Nazanin Boniadi

Acting

Nazanin Boniadi

Born 1980-05-22 · Tehran, Iran

Nazanin Boniadi was born in Tehran, Iran, at the height of the Iranian Revolution; her parents relocated to London shortly thereafter. She performed violin and ballet as a young girl. She attended a private high school and later moved to the United States where she earned a bachelor's degree, with honors, in biological sciences from the University of California, Irvine. At UCI, she won the Chang Pin-Chun Undergraduate Research Award for molecular research involving cancer treatment and heart transplant rejection. She was also Assistant Editor-in-Chief of MedTimes, UCI's undergraduate medical newspaper. Nazanin Boniadi is rapidly making her mark in both film and television. She co-starred as CIA analyst Fara Sherazi on seasons three and four of the Emmy and Golden Globe award-winning drama Homeland (2011), for which she shared a 2015 SAG Award nomination in the Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series category. Boniadi appeared in the 2016 MGM-Paramount remake of Ben-Hur. Directed by Timur Bekmambetov, the film stars Ms. Boniadi in the female lead role of Esther opposite Jack Huston, Morgan Freeman and Toby Kebbell. She will next appear in a leading role opposite Armie Hammer and Dev Patel in Anthony Maras's Hotel Mumbai. Among her many television credits, Boniadi portrayed Nora, a relatively longstanding love interest to Neil Patrick Harris's Barney Stinson, in seasons six and seven of How I Met Your Mother (2005). She also appeared as the notorious Adnan Salif in season three of Shonda Rhimes' hit political drama Scandal (2012). She will next star alongside J.K. Simmons in the original Starz series Counterpart (2017), created by Justin Marks and Executive Produced by Morten Tyldum. On film, Boniadi appeared as Amira Ahmed in Jon Favreau's Iron Man (2008) and portrayed a young mother, Elaine, in Paul Haggis' The Next Three Days (2010). She also has several independent features to her credit. Born in Tehran at the height of the Iranian Revolution, Boniadi's parents relocated to London, England, shortly thereafter, where she was raised with an emphasis on education. While she was involved in theatre early in life, Boniadi later decided she wanted to become a physician. She moved to the United States at the age of 19 to attend the University of California, Irvine, where she received her Bachelor's Degree, with Honors (Dean's Academic Achievement and Service Award) in Biological Sciences, and won the "Chang Pin Chun" Undergraduate Research Award for her work in heart-transplant rejection and cancer research. Switching gears to pursue her first love, Boniadi then decided to study acting, which included training in Contemporary Drama at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Arts in London under the supervision of dramaturge Lloyd Trott. Boniadi is fluent in both English and Persian. She is a dedicated human rights activist. Boniadi served as a spokesperson for Amnesty International USA (AIUSA) 2009-2015, and continues to partner with the non-profit as an AIUSA Artist of Conscience.

Acting credits

Iron Man poster
7.7

After being held captive in an Afghan cave, billionaire engineer Tony Stark creates a unique weaponized suit of armor to fight evil.

Iron Man

2008

Passengers poster
7.0

A spacecraft traveling to a distant colony planet and transporting thousands of people has a malfunction in its sleep chambers. As a result, two passengers are awakened 90 years early.

Passengers

2016

The Next Three Days poster
7.1

Life seems perfect for John Brennan until his wife, Lara, is arrested for a murder she says she didn’t commit. Three years into her sentence, John is struggling to hold his family together, raising their son and teaching at college while he pursues every means available to prove her innocence. With the rejection of their final appeal, Lara becomes suicidal and John decides there is only one possible, bearable solution: to break his wife out of prison.

The Next Three Days

2010

Zoolander 2 poster
4.9

Derek and Hansel are modelling again when an opposing company attempts to take them out from the business.

Zoolander 2

2016

Bombshell poster
6.8

Bombshell is a revealing look inside the most powerful and controversial media empire of all time; and the explosive story of the women who brought down the infamous man who created it.

Bombshell

2019

Ben-Hur poster
5.8

A falsely accused nobleman survives years of slavery to take vengeance on his best friend who betrayed him.

Ben-Hur

2016

Charlie Wilson's War poster
6.5

A Texas congressman sets a series of events in motion when he conspires with a CIA operative to aid Afghan mujahideen rebels fighting the Soviets.

Charlie Wilson's War

2007

Hotel Mumbai poster
7.5

Mumbai, India, November 26, 2008. While several terrorists spread hatred and death through the city, others attack the Taj Mahal Palace Hotel. Both hotel staff and guests risk their lives, making unthinkable sacrifices to protect themselves and keep everyone safe while help arrives.

Hotel Mumbai

2019

Going Clear: Scientology and the Prison of Belief poster
7.6

The film profiles eight former members of the Church of Scientology, shining a light on how they attract true believers and the things they do in the name of religion.

Going Clear: Scientology and the Prison of Belief

2015

No artwork available
NR

A suburban couple whose life spirals out of control when they rent their garage to mysterious tenants.

The Saviors

2027

A Mosquito in the Ear poster
NR

Andrew and Daniela travel to Goa, India, to meet their newly adopted 4-year-old daughter, Sarvari, and bring her back to the US. However, their world begins to crumble when Sarvari refuses to leave the orphanage that she calls home behind. The couple’s attempts to welcome their child into her new family and travel back with her prove to be a chaotic challenge that not only tests their patience but also profoundly reshapes their ideas of family, parenthood, and their relationship as a couple.

A Mosquito in the Ear

2026

Desert Dancer poster
6.9

Inspirational true story of Iranian dancer Afshin Ghaffarian, who risked his life for his dream to become a dancer despite a nationwide dancing ban.

Desert Dancer

2014

Shades of Ray poster
6.6

American-born Ray Rehman comes home one night to find his Pakistani father on his doorstep. Ray's Caucasian mother threw him out. It's an awkward time for his father to move in as Ray just proposed to his Caucasian girlfriend - who hasn't given him an answer. While trying to get his parents back together, Ray meets a South Asian girl of mixed descent, just like him, and must decide where his identity truly lies.

Shades of Ray

2008

The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power Global Fan Screening poster
7.4

An edited version of the first two episodes of The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power, shown exclusively to fans in cinemas around the world in August 2022. In a time of relative peace, an ensemble cast of characters confronts the re-emergence of evil to Middle-earth.

The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power Global Fan Screening

2022

Shirin in Love poster
4.0

Despite being engaged to a successful Iranian plastic surgeon in Beverly Hills, Shirin finds herself falling for a mysterious young man who lives in a lighthouse in northern California.

Shirin in Love

2014

A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night poster
6.4

A girl walks home alone at night and a man follows her with insidious intentions, but when he gets to her apartment, she turns the tables in the most surprising way…with her fangs.

A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night

2011

The Voice of Dust and Ash poster
1.0

When Iran’s ayatollah banned music and performances in the entire country, instruments and records became contraband, and artists were exiled, imprisoned, or executed. As the new government began to crush basic human rights, Maestro Shajarian risked everything to confront the regime, singing truth to power and uniting the country in a chorus of millions strong. His life long pursuit of equality through art is immortalized for generations to come, through his majestic, soaring vocals and lyrics. His internationally renowned hymn, “MORGHE SAHAR”, performed at the finale of all his concerts is widely considered the Unofficial National Anthem for Iranian Freedom.

The Voice of Dust and Ash

2022

No artwork available
7.0

Relations between the United States and Iran take an unexpected turn when two diplomats and their interpreters meet for closed-door negotiations.

Diplomacy

2009