Egyptian-Palestinian actress
May Calamawy |
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 Calamawy in 2011 |
| Born |
(1986-10-28) October 28, 1986 (age 37)[4][5]
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| Alma mater | Emerson College (BA) |
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| Occupation | Actress |
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| Years active | 2006–present |
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| Notable work |
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May el-Calamawy[2][3] (Arabic: مي القلماوي,[1] Egyptian Arabic pronunciation: [mˤɑjj (el) ʔælæmæːwiː], born October 28, 1986)[3][4][5] is an Egyptian-Palestinian actress[5][2][6][7] who has worked and resided in the United States since 2015.[8][3][5] She is known for her roles in the American television series Ramy as Dena Hassan,[9] and Moon Knight as Layla El-Faouly.[6]
Early life
Calamawy was born on October 28, 1986, in Bahrain to an Egyptian father who worked as a banker,[3] and a Palestinian-Jordanian mother.[3][5] She has an older brother.[10] Raised mostly in Bahrain, she also spent six years living between Doha, Qatar, and Houston, Texas, before she was twelve years old.[7][5][3] Calamawy speaks English and Arabic.[3]
She was inspired to become an actress after watching the 1992 film Death Becomes Her when she was a child.[5][11]
Calamawy completed high school in Bahrain,[3] and at 17 she moved to Boston, Massachusetts, to study industrial design,[12] because her father wanted her to.[3] She then lived in Dubai for five years before moving back to the United States to pursue an acting career.[8]
She applied to Emerson College and told her parents, "If I get in, I'm going."[3] She was accepted and earned a B.A. in theatre studies.[7] Calamawy has also studied at the William Esper Studio in New York City.[7]
Career
Calamawy started her career acting in short films and used to be credited with her full name, May El Calamawy.[3][2] She later changed it to May Calamawy.[13] After attending college, she participated in the New York Arab American Comedy Festival.[3] From 2009 to 2014, she was dividing her time between Dubai and Abu Dhabi, acting in shorts and a TV pilot.[3]
Her first major film role was in Tobe Hooper's 2013 film Djinn, the first horror film to be produced in the United Arab Emirates.[3]
In 2017, she had a recurring role in the National Geographic miniseries The Long Road Home and guest-starring roles in The Brave and Madam Secretary.[13] The following year, she guest-starred in the CBS crime drama television series FBI.[13]
In October 2018, it was announced that she would have a recurring role in the Hulu comedy-drama series Ramy, playing Ramy's sister, Dena Hassan.[13] In 2020, she had a voice role as Ellie Malik in the video game NBA 2K21.[14]
In 2021, she appeared in the comedy film Together Together, with Ed Helms and Patti Harrison.[9] In January of the same year, it was announced she would appear in the Disney+ miniseries Moon Knight, which premiered on March 30, 2022,[9][15] where Calamawy portrayed Layla El-Faouly, an Egyptian archeologist and estranged wife of Marc Spector (portrayed by Oscar Isaac).[16] Layla was the first Egyptian and the first Arab character and superhero in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.[17] [18]
In July 2022, it was announced that she would join the voice cast of Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur as a guest star. The show premiered on Disney Channel and Disney+ in 2023.[19] In October 2022, she was announced in the cast of Duke Johnson's upcoming thriller, The Actor.[20][21][22]
In May 2023, Calamawy joined the cast of Ridley Scott's Gladiator 2.[23]
Personal life
Calamawy was diagnosed with the autoimmune disease alopecia areata at the age of 22.[7] Her alopecia was incorporated into the storyline of her character Dena Hassan in Ramy during the show's second season.[7][10]
Since 2015, Calamawy has resided in the United States.[10]
