Introduction
Haaz Sleiman /ˈhɑːz ˈsleɪmən/ (Arabic: هاز سليمان; born July 1, 1976) is a Lebanese-American television and film actor. He most notably played the role of Tarek in the 2007 film The Visitor and the role of Jesus in the American TV mini-series Killing Jesus, in addition to a number of American TV series.
Career
Haaz Sleiman was born and raised in Lebanon. He moved to the United States when he was twenty-one years old, and went on to act in film, television, and theater.
In 2006, Sleiman portrayed an American soldier in Iraq on the NBC series ER and, that same year, had a recurring role as an Arab billionaire in the CBS series Company Town.He portrayed the terrorist suspect Heydar in three 2007 episodes of the FOX series 24 and appeared on both NCIS and Veronica Mars in 2007.
He co-starred as Tarek, an undocumented Syrian immigrant in the critically acclaimed 2007 independent film The Visitor, a drama directed by Tom McCarthy. The film was nominated for a Screen Actors Guild Award and an Academy Award. Sleiman also had small roles in the 2006 film American Dreamz and the 2007 film AmericanEast.
Sleiman played gay nurse Mohammed "Mo-Mo" De La Cruz in the first season of the Showtime dark comedy series Nurse Jackie, which premiered in June 2009.
In 2011, Sleiman played the role of Omar, a Palestinian activist, in the Channel 4 mini-series The Promise.
Sleiman also played the role of Kasim Tariq in the CW Network TV show Nikita; he appeared in two episodes.
Sleiman played Dr Rabia, a gay Syrian doctor in Channel 4's, The State.
In 2013, Sleiman started as the titular character in the short lived Off-Broadway musical Venice.
Personal life
On August 22, 2017, Sleiman came out as gay via a Facebook video.
Awards and nominations
- Won 2nd place during the Boston Society of Film Critics Awards for "Best Ensemble Cast" for The Visitor
- Nominated for Best Supporting Actor during Independent Spirit Awards for role in The Visitor
- Nominated for Best Ensemble Cast for The Visitor during the Gotham Awards
Filmography
Film
| Title | Year | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| The Ski Trip | 2004 | Tyson | |
| American Dreamz | 2006 | Mujeheddin Captain | |
| The Fourth Estate | Short film | ||
| The Visitor | 2007 | Tarek | Nominated — Boston Society of Film Critics Award for Best Cast Nominated — Gotham Independent Film Award for Best Ensemble Performance Nominated — Independent Spirit Award for Best Supporting Male Nominated — Online Film & Television Association for Best Breakthrough Performance – Male |
| Futbaal: The Price of Dreams | Ace | ||
| AmericanEast | 2008 | Slick Ali | |
| Dorfman in Love | 2011 | Cookie | |
| Highland Park | 2012 | Ali Rasheed | Video on demand |
| Those People | 2015 | Tim | |
| Ideal | Photographer | Short film | |
| Offer and Compromise | 2016 | Scott | |
| The Eternals | 2020 | Filming |
Television
| Title | Year | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Company Town | 2006 | Abby Faisal | Unsold television pilot |
| ER | Hodgkins | Episode: "The Gallant Hero and the Tragic Victor" | |
| 24 | 2007 | Heydar | 3 episodes (season 6) |
| NCIS | Abdul Wahid | Episode: "Grace Period" | |
| Veronica Mars | Nasir Ben-Hafald | Episode: "Un-American Graffiti" | |
| Nurse Jackie | 2009 | Mohammed "Mo-Mo" de la Cruz | Main role (season 1; 12 episodes) |
| Nikita | 2010, 2011 | Kasim Tariq | 2 episodes |
| The Promise | 2011 | Omar Habash | Miniseries |
| CSI: Miami | Marcel Largos | Episode: "Mayday" | |
| Ricochet | Robert Savich | Television film | |
| Meet Jane | Agent Joseph Omari | Television film | |
| Beauty & the Beast | 2012 | Detective Wolansky | Episode: "All In" |
| Covert Affairs | 2012, 2015 | Khalid Ansari | 3 episodes (season 3), 1 episode (season 5) |
| Blue Bloods | 2013 | Teri Damiri | Episode: "Drawing Dead" |
| The Good Wife | Zayeed Shaheed | Episode: "Whack-a-Mole" | |
| Person of Interest | 2014 | Omar Risha | Episode: "Allegiance" |
| Reckless | Tariq Al Zahrani | Episode: "Fifty-One Percent" | |
| Allegiance | 2015 | Scott Tolliver | 2 episodes |
| Killing Jesus | Jesus | Television film | |
| The Player | 2015 | Farid | Episode: "Pilot" |
| Of Kings and Prophets | 2016 | Jonathan | Main cast |
| The State | 2017 | Dr. Rabia | Minisiries (3 episodes) |
| Tommy in La La Land | 2018 | Himself | Documentary (3 episodes) |
| Jack Ryan | Ali | Recurring | |
| Little America | 2020 | Rafiq | Episode "The Son" |
Video game
| Title | Year | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Assassin's Creed | 2007 | Malik al-Sayf | voice |
| Assassin's Creed: Revelations | 2011 | Suleiman I | voice |
| Diablo III | 2012 | Additional voices | |
| Diablo III: Reaper of Souls | 2014 | Additional voices |