Osamah Sami is an Australian stage and screen actor, writer, and stand-up comedian, born in Iran of Iraqi origin. He is known for his award-winning book Good Muslim Boy, and for his role as the titular character in 2017 film Ali's Wedding.
Early life and education Osamah Sami was born in Qom, Iran. His father, Dr Jaafar al-Bakiry, a Shiite cleric from Iraq, had been a political prisoner under Saddam Hussein and met his Kurdish wife, Sami's mother, in an Iranian refugee camp. His father had evaded execution for protesting against Hussein, by escaping prison and swimming over the border to Iran.
Sami was cast in several roles on stage in his hometown as a child. Then as a teenager, he studied arts at Kanoon Pavaresh Fekri, Iran's leading arts development institute, before appearing in two Iranian feature films.
When Sami was twelve, the family then emigrated to Melbourne, Australia in 1995, settling in the suburb of Fawkner. Sami was the oldest of seven children.
Sami's father had hoped his son would become a doctor, but his grades didn't get him into medicine. So he pretended to get a perfect score in year 12 and lied about winning a place in medicine at the University of Melbourne. He attended classes for a year, without being detected by his parents or the school. His father eventually took him on a pilgrimage back to Iran to try and straighten him out.
While 'attending' university, Sami also met and fell in love with a legitimate medical student, which also proved problematic, as his family was in the process of organising his arranged marriage. Sami held several jobs including working as a waiter, forklift driver and librarian but ultimately decided acting was the only thing he wanted to do. He went on to further his earlier acting studies at The Australian Film and Television Academy (TAFTA).
Career After immigrating to Australia, Sami began working with a local theatre group and starred in their productions. His father wrote a musical-comedy called Trial of Saddam, in which Sami played the role of Saddam Hussein. After proving a hit amongst the Iraqi community in Australia, it was subsequently due to play sold-out shows in Detroit in the US in 2005. But, as this was shortly after the London and Madrid train bombings, the theatre group was prevented from entering the United States to perform the play.
In addition to theatre, Sami also went on to work in film and television. In 2007, he had a regular role as Sharif Doumani in 13-part SBS romantic drama series Kick, and in the late 2000s he made guest appearances in largely typecast roles in series including City Homicide, Rush, Sea Patrol and East West 101 before landing his breakthrough role opposite Claudia Karvan in the telemovie Saved, directed by Tony Ayres.
Sami co-created the 2015 comedy web series, Two Refugees and a Blonde, together with Shahin Shafaei and Rain Fuller. He also played one of the three lead roles. Sami stated: "This series aims to remove the sombre stigma synonymous with refugees and to replace it with a dose of laughter...". It launched during Refugee Week in Melbourne and was screened at Amnesty Refugee Network's Festival of Hope on World Refugee Day, while premiering online via YouTube.
Sami's critically acclaimed memoir Good Muslim Boy was published by Hardie Grant in 2015. In 2016, it became the winner of the New South Wales Premier's Literary Award, and was commended at the Victorian Premier's Literary Awards. He also adapted his book for the stage, with productions by Melbourne's Malthouse Theatre and Queensland Theatre.
Sami was nominated for a 2016 Green Room Award for Best Male Performer in a Lead Role for a Melbourne Theatre Company production of I Call My Brothers. He also played the lead role of American-born Palestinian doctor, Rami, in a production of Tales of a City by the Sea in Sydney and Melbourne.
Sami co-wrote and starred as the titular character in 2016 feature romantic comedy film Ali's Wedding, which was also based on his memoir. The film was acquired by Netflix. His work earned him a 2017 Australian Academy Award (AACTA Award) for Best Original Screenplay as well as a nomination for Best Lead Actor. It was also nominated for Best Film. This was mirrored at the 2017 Film Critics Circle of Australia Awards, where it won Best Film, and earned Sami a win for Best Screenplay and a nomination for Best Male Lead. His script also received a 2016 Australian Writers' Guild Award in the Best Original Feature Film category. Further wins included Audience Award for Best Feature Film at the 2017 Sydney Film Festival and The Age Critics Prize at Melbourne International Film Festival. The film was also awarded the $100,000 CinefestOz film prize in 2017.
opposite David Wenham. The film premiered at the 2020 Venice Film Festival drawing positive international reviews. In 2022, he played the role of Salim Bayati in six-part mystery drama miniseries Savage River, alongside Katherine Langford, Jacqueline McKenzie and Nadine Garner.
Sami next starred opposite Zar Amir Ebrahimi in the Shayda. The film was the winner of the Audience Award for Best Film after premiering as the 2023 opening night film at Sundance. It was also selected as the opening night film at Melbourne International Film Festival, and went on to win the 2023 CinefestOz $100,000 film prize. That same year, Sami was a co-writer on psychological thriller series The Clearing, which featured an all-star cast including Teresa Palmer, Miranda Otto, Guy Pearce, Xavier Samuel, Claudia Karvan and Gary Sweet. Also in 2023, Sami co-wrote and starred in drama film Tennessine, which screened at both CinefestOZ and the Sydney Film Festival.
Sami then co-created, co-wrote and appeared in the 2024 television drama miniseries called House of Gods, which aired on ABC TV and ABC iview from 25 February 2024. The drama centres around an imam and his family as well as the Australian Arab / Iraqi community he leads, with Sami using his own real-life experiences to tell the story of the community of which he is a part.
Personal life Sami is father to two daughters. He speaks Arabic, Farsi and English.
Sami's father died at the age of 50, while the pair were on holidays overseas in Tehran.
Awards and nominations Year Work Award Category Result Ref.2016 Good Muslim Boy New South Wales Premier's Literary Award Non-Fiction Writing Victorian Premier's Literary Award Non-Fiction Writing I Call My Brothers Green Room Award Best Male Actor (Theatre Companies) Two Refugees and a Blonde LA Webfest Outstanding Comedy Series Outstanding Ensemble Cast Ali's Wedding Australian Writers' Guild Award Best Original Feature Film 2017 AACTA Award Best Lead Actor in a Feature Film Best Original Screenplay Film Critics Circle of Australia Award Best Screenplay Best Male Lead Osamah Sami Australian Muslim Achievement Award Creative Artist of the Year Two Refugees and a Blonde Los Angeles Independent Film Festival Award Best Web Series Flow Sydney Indie Film Festival Best Actor 2018 Ali's Wedding Australian Film Critics Association Best Screenplay Best Actor 2019 Sheltered AACTA Award Best Social Short 2024 Shayda Best Lead Actor in a Feature Film 2025 Osamah Sami Australian Muslim Achievement Award Creative Artist of the Year
Acting credits
Film Year Title Role Notes Ref.1993 Chakmeh (aka The Boot) Town boy Abadani-Ha (aka The Abadanis) Bacheh Abadani 1997 Mojezeye khandeh (aka The Miracle of Smile) Hamid 2007 Lucky Miles Fiark Shotgun! [an Opening Sequence] Hani Short film 2008 296 Smith Street Anthony Short film 2009 Housemates Aashiq Short film 2011 The Orchard Hadi Short film 2012 10 Terrorists Azim 2013 Pure Fady Short film 2014 Canberra Says No Abbas Salim Short film 2015 Too Late Joe Late Short film 2016 Journey 2017 Ali's Wedding Ali Flow Stephen Short film 2020 The Furnace Majid 2023 Shayda Hossein Tennessine Arash Curls Eddy In production Life's Discourse James Short filmPre-production
Television Year Title Role Notes Ref. 2007 Kick Sharif Doumani Miniseries, 13 episodes 2007; 2011 City Homicide Hanif Durrani / Kasim Al-Basri 2 episodes 2008 Canal Road Michael Young Miniseries, 1 episode 2009 Saved Amir Ali TV movie East West 101 Latif Kazi 2 episodes 2010 Rush Hazrat 1 episode 2011 Sea Patrol Salim Shokor 1 episode 2015 Two Refugees and a Blonde Sami Web miniseries, 10 episodes 2016 Jack Irish Hadji Adhib 2 episodes Journey Nadim TV movie 2020 AussieWood Sami Sami 2022 Savage River Salim Bayati Miniseries, 6 episodes 2024 House of Gods Isa 6 episodes Separated at Birth Asad 6 episodesIn production
Stage Year Title Role Venue / Co. Ref. 2006 Trial of Saddam Saddam Hussein Bankstown Theatre, Sydney 2007 Homebody / Kabul Taliban official Trades Hall, Melbourne with Theatre@Risk Sinners Various characters / Sheep Carlton Courthouse, Melbourne with La Mama 2009 Baghdad Wedding Belvoir St Theatre, Sydney with Company B 2010 The Long Day's Dying Carlton Courthouse, Melbourne with La Mama 2012 Origin-Transit-Destination Casula Powerhouse, Sydney with Australian Performance Exchange 2013 The Two Executioners Maurice La Mama, Melbourne 2014; 2016 Tales of a City by the Sea Rami La Mama, Melbourne, Bakehouse Theatre, Adelaide 2015 I Call My Brothers Amor VIC/TAS tour with MTC 2017 The Sound of Waiting Hamed Mokri Brown's Mart Theatre, Darwin with Knock 'em Down Theatre 2018 Good Muslim Boy Osamah Malthouse Theatre, Melbourne / Cremorne Theatre, Brisbane with QTC 2019–2020 Anthem Malik Australian tour with Performing Lines 2021 Them Omar Arts Centre Melbourne (show cancelled)
Writing credits Year Title Role Notes Ref. 2009 Housemates Storyline consultant Short film 2012 10 Terrorists Contributing writer Feature film 2014 Canberra Says No Story/writer / Associate producer Short film 2015 Too Late Writer Short film Two Refugees and a Blonde Concept / creator Web miniseries, 10 episodes 2016 Ali's Wedding Writer / Associate producer Feature film 2017 Sheltered Co-writer / Script editor Short film 2018 Good Muslim Boy Writer / Adaptor Stage 2023 The Clearing Co-writer TV series Tennessine Writer Feature film 2024 House of Gods Co-writer Miniseries When the Birds Aren't Free to Be Buried Writer / Director Animation (in development)
Books
References
External links
Osamah Sami on Instagram