After supporting roles in shows like HBO’s The Pacific and movies such as the Night at the Museum trilogy and the upcoming Bohemian Rhapsody, Rami Malek became known for his starring role as paranoid hacker Elliot Alderson on the USA series Mr. Robot, which earned him an Emmy in 2016.
Other films include the war drama Over There, Spike Lee’s Oldboy remake and indie film Ain’t Them Bodies Saints.
Night at the Museum (2006)
Night at the Museum is a fantasy that appeals to everyone who’s ever wandered through a museum with wide-eyed wonder. It doesn’t always work — the film can seem a bit disorienting and frustrating, with its non-linear story and jumbled flashbacks — but Malek’s performance is enough to make it worth watching.
After Night at the Museum, Malek continued to find supporting roles in films like X-Men Origins: Wolverine and the drama Short Term 12. But it was his turn as paranoid hacker Elliot on the USA series Mr. Robot that brought him widespread critical acclaim and a new audience.
Besides earning him an Oscar nomination, it also helped to catapult co-stars such as Jacob Tremblay and Kate Mara into the limelight. The series has been renewed for a fourth season, and Malek is likely to keep finding himself in exciting new projects. In 2014, he starred in Need for Speed as Finn, a member of mechanic and street racer Tobey Marshall’s crew who gets framed by corrupt businessman Dino Brewster. The movie was a box-office success and earned him the title of “next up” for many critics.
The Master (2012)
Rami Malek’s most controversial film to date, this Paul Thomas Anderson drama tackles themes of power, control, and belief. He stars as Freddie Quell, a World War II veteran who is taken under the wing of Lancaster Dodd (Philip Seymour Hoffman), leader of a religious cult known as “The Cause.”
The Master explores questions of individuality and the limits of faith. It was widely seen as a searing commentary on Scientology, the self-help movement founded by Hoffman’s real-life analogue Ron L. Hubbard, though Anderson has denied this accusation. The film has received critical acclaim, with many calling it one of the best films of the decade.
After the success of Night at the Museum, Malek landed a recurring role in the Fox series 24 and a supporting role on the HBO miniseries The Pacific. He continued to expand his filmography, landing a starring role in the action-thriller Need for Speed, and guest-starring on shows like Medium and Mr. Robot, in which he plays the computer hacker Elliot Alderson. His performance in this highly-acclaimed TV series earned him an Emmy Award nomination.
The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn – Part 2 (2012)
Rami Malek has the ability to take on a broad range of roles, from an Egyptian pharaoh in a kid’s movie to the flamboyant frontman of Queen. With his piercing gaze and unique presence, Malek has become one of the most interesting actors working today.
In 2004, Malek made his television debut in the acclaimed series Gilmore Girls, before landing the role of Iraqi civilian interpreter Hassan on Steven Bochco’s war drama Over There. He went on to guest star in episodes of Medium and The War at Home before getting his first recurring gig on Fox comedy series Larry Crowne, playing gay best friend Kenny.
After receiving critical acclaim for his performance as college student Elliot Alderson on USA’s Mr. Robot, Malek scored the starring role in the independent film Ain’t Them Bodies Saints and Paul Thomas Anderson’s psychological drama The Master. The following year, he starred in the romantic comedy American Sniper and appeared alongside Charlie Hunnam in the prison escape drama Papillon. In Buster’s Mal Heart, the actor portrays both Jonah and Buster, two aspects of a man with a fractured psyche.
Oldboy (2012)
A powerful tale of revenge, Oldboy is one of Chan-wook Park’s most critically acclaimed films and was even declared a classic by Quentin Tarantino in his Cinema Speculations. The film is a testament to the power of the human spirit and the depths it can reach in the pursuit of justice. It also served as a blueprint for countless revenge films that followed, including many in the sleazy genre of “revenge-o-matics.” Every single action sequence in the movie, from a stomach-churning meal to a hammer-fisted hallway brawl that resembles a side-scrolling beat ‘em up video game, is perfectly choreographed and evokes raw emotion without overstating the violence.
The original film follows an advertising executive (Josh Brolin) who is kidnapped and imprisoned for twenty years without anyone ever telling him why. When he is released, he embarks on an obsessive mission to discover who orchestrated his bizarre punishment. The story draws inspiration from both Kafka and Oedipus, but manages to generate Aristotelian tragic emotions without reverting into absurdist fatalism or silliness. It is a highly effective and disturbing film.
Buster’s Mal Heart (2017)
The independent drama Buster’s Mal Heart mixes elements of a thriller movie with dark comedy and science fiction. Directed by Sarah Adina Smith, the film uses intersecting vignettes of distinct timelines to explore Jonah Cueto’s fractured mind.
At once a muddled mess and an audaciously compelling thriller, the story focuses on a mountain man with an unexplained rage. He lives off the land and holes up in empty vacation homes to hide from the authorities. He goes by the nickname Buster and wears a long beard.
He is also a hotel concierge on the night shift and struggles with his family’s needs. One night a mysterious man with a cryptic name visits him and seems to know his past.
Previously, Malek had portrayed the tormented computer hacker Elliot on the dystopian cable series Mr. Robot. He also starred as Corporal Merriell Shelton in the HBO World War II miniseries The Pacific. His upcoming role as Freddie Mercury in the Queen biopic Bohemian Rhapsody will propel him to new heights of fame. In the series Over There, he played civilian interpreter Hassan in the portrayal of the complexities of life in the Iraq War.