Amir Talai
| Amir Talai | |
|---|---|
| File:Amir Talai Photo Op GalaxyCon Raleigh 2025.jpgAmir Talai Photo Op GalaxyCon Raleigh 2025.jpg Amir at GalaxyCon Raleigh in 2025 | |
| Born | June 24, 1977 San Francisco, California, U.S. |
| 🏳️ Nationality | American |
| 🏫 Education | University of California, Berkeley |
| 💼 Occupation | Actor, singer, activist |
| 👩 Spouse(s) | Nina Manni (married 2011-present) |
Amir Talai (born June 24, 1977) is an American actor, singer, writer, and activist. He is well known for playing a variety of characters in movies and television shows.[1] he is best known for voicing Alastor in the Amazon Prime Video Adult animated musical series Hazbin Hotel.[2][3]
Early Life and Education
Talai was born in San Francisco, California and is the first child of Iranian immigrants, Mohammad and Sima Talai. He speaks English, Persian, and French. Talai attended a French immersion school through 8th grade, after which he attended Lowell High School. He received a degree from UC Berkeley with a major in Mass Communications and a minor in Dramatic Arts.
Career
Acting Career
Talai began working as an actor in San Francisco after graduating from UC Berkeley. He later moved to Los Angeles, where he enrolled in The Groundlings, eventually joining the Groundlings Sunday Company. His two big breaks were The Comeback and Campus Ladies, both cult shows with poor ratings but a substantial number of fans in Hollywood. Talai has more than 125 film, TV, and voice-over credits,[4] making him arguably the most prolific Iranian-American actor of his generation. Notable credits include What To Expect When You’re Expecting, Best Player, Harold and Kumar Escape From Guantanamo Bay, Grandma (films), The Circle and Television roles include LA to Vegas, How I Met Your Mother, Bones, American Horror Story, Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., and The Shrink Next Door, Talai also voice acting many TV show such as Family Guy, American Dad, Kung Fu Panda: Legends of Awesomeness, Turbo Fast, The Lion Guard, Amphibia, and more, Talai was current voice of Alastor The Radio Demon from the adult animated series Hazbin Hotel.
Singing
Talai has performed in musicals since high school, and has performed on stage regionally including at the Hollywood Bowl in Guys and Dolls [5]and Annie and at the Paris Las Vegas Resort in the Queen jukebox musical We Will Rock You, He also Perform the Stayed Gone from the Adult animated Prime Video series Hazbin Hotel with Alongside with Christian Borle who is voiced of Vox, and he perform more Hazbin Hotel song such as Hell's Greatest Dad, and season 1 finale song.
Activism
Talai has been outspoken on social media[6] in regard to racism, misogyny, gun control, worker’s rights, and other issues. He has volunteered with numerous Democratic campaigns since 2004. At the 2017 Women’s March, Talai carried a sign that read “I’ll see you nice white ladies at the next #BlackLivesMatter march, right?” A photo of the sign went viral and was subsequently featured in numerous books, textbooks, and articles.[7]
Writing
Talai has written about depictions of Middle Eastern people for Vulture[8] and BuzzFeed News,[9] calling attention to the whitewashing of Middle Eastern actors and the dearth of opportunities for Middle Eastern actors to play roles that don’t involve terrorism or Islam.[10][11][12]
Personal Life
Talai lives in Los Angeles, California with his wife Nina Manni, who he married in 2011.
Filmography
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2003 | Legally Blonde 2: Red, White & Blonde | Associate | |
| 2004 | November | George | |
| Homeland Security | Babir Alkazar | TV movie Uncredited | |
| 2006 | More, Patience | Hypochondriac | TV movie |
| The Pursuit of Happyness | Clerk | ||
| 2007 | Fighting Words | Ralphie | |
| 2008 | The Onion Movie | Ahman | |
| Harold & Kumar Escape from Guantanamo Bay | Raza | ||
| 2010 | Fractalus | Lee | |
| 2011 | Best Player | Wendell | TV movie |
| Johnny Bravo Goes to Bollywood | Ahmet | TV movie | |
| 2012 | What to Expect When You're Expecting | Patel | |
| 2013 | Redemption | Kevin | Uncredited |
| 2014 | 10 Cent Pistol | Amir | |
| 2015 | Grandma (2015) | Omid | |
| 2017 | The Circle | Matt | |
| Killing Gunther | Izzat "Crusher" Bukhari | ||
| 2019 | Marriage Story | Amir | |
| 2024 | The Present | Bill Morley |
Television
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2001 | Nash Bridges | Khalid Dib | 1 episode |
| 2002 | Plugged In | Customer | Short |
| Hum | Simon Gould | Short | |
| MADtv | Indian | 1 episode | |
| 2003 | 10-8: Officers on Duty | Gang Member | 1 episode |
| 2003-2004 | The Tonight Show with Jay Leno | Various Characters | |
| 2004 | The Florist | Masood | Short |
| Jimmy Kimmel Live! | Iraqi Simon Cowell | 1 episode | |
| Adventures in Homeschooling | Baliotis | Short | |
| NCIS | Simi | 1 episode | |
| Nip/Tuck | Dr. Hamir Gindi | 1 episode | |
| Jihad | Mohammad | Short | |
| One Night Stand Up | Mahesh Suresh | Short | |
| 2005 | Gilmore Girls | Patel Chandrasekhar | 2 episodes |
| The Comeback | Greg Narayan | 2 episodes | |
| Curb Your Enthusiasm | Waiter | 1 episode | |
| Cold Case | Malvinder Khatani - 1999, 2005 | 1 episode | |
| Love, Inc. | Patrick | 2 episodes | |
| 2005-2025 | Family Guy | Hindu Man / Wedding Priest / Additional Voice | Voice |
| 2006 | The Minor Accomplishments of Jackie Woodman | Kai | 1 episode |
| Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip | Fred | 2 episode | |
| Hannah Montana | Sanjay | 1 episode | |
| 2006-2007 | Campus Ladies | Abdul | 20 episodes |
| 2007 | The Winner | Richard | 5 episodes |
| 2008 | Hollywood Residential | IRS Agent Tom Scully | Voice 1 episode Uncredited |
| The Ex List | Cyrus | 13 episode | |
| 2008-2024 | American Dad! | Achmed / Crowd Member / John Leguizamo / Various Characters | Voice |
| 2009 | How I Met Your Mother | Richard Greenleaf | 1 episode |
| Wizards of Waverly Place | Alien | 1 episode | |
| 2010 | Zeke and Luther | Dex Bratner | Episode: A Very Hairy Problem |
| Svetlana | Farhad Golastani | 1 episode | |
| Modern Family | Dale | Episode: Halloween | |
| 2011 | The Paul Reiser Show | Amir | 1 episode |
| Fanboy & Chum Chum | Brizwald | 1 episode | |
| Love Bites | Aram | Episode: Boys to Men | |
| 2011-2016 | Kung Fu Panda: Legends of Awesomeness | Crane | Voice Replacing David Cross |
| 2012 | Touch | Sami | 1 episdoes |
| Castle | Sam Spear | 1 episodes | |
| Partners | Buck | 2 episodes | |
| Guys with Kids | Gabe | Episode: Thanksgiving | |
| 2013 | Don't Trust the B---- In Apartment 23 | Mitchell | 1 episodes |
| 2 Broke Girls | Amir | Episode: And the psychic Shakedown | |
| Major Crimes | Pete | Episode: All in | |
| 2013-2016 | Turbo FAST | Skidmark, Tito | Voice Replacing Ben Schwartz and Michael Peña |
| 2014 | Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D | Schneider | Episode: A Hen in the Wolf House |
| About a Boy | Orlando | 1 episodes | |
| 2015 | Bones | Hamid Vaziri | Episode: The Murder in the Middle East |
| 20 Seconds to Live | Man | 1 episodes | |
| 2016 | Frank off the Boat | Frank | 1 episodes |
| American Horror Story | Mitch | Episode: Be Our Guest | |
| 2017 | I'm Sorry | Maz | 1 episodes |
| Scorpion | Vadat | Episode: Sci hard | |
| 2018 | LA to Vegas | Alan | 14 episodes |
| 2019 | The Lion Guard | Tupp | Episode: Journey of Memories |
| Amphibia | Brown Overalls Frog / Various Characters | 2 episodes | |
| 2020 | Bosch | Detective Klein | 3 episodes |
| Where's Waldo | Additional Voice | 2 episodes | |
| 2021 | Puppy Place | Maz | 1 episodes |
| The Shrink Next Door | Joe | 3 episodes | |
| 2022 | We Baby Bears | Chad / Additional Voice | 2 episodes |
| Tuca & Bertie | Additional Voice | 2 episodes | |
| Ghosts | Director Daniel | Episode: Dumb Deaths | |
| 2023 | My Dad the Bounty Hunter | Additional Voice | 2 episodes |
| Hailey's On it! | Uncle Naveed / Additional Voice | 3 episodes | |
| 2024-present | Hazbin Hotel | Alastor | Voice Replacing Edward Bosco [13] |
| 2025 | Wizard Beyond Waverly Place | Alistair Goodspeed | 1 episodes |
| High Potential | Mark Willson | Episode: Chutes and Murders | |
| Krapopolis | Timon | 1 episodes |
Video games
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2001 | The Sims Hot Date | Sim | Voice |
| 2006 | Full Spectrum Warrior: Ten Hammers | Voice | |
| Titan Quest | Voice | ||
| Company of Heroes | Voice | ||
| Splinter Cell: Double Agent | Additional Characters | Voice | |
| The Sopranos: Road to Respect | Additional Characters | Voice | |
| 2007 | Titan Quest: Immortal Throne | Voice | |
| 2011 | Kung Fu Panda 2 | Crane | Voice Replacing Drew Massey |
| 2012 | Assassin's Creed lll: Liberation | Additional Characters | Voice |
| 2014 | Far Cry 4 | Additional Characters | Voice |
| 2015 | Kung Fu Panda Showdown of Legendary Legends | Crane | Voice |
References
- ↑ "Amir Talai - Biography". movies.nytimes.com. 21 January 2012. Retrieved 21 January 2012.
- ↑ redbroadwell (2024-05-27). "Interview: Amir Talai on Playing the Most Enigmatic Demon in 'Hazbin Hotel'". Awards Radar. Retrieved 2024-08-05.
- ↑ "Voice Actor Amir Talai On Bringing the Demonic Alastor To Life in 'Hazbin Hotel'". Awardsdaily. Retrieved 2024-08-05.
- ↑ "Amir Talai". IMDb. Retrieved 2024-02-04.
- ↑ "amir-talai".
- ↑ "twitter-amirtalai".
- ↑ "The Role of Race in Race Roles: Amir Talai in An Octoroon". Cal Alumni Association. Retrieved 2024-08-05.
- ↑ "Hollywood after 911". 13 September 2018.
- ↑ "Hollywood after 911". BuzzFeed News. Archived from the original on 2024-02-04. Retrieved 2024-02-04. Unknown parameter
|url-status=ignored (help) - ↑ Talai, Amir (2018-09-13). "17 Years After 9/11, I'm Still a Terrorist in Hollywood's Eyes". Vulture. Retrieved 2024-08-05.
- ↑ Robb, David (2021-01-14). "Amir Talai Hosts Forum On Challenges Facing Actors During Pandemic". Deadline. Retrieved 2024-08-05.
- ↑ "Only 1 percent of TV actors are Middle Eastern, North African, reveals first ever study of its kind". 2018-09-10. Retrieved 2024-08-05.
- ↑ "Amir Talai (visual voices guide)". Behind The Voice Actors. Retrieved 2025-09-19.
External Links
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