Most recognized for his role as Dodi Fayed in the Princess Diana biopic Diana, opposite Naomi Watts, Anvar has built himself an impressive resume to date with credits including the Academy Award-winning Argo and Steven Spielberg’s The Terminal. He is quickly becoming the poster man for the Syfy Network, and can be seen as a recurring guest star on Syfy’s Olympus, an action-packed mythological drama that premiered April 2nd. Up next, he will be seen as a series regular on Syfy’s The Expanse, the network’s biggest show in recent years and a futuristic thriller that will be released this fall.
On the big screen, Anvar appears in the comedy Miss India America, with Hannah Simone from New Girl. The film is currently making the festival rounds.
CraveOnline: You’ve been really busy… can you tell us about your work on Olympus? And The Expanse?
Cas Anvar: Well, for Olympus all I can say is the Priest Xerxes is a very devious and self-serving scoundrel with a strong agenda and desire to see the world come together his way. He has very strong spiritual beliefs but they don’t stop him from doing what needs to be done to achieve his end game… one of those guys you can never take your eyes off of. He is unscrupulous. No one is safe. But other than that he’s a real softy.
As for The Expanse, wow… the fans are gonna be blown away with the epic scale of this series. I’m a huge fan of Babylon 5, Battlestar Galactica, Firefly and the other iconic dark sci-fi series, and The Expanse has it all. My Role of Alex Kamal is a dream role for me – a quirky sarcastic spaceship pilot who has a lot of pain in his past that he is seeking redemption for. And he’s a martian with a Texas accent… what more can you ask for? Love both projects and love all the people involved. Some of the best experiences of my career!
Were you a sci-fi fan before these roles?
God yes! I was and am a huge geek nerd sci-fi addict… and proud of it! Been into this world since I was a kid waking up Sunday mornings to watch the original Star Trek in reruns.
And you’ve been working on movies too? Can you tell us about that?
Yes I have been enjoying a really wonderful role in Fall, starring Michael Murphy – it’s a Canadian indie feature that has been critically acclaimed and won several awards already. [I also have a] hilarious role in the light-hearted Miss India America starring Hannah Simone, which is currently touring all through the festival circuit. The next feature coming out is The Vatican Tapes, an Exorcist-style horror thriller starring Michael Pena and Dougray Scott.
Any interest in working behind the camera?
I love all aspects of the film world. We will see what we can do about that particular itch. I’m hoping to scratch it as a director in the next couple of years.
What’s one thing people would be surprised to know about you?
I have a paint ball team called the Suave Bastards. We rock! And we have a tank. Oh, and I play rock and roll drums.
Photo: Olympus/NBC Universal
