Riz Ahmed, the Oscar-winning actor, has claimed that Britain's intelligence services tried three times to recruit him, including one occasion involving a senior BBC executive. The 43-year-old London-born actor and musician made the comments during a conversation with journalist Mehdi Hasan on his media platform Zeteo.
First Encounter at Luton Airport
Ahmed recounted the first alleged approach after returning from his debut film, The Road to Guantánamo. He said: "We landed at Luton airport celebrating. They took me into a side room, put me in an arm lock, threatened to break my arm, took my phone, were pretending to bash the buttons, accidentally changed the language to Danish, and then kind of like, were like: 'Did you become an actor to further the Muslim struggle?'" Ahmed described the incident as "hilarious" and noted that after questioning, they asked if he would "keep an eye out for us" because of how well he answered questions. He declined.
Second and Third Approaches
The second attempt came through a family friend, which Ahmed described as awkward: "Oh, sugar. That's what's going on there." The third involved a senior figure at the BBC, someone who had recently left the corporation, though Ahmed did not name the individual. When Hasan questioned how people could be sure Ahmed had not accepted any offers, the actor joked that it would make a "sick biopic if I was actually a fed."
Ahmed's Career and Aspirations
Ahmed, known for films including Four Lions, won an Oscar for the short film The Long Goodbye in 2022 and an Emmy for outstanding lead actor in a limited series for The Night Of in 2017. Earlier this year, his contemporary south Asian adaptation of Hamlet was released. In March, the British-Pakistani actor revealed aspirations to become a standup comedian, citing influences like Hasan Minhaj, Ramy Youssef, Bill Hicks, and Chris Rock. He said: "There's no fourth wall. There's no politeness from the audience."
