Riz Ahmed

Rizwan Ahmed, also known as Riz MC, is a British actor, rapper, and activist. As an actor, he has won an Emmy Award and an Academy Award and has received nominations for a Golden Globe, two British Academy Film Awards, and several British Independent Film Awards. Ahmed's acting career began with independent films such as "The Road to Guantanamo," "Shifty," "Four Lions," and "Trishna," which led to his breakout role in "Nightcrawler," and high-profile roles in "Rogue One" and "Jason Bourne."

His critically acclaimed performance in "The Night Of" won him the 2017 Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Limited Series or Movie, making him the first South Asian male to win an acting Emmy, the first Muslim, and the first British-Pakistani to win a lead acting Emmy. He continued to make waves in Hollywood with a starring role in the superhero film "Venom" and his performance as Ruben Stone in the 2020 drama "Sound of Metal," which earned him an Academy Award nomination and his second Golden Globe nomination.

As a rapper, he is one half of the hip hop duo Swet Shop Boys, has earned critical acclaim with the hip hop albums "Microscope," "Englistan," and "Cashmere," and has found commercial success featuring in the Billboard 200 chart topping "Hamilton Mixtape." His song "Immigrants (We Get the Job Done)" even won an MTV Video Music Award. Ahmed has also established himself as a writer and producer, securing a first-look deal with Amazon and having co-written and starred in the film "Mogul Mowgli", which won him the Best Debut Screenwriter award at the British Independent Film Awards 2020.

Ahmed is also an activist known for his political rap music and his dedication to raising awareness and funds for Rohingya and Syrian refugee children. He has spoken about the lack of accurate representation of Muslims in the arts at the House of Commons and has contributed to the edited collection of essays "The Good Immigrant." In 2017, he was featured on the cover of Time magazine's annual 100 most influential people in the world list. Most recently, he was named head of the Platform Prize jury for the 2021 Toronto International Film Festival and received the prestigious Richard Harris Award in November 2021.