Khalid Abdalla

Khalid Abdalla is a British actor and activist born on 26 October 1980 in Glasgow, Scotland to Egyptian‑born physicians. Raised in London, he was immersed early in a politically charged family; his father and grandfather were noted anti‑regime activists in Egypt, a legacy that spurred his lifelong commitment to human rights. He attended the prestigious King’s College School in Wimbledon, where he first discovered drama, directing Frank McGuinness’s Someone Who’ll Watch Over Me at just eighteen and earning the youngest five‑star review in The Scotsman. After a formative gap‑year traveling the Middle East, Abdalla read English at Queens’ College, Cambridge, excelling in student theatre alongside Rebecca Hall and Dan Stevens, and sharing the National Student Drama Festival’s Judges’ Award for Acting with his future wife, Cressida Trew. He later refined his craft under the legendary Philippe Gaulier at École Philippe Gaulier.

Abdalla’s screen breakthrough arrived with Paul Greengrass’s harrowing 2006 film United 93, where his portrayal of Ziad Jarrah garnered critical acclaim and opened doors to leading roles such as Amir in The Kite Runner (2007) and Freddy in Green Zone (2010). He has since appeared in Assassin’s Creed (2016) and earned a Critics’ Choice Television Award nomination for his nuanced turn as Dodi Fayed in The Crown (2022‑2023). Parallel to his acting career, he remains an outspoken activist: a founding member of Cairo’s Mosireen Collective, a board member of the National Student Drama Festival, and a vocal supporter of Palestinian rights, even facing Metropolitan Police questioning in 2025. His recent theatrical ventures include the solo play Nowhere (2024) and a re‑imagined production of Mnemonic at the National Theatre, demonstrating an unwavering dedication to both art and advocacy.