Adeel Akhtar

Akhtar's hangdog expression often makes a man look as though he could do with a little kindness. His characters invite sympathy before they have done much to deserve it, and he is good at keeping us interested when they become harder to like. We rate that ability to make flawed people recognisable. The risk is that a supporting part can simply borrow those vulnerable features and neglect to give him a character.

Early screen roles repeatedly confined him to ethnic stereotypes. The breakthrough came as Faisal, the bumbling extremist in Chris Morris's Four Lions (2010), where his irreverence suited the satire. Utopia (2013) gave him Wilson Wilson, a conspiracy theorist whose eccentricity develops into conviction. By Murdered by My Father (2016), he was carrying a drama as Shahzad, with tenderness and menace both present in the performance. We found him frightening because the tenderness was as convincing as the menace.

In Down Cemetery Road (2025), he plays Hamza Malik in a conspiracy thriller we recommend with a reservation about its dawdling plotting. Emma Thompson and Ruth Wilson are the chief attraction, especially when their characters irritate each other. That friction is sharp enough to make the occasional wait worthwhile, though we would still prefer the story to get on with things. It is an enjoyable series to find him in, rather than the place we would start to understand what he can do.

The later work includes Ali, the romantic lead in the Bradford-set Ali & Ava (2021), and the widower Andy Fisher in Sherwood (2022). A romantic lead is a welcome alternative to the stereotypical supporting parts that restricted his early work, and a good reason to look beyond the familiar troubled face. We would try Ali & Ava next, and give the conspiracy thrillers a rest for an evening.