CineScope
Sayed Badreya picture

Sayed Badreya

Acting
Known For

68 Years Old

Egyptian-born film-maker and actor Sayed Badreya realized a childhood dream by winning roles in major Hollywood films such as The Insider, Three Kings, and Independence Day. Growing up in poverty in Port Said, Sayed Badreya's dreams of movie stardom looked as bleak as the prospect of peace in the Middle East. From the Six Day War in '67 through the Yom Kippur War in '73, his only escape from the world he knew was the movie theater, where films transported him to a magical land. But it was here that he determined he was destined to be a part of that magic. After attending New York University film school, and then moving to Hollywood, Sayed first worked in the film industry as an assistant to actor/director Anthony Perkins, and then with director James Cameron on True Lies. His mission - to make movies that told the Arabic- American story, since it had yet to be told - led to the creation of his own production company, Zoom In Focus. Under this banner, he directed and produced the documentary, Saving Egyptian Film Classics as well as The Interrogation, which won Best Creative Short Film at New York International Film Festival. He also produced and starred in Hesham Issawi's short, T for Terrorist, which was awarded Best Short Film at the Boston International Film Festival and the San Francisco World Film Festival. In 2007, he played his first leading role in the English language motion picture American East, a film that he also co-wrote. 2008 was Sayed Badreya's breakout year. He captivated audiences as Abu Bakaar, the villainous arms dealer who kidnaps Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.) in the summer's blockbuster Iron Man. Also that year, Sayed played the comedic Palestinian cab driver opposite Adam Sandler in You Don't Mess with the Zohan. This summer, Sayed can be seen in Paramount Pictures' feature film El traspatio aka Backyard, directed by Oscar-nominated Carlos Carrera in which he plays a serial killer opposite Ana de la Reguera. Sayed can also be seen this summer in Movie 43, where he plays opposite Halle Berry. Additional forthcoming films include The Three Stooges, his fifth film with the Farrelly brothers; The Dictator, playing Sascha Baron Cohen's father as the original Dictator, and Just Like a Woman, with Oscar nominated director Rachid Bouchareb. Also, Sayed is going to a new frontier in the new video game Uncharted 3, playing Ramses the Great Pirate Captain. Most recently he completed his second leading role in the New York independent feature, Cargo, about human traffickers, directed by Yan Vizinberg. And he just finished co-starring opposite Oscar-nominated actress Melissa Leo in film The Space Between, directed by Travis Fine. Sayed has also worked as an actor, Arabic dialect coach, and Islamic technical advisor on Path to 9/11, a $40 million mini-series about the events leading up to 9/11 produced by ABC/Touchstone. Sayed's efforts to bring attention to Arab-Americans in the motion picture industry have received much coverage over the years on radio, television, and in major publications around the world, such as The New York Times, GQ, NPR, ABC's "Politically Incorrect" with Bill Maher, BBC's "Panorama," CNN, "Fox Report with Shepard Smith", The Hollywood Reporter and Egypt Today.

Born

Port Said, Egypt on 1st May 1957

All Credits

Seinfeld Image
Seinfeld
Foreign Man
The West Wing Image
The West Wing
Fatah Official
Numb3rs Image
Numb3rs
The Unit Image
The Unit
Afghan Commander
Apple & Onion Image
Apple & Onion
Falafel (voice)
The Practice Image
The Practice
Adman Fajiz
WondLa Image
WondLa
Bartender (voice)
Iron Man Image
Iron Man
Abu Bakaar
Independence Day Image
Independence Day
Arab Pilot
The Dictator Image
The Dictator
Omar
Stargate Image
Stargate
Arabic Interpreter
You Don't Mess with the Zohan Image
You Don't Mess with the Zohan
Hamdi
True Lies Image
True Lies
Arab Terrorist (uncredited)
Alias Image
Alias
Vendor
Vanguard Image
Vanguard
Abati
Shallow Hal Image
Shallow Hal
Doctor Sayed
Movie 43 Image
Movie 43
Large Man (segment "Truth or Dare")
Soul Plane Image
Soul Plane
Middle Eastern Passenger
The Three Stooges Image
The Three Stooges
Orderly
The Insider Image
The Insider
Hezbollah Head Gunman
Kingpin Image
Kingpin
Fatima
Three Kings Image
Three Kings
Iraqi Tank Major
Stuck on You Image
Stuck on You
Assisting Surgeon
Just Like a Woman Image
Just Like a Woman
Tarek
The Princess & the Marine Image
The Princess & the Marine
Chauffeur
AmericanEast Image
AmericanEast
Mustafa Marzouke
Hotshot Image
Hotshot
Mohamed
Boiling Pot Image
Boiling Pot
Anwar Seif
Cargo Image
Cargo
Sayed
The Space Between Image
The Space Between
Imam
Backyard Image
Backyard
El Sultán
I Am That Man Image
I Am That Man
Harry
Jellyfish and Lobster Image
Jellyfish and Lobster
Mido
Hello Beautiful Image
Hello Beautiful
Mirage Image
Mirage
Sayed
No Image
The Taking of Flight 847: The Uli Derickson Story
Skull & Crossbones
This Narrow Place Image
This Narrow Place
Aziz
Dandelion Season Image
Dandelion Season
Omar
No Image
Family Prayers
Hussein
Witness to a Rape Image
Witness to a Rape
himself
No Image
perforated calabash
himself