# Abubakr Ali
**Abubakr Ali** (born 1991) is an Egyptian-born American actor, writer, and singer, a graduate of the [Yale School of Drama](https://www.edgepedia.org/yale-school-of-drama) acting program. He played the lead in [Billy Porter](https://www.edgepedia.org/billy-porter)'s 2022 film *Anything's Possible* and, in 2021, became the first Arab Muslim actor to lead a comic book adaptation when he was cast as Hunter Rose in Netflix's series *[Grendel](https://www.edgepedia.org/grendel-comics)*, which was later abandoned and never released.[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm5797869/) • [2](https://www.theatrely.com/post/abubakr-ali-on-character-transformation-during-previews-in-dakar-2000)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Born | 1991, Cairo, Egypt; moved to the United States in 2000 and raised in Pasadena, California[3](https://watch.plex.tv/en-GB/person/abubakr-ali?context.unit=HC) |
| Training | Graduate of the Yale School of Drama acting program[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm5797869/) |
| Breakthrough film | Khal in *Anything's Possible* (2022), Billy Porter's feature directorial debut, an Orion Pictures/Killer Films release on Prime Video[4](https://thequeerreview.com/2022/07/16/interview-anythings-possible-star-abubakr-ali/) |
| Comic-book first | Cast in 2021 as Hunter Rose/Grendel in Netflix's *Grendel*, the first Arab Muslim actor to lead a screen comic book adaptation; the series was never released[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm5797869/) • [2](https://www.theatrely.com/post/abubakr-ali-on-character-transformation-during-previews-in-dakar-2000) |
| Recurring TV roles | Sebastian "Bash" Kamal-Stern on *Power Book II: Ghost* (4 episodes, 2020–2023); Officer Samir Bashir on *Law & Order: Organized Crime* (5 episodes, 2024)[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm5797869/) |
| Stage work | Boubs in Rajiv Joseph's *Dakar 2000* (Manhattan Theatre Club Off-Broadway premiere, 2025); Sammy in *On That Day in Amsterdam* (Primary Stages, 2019)[2](https://www.theatrely.com/post/abubakr-ali-on-character-transformation-during-previews-in-dakar-2000) • [5](https://www.broadwayworld.com/people/Abubakr-Ali/) |
## Background
Ali was born in Cairo, Egypt, to a Muslim family, and moved with his family to the United States in 2000, a year before the [September 11 attacks](https://www.edgepedia.org/september-11-attacks). He was raised in [Pasadena, California](https://www.edgepedia.org/pasadena-california), and his father died in 2017.[3](https://watch.plex.tv/en-GB/person/abubakr-ali?context.unit=HC) • [6](https://elcinema.com/person/2196382/) In interviews he has connected his turn toward acting to that period: after 2001, he has said, people in Muslim and Arab communities felt they had to present themselves as unthreatening in every space they entered, and acting offered a place where the full range of a person's emotions could exist openly.[7](https://www.wonderlandmagazine.com/2022/07/29/abubakr-ali-anythings-possible/) • [8](https://www.castingsociety.com/news/986012)
He trained at the Yale School of Drama, graduating in 2019 alongside the playwright Jeremy O. Harris.[4](https://thequeerreview.com/2022/07/16/interview-anythings-possible-star-abubakr-ali/) His first recorded screen credit was a music video, *Someday Soon* (2013), in which he appeared as a dancer; he has described it as his first IMDb Pro credit and said he remains proud of it.[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm5797869/) • [8](https://www.castingsociety.com/news/986012)
## Television work
Ali built his early career through guest and recurring parts on network and streaming series. In 2020 he appeared as Gamal Hadiri in *Tommy*, as Raj Patel in six episodes of [The CW](https://www.edgepedia.org/the-cw)'s *[Katy Keene](https://www.edgepedia.org/katy-keene-tv-series)*, as Dr. Nadeen in *Little Voice*, and as Dev in three episodes of *The Walking Dead: World Beyond* (2021).[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm5797869/) His longest recurring television role to date is Sebastian "Bash" Kamal-Stern on the Starz series *Power Book II: Ghost*, which he played in four episodes between 2020 and 2023.[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm5797869/) In 2024 he played Officer Samir "Sam" Bashir in five episodes of *[Law & Order](https://www.edgepedia.org/law-and-order-franchise): Organized Crime*.[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm5797869/)
## Anything's Possible and Grendel
**Anything's Possible.** In 2022 Ali starred as Khal, opposite Eva Reign as Kelsa, in *Anything's Possible*, a coming-of-age romantic comedy directed by Billy Porter in his feature directorial debut and backed by MGM's Orion Pictures and Killer Films. The film centers Kelsa, a Black trans girl, and opened the 40th Anniversary Outfest Los Angeles LGBTQ+ Film Festival before launching globally on Prime Video on July 22, 2022.[4](https://thequeerreview.com/2022/07/16/interview-anythings-possible-star-abubakr-ali/) Ali said the script was the first he had seen in which someone from his background was written as a lead, and that Porter gave the cast freedom to take risks on set.[7](https://www.wonderlandmagazine.com/2022/07/29/abubakr-ali-anythings-possible/)
**Grendel.** In September 2021, two days after finishing work on *Anything's Possible*, Ali began shooting the title role of Hunter Rose in Netflix's *Grendel*, an adaptation of Matt Wagner's Dark Horse comic books, making him the first Arab Muslim male actor to lead a screen comic book adaptation.[4](https://thequeerreview.com/2022/07/16/interview-anythings-possible-star-abubakr-ali/) He described the character as a traumatized, violent figure, the opposite of Khal.[4](https://thequeerreview.com/2022/07/16/interview-anythings-possible-star-abubakr-ali/) The series was never released; in a 2024 interview Ali said leading it "unfortunately never got to see the light of day," and it was his first time as number one on a call sheet.[8](https://www.castingsociety.com/news/986012)
## Stage career
Ali's [Off-Broadway](https://www.edgepedia.org/off-broadway) credits include Sammy in *On That Day in Amsterdam* (Primary Stages, 2019) and Boubs in Rajiv Joseph's two-hander thriller *Dakar 2000*, a Manhattan Theatre Club premiere that ran at New York City Center in 2025, opposite the Obie Award winner Mia Barron and directed by May Adrales.[5](https://www.broadwayworld.com/people/Abubakr-Ali/) • [2](https://www.theatrely.com/post/abubakr-ali-on-character-transformation-during-previews-in-dakar-2000) During previews of *Dakar 2000*, the character was substantially rewritten after the second performance: Boubs changed from a loud, arrogant figure into a more naively optimistic one, and Ali reworked the role overnight, calling the shift a thrill rather than an ordeal.[2](https://www.theatrely.com/post/abubakr-ali-on-character-transformation-during-previews-in-dakar-2000) He had earlier appeared in *Toros* at Second Stage Theatre, where Joseph saw him and invited him to a workshop of *Dakar 2000*.[2](https://www.theatrely.com/post/abubakr-ali-on-character-transformation-during-previews-in-dakar-2000)
## Recent film work
Ali played Lieutenant Dan Buck in [Kathryn Bigelow](https://www.edgepedia.org/kathryn-bigelow)'s nuclear thriller *A House of Dynamite* (2025), which reached number one on Netflix.[9](https://www.tomsguide.com/entertainment/netflix/netflixs-new-no-1-movie-is-a-tense-nuclear-thriller-that-has-audiences-fuming-over-the-ending) In 2026 he appears as Hatty, the nephew whose feud drives part of the plot, in *Your Mother Your Mother Your Mother*, a film starring [Mahershala Ali](https://www.edgepedia.org/mahershala-ali) and [John Cho](https://www.edgepedia.org/john-cho).[10](https://www.thedailybeast.com/obsessed/your-mother-your-mother-your-mother-mahershala-ali-gives-best-performance-in-a-decade/) Projects listed as in post-production include *Deep Cuts* and *The Alchemy of Being Okay*.[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm5797869/)
## References
1. [Abubakr Ali, IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm5797869/)
2. [Abubakr Ali on Character Transformation During Previews in DAKAR 2000, Theatrely (March 6, 2025)](https://www.theatrely.com/post/abubakr-ali-on-character-transformation-during-previews-in-dakar-2000)
3. [Abubakr Ali, Plex](https://watch.plex.tv/en-GB/person/abubakr-ali?context.unit=HC)
4. [Exclusive Interview: Anything's Possible star Abubakr Ali, The Queer Review (July 16, 2022)](https://thequeerreview.com/2022/07/16/interview-anythings-possible-star-abubakr-ali/)
5. [Abubakr Ali, BroadwayWorld](https://www.broadwayworld.com/people/Abubakr-Ali/)
6. [أبو بكر علي, elCinema](https://elcinema.com/person/2196382/)
7. [Abubakr Ali On Becoming The First Arab Muslim Superhero, Wonderland (July 29, 2022)](https://www.wonderlandmagazine.com/2022/07/29/abubakr-ali-anythings-possible/)
8. [Abubakr Ali - Actor of the Month for July 2024, Casting Society (August 12, 2024)](https://www.castingsociety.com/news/986012)
9. [Netflix's new No. 1 movie is a tense nuclear thriller, Tom's Guide](https://www.tomsguide.com/entertainment/netflix/netflixs-new-no-1-movie-is-a-tense-nuclear-thriller-that-has-audiences-fuming-over-the-ending)
10. [Your Mother Your Mother Your Mother review, The Daily Beast](https://www.thedailybeast.com/obsessed/your-mother-your-mother-your-mother-mahershala-ali-gives-best-performance-in-a-decade/)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Screen people and creators › Screen actors of the Anglosphere and Europe › American actors: 2000s onward › Surnames A to At*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 19, 2026; Sep 30, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Sep 19, 2026; Oct 11, 2026; Oct 15, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*
License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license