| Omid Abtahi | |
|---|---|
| |
| Birthdate: | July 12, 1979 |
| Birthplace: | Tehran, Iran |
| Role: | 1. Safa 2. Jibraan Al-Zarian |
Omid Abtahi (born July 12, 1979; age 44) played the role of Safa during Season 4 and Jibraan Al-Zarian during Season 7 of 24.
Biography and career
Omid Abtahi was born in Tehran, Iran. However, he moved with his family at an early age. After living in Europe and Southwest Asia, Abtahi grew up in Orange County, California. He graduated from University High School in Irvine, and later attended the Theater and Dance Department of California State University Fullerton.
Abtahi began his acting career in theater, appearing in various plays. In 2003, he worked in the Casting Department on the film Independent Lens as a casting assistant. Two years later, he started his acting career with appearances in JAG, and Judging Amy, as well as a main cast role in the show Over There (with Sprague Grayden and Lombardo Boyar).
Through his career, Abtahi has had recurring roles on TV shows such as Ghost Whisperer, Last Resort (with Gideon Emery), and Howard Gordon and Alex Gansa's Homeland (with Hrach Titizian, Navid Negahban, Maury Sterling and Diego Klattenhoff). He also appeared in a two-parter of NCIS alongside Pauley Perrette, Merik Tadros and Arnold Vosloo.
Abtahi has recently provided voiceovers for the hit videogames such as Call of Duty: Black Ops II (with Tony Todd, Ron Yuan and Julian Sands), Spec-Ops: The Line, and Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare (with Jeffrey Nordling).
Role on 24
Abtahi as Jibraan Al-Zarian
Abtahi has appeared in two different roles on 24. In 2005, he appeared in one episode of Season 4 playing the role of Safa, an Arab-American caught in the middle of a firefight between Jack Bauer and a group of mercenaries. During the episode, his stunt double was John D. Ross. He was present during the firefight and scuffle with Jack, and provided stunt pads, however Abtahi felt comfortable doing all his stunts himself.
In Season 7, Abtahi had a more notable role as Jibraan Al-Zarian, a civilian living in Washington, D.C. that was used as a patsy by Cara Bowden and the her group to release the Prion variant in the city. Abtahi appeared in four episodes and was credited as a guest star.
24 credits
Safa
Jibraan Al-Zarian
Selected filmography
- Argo (2012)
- Brothers (2009)
- Ocean of Pearls (2008)
- The Last Lullaby (2008)
- Running with Scissors (2006)
Television appearances
- Better Call Saul (2015)
- Legends (2014)
- Last Resort (2012-2013)
- Homeland (2011)
- Fringe (2011)
- The Event (2010)
- Grey's Anatomy (2010)
- NCIS (2009)
- My Own Worst Enemy (2008)
- Ghost Whisperer (2007)
- The Unit (2007)
- CSI: Crime Scene Investigation (2007)
- Sleeper Cell (2006)
- Over There (2005)
- Judging Amy (2005)
- 24 (2005 & 2009)
- JAG (2005)
Video game appearances
- Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare (2016)
- Call of Duty: Black Ops II (2012)
