Post by Admin - Jon on Apr 7, 2010 10:31:26 GMT 1
He is known for playing Dr. Julian Bashir in the television series Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, and for his performances as Prince Nasir Al-Subaai in Syriana (2005) and as Imad ad-Din al-Isfahani in Kingdom of Heaven (2005). He has also guest starred on 24 as Hamri Al-Assad. Siddig co-stars in the award-winning film Cairo Time (2009) as Tareq Khalifa.
Personal life
Siddig was born in Sudan and has spent most of his life in England. He was born to an English mother who worked as a theatrical consultant[1] and a Sudanese father. His maternal uncle is English actor Malcolm McDowell, with whom he appeared in 2008 in Neil Marshall's Doomsday, and his paternal uncle is the former Sudanese Prime Minister Sadiq al-Mahdi.
He is also descended from Muhammad Ahmad Al-Mahdi. He attended St. Lawrence College, Ramsgate. He was credited under the shortened name Siddig El Fadil until October 1995 (three seasons into his run on Star Trek: Deep Space Nine), when he changed his stage name to Alexander Siddig, as he thought it would be less confusing and easier to pronounce by native English speakers than his original name – not to mention a lot quicker than his full name.
On set he became known as 'Sid'. In 1996, Siddig and his co-star Nana Visitor became involved – their son, Django El Tahir El Siddig, was born in 1997, as the couple married in 1996. They divorced in 2001. In 2005 he was briefly involved with his Whose Life Is It Anyway? co-star (and fellow Star Trek and Sex and the City alum) Kim Cattrall.
Career
Siddig attended the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art (LAMDA) to study acting and after leaving LAMDA, Siddig did a season of stage work in Manchester. He also worked as a director in a small theater in London. Siddig first appeared to television audiences as Prince Feisal in the 1990 TV sequel to Lawrence of Arabia entitled A Dangerous Man: Lawrence After Arabia. Since the end of the seven seasons of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, Siddig has made prominent appearances in films and television. Highlights include guest-starring as an Algerian secret agent on the trail of Islamic extremists in a controversial episode of the British television show Spooks, entitled "Nest of Angels", in 2003.
In 2005, he appeared as Saladin's aide, Imad, in Sir Ridley Scott's film Kingdom of Heaven and gave a critically-lauded performance as Prince Nasir in Syriana, alongside George Clooney and Matt Damon. He played the title role in 2006's Hannibal - Rome's Worst Nightmare for the BBC (UK). Early 2007, Siddig joined the cast of Un Homme Perdu aka A Lost Man and he returned to American television in the role of former terrorist Hamri Al-Assad for the sixth season of 24. In 2009, he co-starred with Patricia Clarkson in the award-winning film Cairo Time (2009) as Tareq Khalifa, an Egyptian who battles his attraction to his friend's wife.
Siddig's roles have often called for him to act out many different accents: an English RP accent (Star Trek: Deep Space Nine), a cockney accent (Reign Of Fire), and an Algerian accent (Spooks), among others. He has also given performances in Arabic as the role required (Spooks, Syriana, 24, Un Homme Perdu) as well as French (Un Homme Perdu).
Personal life
Siddig was born in Sudan and has spent most of his life in England. He was born to an English mother who worked as a theatrical consultant[1] and a Sudanese father. His maternal uncle is English actor Malcolm McDowell, with whom he appeared in 2008 in Neil Marshall's Doomsday, and his paternal uncle is the former Sudanese Prime Minister Sadiq al-Mahdi.
He is also descended from Muhammad Ahmad Al-Mahdi. He attended St. Lawrence College, Ramsgate. He was credited under the shortened name Siddig El Fadil until October 1995 (three seasons into his run on Star Trek: Deep Space Nine), when he changed his stage name to Alexander Siddig, as he thought it would be less confusing and easier to pronounce by native English speakers than his original name – not to mention a lot quicker than his full name.
On set he became known as 'Sid'. In 1996, Siddig and his co-star Nana Visitor became involved – their son, Django El Tahir El Siddig, was born in 1997, as the couple married in 1996. They divorced in 2001. In 2005 he was briefly involved with his Whose Life Is It Anyway? co-star (and fellow Star Trek and Sex and the City alum) Kim Cattrall.
Career
Siddig attended the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art (LAMDA) to study acting and after leaving LAMDA, Siddig did a season of stage work in Manchester. He also worked as a director in a small theater in London. Siddig first appeared to television audiences as Prince Feisal in the 1990 TV sequel to Lawrence of Arabia entitled A Dangerous Man: Lawrence After Arabia. Since the end of the seven seasons of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, Siddig has made prominent appearances in films and television. Highlights include guest-starring as an Algerian secret agent on the trail of Islamic extremists in a controversial episode of the British television show Spooks, entitled "Nest of Angels", in 2003.
In 2005, he appeared as Saladin's aide, Imad, in Sir Ridley Scott's film Kingdom of Heaven and gave a critically-lauded performance as Prince Nasir in Syriana, alongside George Clooney and Matt Damon. He played the title role in 2006's Hannibal - Rome's Worst Nightmare for the BBC (UK). Early 2007, Siddig joined the cast of Un Homme Perdu aka A Lost Man and he returned to American television in the role of former terrorist Hamri Al-Assad for the sixth season of 24. In 2009, he co-starred with Patricia Clarkson in the award-winning film Cairo Time (2009) as Tareq Khalifa, an Egyptian who battles his attraction to his friend's wife.
Siddig's roles have often called for him to act out many different accents: an English RP accent (Star Trek: Deep Space Nine), a cockney accent (Reign Of Fire), and an Algerian accent (Spooks), among others. He has also given performances in Arabic as the role required (Spooks, Syriana, 24, Un Homme Perdu) as well as French (Un Homme Perdu).
