After starting out in short films and bit-part roles on the small screen, Riz Ahmed finally got a genuine chance to show what he could do in the British pop culture phenomenon, “Dead Set” (2008). However, it was “Four Lions” (2010), one of the most radical yet raucously funny comedies of the 21st century, that really put him on the map as one of the country’s best up-and-coming performers. From there, Ahmed appeared in the gritty “Ill Manors” (2012) before moving on to break type and take on intriguing roles in a range of different projects, from “Nightcrawler” (2014) opposite Jake Gyllenhaal, to appearing alongside Matt Damon in “Jason Bourne” (2016) and taking the lead role in TV thriller, “The Night Of” (2016). Success there helped Ahmed jump to franchise work in “Rogue One: A Star Wars Story” (2016) and in Sony’s box office smash, “Venom” (2018). However, those big roles have allowed Ahmed to return to his indie roots in recent years, with the Oscar-nominated “Sound of Metal” (2019), as well as lesser-known gems like “Mogul Mowgli” (2020), “Fingernails” (2023), and “Relay” (2024). You can also find Ahmed in a brief cameo in the Wes Anderson movie, “The Phoenician Scheme” (2025), and you can hear his voice in the dubbed version of “Weathering With You” (2019) and as the hero, Ballister Boldheart, in Netflix’s fantastic animated fantasy story, “Nimona” (2023).