Dina Shihabi
Born (1989-09-21) September 21, 1989 (age 34)
Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
NationalitySaudi Arabian[1]
EducationNew York University (MFA)
OccupationActress
Years active2009–present
Height166 cm (5 ft 5 in)
Children1[2]

Dina Shihabi (Arabic: دينا الشهابي; born September 21, 1989) is a Saudi Arabian[3] actress working in the United States.[4]

Early life and education

Shihabi was born in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia,[3] and was raised in Saudi Arabia,[5] Beirut, and Dubai.[6] Her family is of Arab and European origin.[6] She described her multi-ethnic background as such: "I consider myself Arab European because my father Ali Shihabi is half-Saudi, half-Norwegian, and my mom Nadia is half-Palestinian, half-German and Haitian, but raised in France."[7] She stated that she enjoyed watching films from an early age.[8] Shihabi's father is a commentator on Saudi politics and a former banker. He was the chairman of Saudi Hollandi Bank.[9]

Career

At age 11 she began taking dance lessons from Sharmila Kamte,[10] a renowned dance teacher at the Dubai Community Theatre and Arts Centre Chaloub Studio, known as the "dancing queen" of the United Arab Emirates.[3] She became a member of her modern professional dance team.[citation needed]

In Dubai she attended Al Mawakeb School, Emirates International School, and Dubai American Academy. Shihabi performed in numerous school plays, and was encouraged by her teacher,[3] Nancy Mock,[11] to pursue an acting career.[3]

At age 18,[3] Shihabi moved to New York City in 2007 and began pursuing a career in acting; this became a full-time profession for her in 2010. She attended the American Academy of Dramatic Arts for two years. In 2011, she was accepted at both Juilliard and The graduate Acting Program at NYU Tisch School for the Arts.[3] Although Shihabi did not complete a 4-year bachelor's degree (she attended the American Academy of Dramatic Arts, an Acting Conservatory from 2008 to 2010), NYU waived the requirement of a bachelor's degree,[citation needed] and she graduated with her MFA in 2014.[10] She is the first Middle East-born woman to be accepted to both the Juilliard and NYU Graduate Acting programs,[12] as well as the first Saudi Arabian woman accepted to these institutions.[10]

In February 2019, it was announced that Shihabi was cast in the main role of Dig 301 for the second season of Netflix's science-fiction series, Altered Carbon.[13]

Personal life

Dina enjoys dancing as a hobby.[3]

Shihabi's native Arabic dialect is a form of Levantine Arabic.[14]

Filmography

Year Title Role Notes
2011 David Aishah [15]
2013 Ben
2014 Amira & Sam Amira Jafari Shihabi's first major role
2015 Cigarette Soup
2016 Cul-de-Sac (short film)
2016 Madam Secretary (season 2) Hijriyyah Al Bouri
2017 Cherry Pop
2018 Daredevil Neda Kazemi Episodes: "Resurrection"; "Please"
2018 Jack Ryan Hanin Suleiman Main role (Season 1)[16]
2019 Ramy Nour Episode: "Between the Toes"
2020 Altered Carbon Dig 301 Main role (Season 2)
2022 Archive 81 Melody Pendras Main role[17]
2022 These Are the Ways Anthony Kiedis's baby mother Music Video[18]
2023 Catching Dust
2023 Ghosts of Beirut Lena Series for Showtime[19]
2023 Painkiller Britt Hufford 6 episodes

References

  1. ^ "Saudi Hollywood star Dina Shihabi is forging her own path". January 12, 2020. Retrieved January 19, 2022.
  2. ^ https://www.instagram.com/p/CtbapT_rUpA/?img_index=1
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h Naidoo, Amelia (2011-07-30). "Saudi actress paves way for women artists". Gulf News. Retrieved 2015-11-15.
  4. ^ "Altered Carbon: Who is Dig 301? Actress Dina Shihabi plays AI in Netflix show!". HITC. March 1, 2020.
  5. ^ Pathan, Nabila (2015-01-06). "Rom-com on U.S. veteran, Iraqi refugee love set for silver screen". Al Arabiya. Retrieved 2015-11-15.
  6. ^ a b Moschen, Isabella (2013-02-08). "Onstage, Trying to Connect to a Faraway War". The New York Times. Retrieved 2017-12-03. Dina Shihabi, who was born in Saudi Arabia and raised in Dubai and Beirut,[...]"My family is Palestinian, so I've always had a very strong point of view and relationship to the conflict," she said, referring to Israel and Palestine.
  7. ^ Jessica Radloff (11 September 2018), "Get to Know Jack Ryan's Newcomer Dina Shihabi", Glamour. Retrieved 14 April 2019.
  8. ^ Katz, Brandon (2018-09-10). "'Jack Ryan' Star Dina Shihabi Represents a New Kind of Hero". The New York Observer. Retrieved 2018-09-19.
  9. ^ "Bio".
  10. ^ a b c Alaquil, Abdulaziz (2018-05-17). "Dina Shihabi: The actress blazing a trail for Saudi women". Arab News. Retrieved 2018-09-19. Dina Shihabi is the first and only Saudi woman to be accepted to both Juilliard and the Graduate Acting Program at New York University's Tisch School for the Arts[...]a young Saudi actress by the name of Dina Shihabi[...]Born in Riyadh to Saudi parents of Palestinian origin,[...]
  11. ^ itpcustomer (2020-03-04). "Riding the Wave". World of Education. Retrieved 2020-12-12.
  12. ^ Menendez, Alicia (2015-01-28). "Middle East-born actress Dina Shihabi on proving her mother right: "Acting has taken up my life"". Fusion. Archived from the original on 2017-12-26. Retrieved 2015-11-15.
  13. ^ Hibberd, James (February 22, 2019). "Altered Carbon reveals new season 2 replacement cast". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved February 23, 2019.
  14. ^ Barylski, Nicole (16 October 2014). "INTERVIEW: Paul Wesley, Dina Shihabi, And Sean Mullin On "Amira & Sam" & The Beauty Of Improv". Hamptons.com. Retrieved 2015-11-16. While she speaks Arabic fluently, she speaks a Palestinian Arabic or Lebanese Arabic, so she had to learn a completely different dialect of Arabic.
  15. ^ "Dina Shihabi Archived 2016-03-04 at the Wayback Machine." David (official website). Retrieved November 15, 2015.
  16. ^ "Saudi Actress Dina Shihabi Set To Star in Amazon Drama Series". About Her. 20 October 2017. Retrieved 2 September 2018.
  17. ^ Kanter, Jake (October 26, 2020). "'Archive 81': Mamoudou Athie, Dina Shihabi To Star In Netflix Series Inspired By Horror Podcast; James Wan's Atomic Monster Producing". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved May 5, 2021.
  18. ^ "Red Hot Chili Peppers - These Are The Ways (Official Music Video)". YouTube. March 29, 2022. Retrieved April 1, 2022.
  19. ^ Vlessing, Etan (April 19, 2023). "Showtime's 'Ghosts of Beirut' Trailer Recounts CIA Manhunt for Deadly Terrorist (Exclusive)". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved April 25, 2023.

External links

Categories