2003
Film
Day One
Dr. Nasir
2015
Film
Dark Corners
Karim
2021
Film
Am Abgrund
Tofik Gasimov
2024
Film
London Arabia
Mo
2019
Film
Richard III
Sir James Tyrrel
2007
Film
Carving a Life
Dr. Kasem
2017
Film
Liberation
Mohammad Reza Shah Pahlavi
2009
Film
Tehranto
Narrator (voice)
2022
Film
Price for Freedom
Victor Daniels
2017
Diplomacy
Iranian Foreign Minister
2009
Film
Becoming the Enemy
Victor Daniels
2017
Film
The Ambassador's Wife
Ambassador
2009
Film
Stellina Blue
Amir Keshavarz
2009
Film
In the Garden of Tulips
2023
Film
Osprey
Adam Zakaria
2017
Film
Saat des Terrors
Kashif Baqri
2018
Film
Djinn
Djinn
2008