How do you know that you’re good at something? Like, actually good at it? It’s hard to say. Early reassurance normally comes externally – from a parent or a teacher. Sometimes validation comes in the form of winning something – a trophy or a talent show – a sign that you’ve got something about you. A talent worth nurturing. For Fady Elsayed, that reassurance came from Benedict Cumberbatch.
One night at his home in London, Cumberbatch was sitting on his sofa watching a TV show called River. He was so drawn in by the performance of one of the actors that he called his wife into the room, and made her watch it too.
A few years later, budding young actor Fady Elsayed was at an industry event when he clocked Cumberbatch on the other side of the room. Hoping to get a quick word in with one of his acting idols, he plucked up the courage and tentatively introduced himself to Sherlock Holmes.
“I told him that I was an actor, and he asked me if I had been in anything that he had seen,” recounts Elsayed. “I mentioned that I was in River, and he said, ‘Wait, are you that boy?! You were incredible!’ I was floored. I didn’t even have a big part in that show!”
A few years later Elsayed was filming in the famed Pinewood Studios in the UK and, as chance would have it, Cumberbatch was filming there too. “I wasn’t sure if he’d remember me, but he did, and when he saw me he walked all the way across the hall just to shake my hand.”
For someone looking for a sign, it doesn’t get more ‘lit up in big flashing neon lights’ than that.
“Hearing that, from him,” Elsayed pauses for a few seconds, his brain recalling the memory, “man, I can’t even begin to explain what that did for me.”
It’s a hot, energy-sapping summer’s day, but as we talk over a late lunch at the SO Hotel in Dubai you wouldn’t know it. Elsayed is chatting away with a bubbling, contagious energy offering up stories of his upbringing and his current dilemma of balancing his increasingly busy filming and promotion schedule. It is just the kind of ‘dilemma’ that an upcoming actor wants to have.
The British-Egyptian actor is set for a landmark few months ahead with roles in Netflix’s massive new show KAOS – a modern retelling of Ancient Greek myths starring Jeff Goldblum as Zeus – and highly-anticipated new seasons of Industry and Apple TV’s award-winning Slow Horses.
Elsayed is in Dubai for a few days for the Esquire cover shoot having spent the past month in Egypt catching up with family, and also, he explains, trying to “stay close and front of mind” to casting agents in the busy Arab film industry. It seems that even us here at Esquire, are piling more work to his impressively broad shoulders.
“It’s the price you have to pay for success,” he jokes, “but, seriously, things are pretty busy for me right now, and as a young actor that can only mean that you’re doing something right.”
As it happens, KAOS premieres on Elsayed’s 31st birthday – September 15. The sheer size of the show (which people are calling ‘Succession with Gods’) will be the biggest moment of his career – a potential launchpad to mainstream recognition, something that he has been dreaming about since he was a kid. Well, sort of.
Like oh-so-many young boys, Fady Elsayed grew up wanting to be a footballer. Raised in a London council flat, he was an Arsenal fanatic. He’d spend every weekend watching the likes of Ian Wright and Thiery Henry tear opposition defences to shreds. The dogged work rate; the showmanship; the laser-precise finishing; and the celebrations, reeling away in arms spread wide welcoming the adulation of the crowd. That main character energy – it was intoxicating. That’s who Elsayed wanted to be. Or so he thought.
While a young Elsayed began along the perilous path becoming a pro footballer, it was an off-hand trip to the cinema that awoke something different inside of him. “In football, I just wanted to play for Arsenal,” he admits. “That is my club and my passion. Whereas acting was something that started as a thought and just continued to grow and grow.”
That first thought came to Elsayed when he saw the film East is East at the cinema. The British independent film tells the story of a muslim immigrant family whose father struggles to impart traditional Muslim values in his increasingly Anglicised children. For Elsayed, whose family emigrated to England from Egypt, it was a story that hit home. “I just remember watching it and thinking: ‘I recognise that. I could play that role’.”
As if trying to prove something to himself, Elsayed began testing the waters with roles as an extra; which then became about trying to just get the occasional line or two; then an episode; and then a leading role.
“It was all about the baby steps,” he says. “I remember getting my first major role when I was just 16 years old. It was for a film called My Brother the Devil. I was on set for 28 days, and I still remember smiling to myself and thinking that this is what I want to do for the rest of my life.”
We know what you’re probably thinking, ‘a leading role by the age of 16? Benedict Cumberbath was right – the boy is incredible!’ But, Elsayed’s story is not one of instant fame, there have been many twists and turns along the way.
It was somewhere along a desert highway in Egypt, when Elsayed got a call back for his My Brother the Devil audition. He’d need to get to the UK as soon as possible, so he asked his mother if she had his UK passport. She didn’t. They searched everywhere, but the passport was nowhere to be found. They realised that he would need to get an emergency passport in order to travel. The only problem was that this was during the Arab Spring and Egypt was in the middle of a revolution. The only route to the embassy was blocked by two million protesters refusing to move and, understandably, no taxis were willing to trudge through the chaos.
They approached one hesitant driver, and with his mother openly praying for him – a common practice in Egypt – and he reluctantly agreed. When they eventually reached the embassy, however, it was empty, except for the janitors mopping the floor – anyone who could help him had gone home.
Only after desperately scanning the premises, did someone ask him if he was “the kid waiting to get his British passport?” They took Elsayed upstairs, and though the man they were waiting to see had left, he’d left the necessary documents on his desk. If it wasn’t for that moment, for the trust and kindness of that nameless, faceless man, Elsayed wouldn’t have been able to leave the country, and his dream would have been crushed, or at least, severely delayed.
“Whenever I tell that story I get emotional,” he says. “I literally went directly from the airport to the audition, got the role, and that’s what set my career in motion.”
The critical success of the film led Elsayed to getting an agent, which led him to getting an award for the role, all of which stemmed from that one day in Egypt, and the random acts of kindness from all those people who decided to help him that day. “The cab driver who agreed to drive through the havoc; the man at the embassy who left my papers on his desk – they’ll never know the effect they had on the trajectory of my life. I would love to find them one day and thank them,” he says.
My Brother the Devil may have set his career in motion, but success in the film industry is fleeting. A few years ago, Elsayed booked a role alongside Dwayne Johnson in DC’s Black Adam, only to have his entry in the US denied due to Covid restrictions.
“It was a dream to get to work with DC and Marvel,” he says. “I was told I was going to film in Atlanta for six months, and I had all my US visa sorted with references from big directors. It all got sorted so smoothly. Almost too smoothly. This was going to be the biggest role of my life. And then, a few days before I was about to fly out, my agent told me they were only taking US residents due to Covid,” he pauses. “I was heartbroken.”
During the time, Elsayed was working part time as an online personal trainer during the lockdown. With Black Adam he was on the cusp of potentially a definitive role that would permanently cement his status as a full-time actor. But the cape was pulled off him.
When family members suggested he revert back to online training in the meantime, understandably, he felt like his dreams were slipping away. But he got over it, the lockdown progressed, and one night he stumbled upon Gangs of London, a TV show to which he took an immediate liking. He sent in a tape.
“Out of nowhere an audition for Gangs of London came through,” he says in disbelief. “To be honest, the offer and the role were both way better [than Black Adam]. My character had a story arc across two seasons, and I got it. To this day, I apply that mindset to a lot of things in my life – telling myself that better things are coming, you know?”
He would have to call on this mental toughness sooner than he’d hoped – this time in the shape of a biopic about the iconic British boxer, Prince Naseem Hamed.
Starring alongside Pierce Brosnan, the title role was offered to Elsayed, but the dates collided with the filming of Slow Horses, a show he had already committed to. It wasn’t just the dates, however, the physical aspects of the roles were also opposite: one wanted him clean shaven; the other called for him to be bearded. But somehow, his agent managed to secure the timing, and he was given the green light for both projects.
“I remember sitting in my car screaming because I was so excited,” he recalls. “I even asked the producers if I could get Prince Naseem’s famous leopard-print shorts, and they told me they were already being custom made by Adidas.”
Cue tragedy, again.
It turned out that production dates proved to be too congested, resulting in the role being given to Amir El-Masry, a fellow Egyptian and friend.
“I remember seeing it all over Egyptian news that the role had gone to Amir, and of course I’m happy for him, he’s a great guy and a friend, but still, you’ll always think about what could have been,” Elsayed admits. “I eventually messaged Amir, almost apologising that I hadn’t congratulated him sooner. I told him the situation and he understood and was grateful and respectful of my message.” Just like it was with Black Adam, it was another one of those moments when through the disappointment, Elsayed had to tell himself that better things were coming.
The next day, we’re on set and between clothing changes it is almost impossible not to stare at how jacked Elsayed is – like, objectively photoshop-level ripped. Much more ripped than Prince Naseem ever was (sorry, Nas). Unlike those online adverts of people claiming to be personal trainers, if I came across Elsayed’s PT pitch, I’d actually listen.
“When I was young, I just wanted to get big, you know?” he laughs. “I would try to lift as heavy as possible, only to end up injuring myself and then I’d be out for a month. Every single one of my injuries has come from my one-rep maxes,” he laughs. “Thinking about it now, that way of training just feels…immature.
He mentions that his next goal is to finally start enjoying running. “Sometimes, I’ll have a really early shoot, and I’ll be in the taxi on the way to work at 5am, and I’ll see people out running. Being that 5am guy, that’s the next goal.” Evidently, with his level of dedication, who would bet against him.
His physicality came in handy for his latest role in KAOS, playing the Minotaur alongside Jeff Goldblum’s Zeus. Arguably his biggest to date, despite the accompanying star power and media hype, Elsayed won’t actually be showing his face. But that’s also the point.
“The Minotaur is a half man, half bull creature but, as his head is that of a bull, there was no dialogue,” he says, clearly excited to explain more. “What that means is that all the acting and nuance comes via movement and subtlety. I’ve never done anything like it before.” For the role Elsayed worked with the world famous choreographer, Polly Bennett – who previously worked with Rami Malek and Austin Butler to help them prepare for their iconic roles of Freddie Mercury and Elvis Presley. It was through hours of studying and research were they able to ensure that he was the most convincing mythical creature possible.
“It was super interesting to prepare for,” he explains, “I watched videos of bulls and how they move; what they do when they’re angry; how they turn their head. I was walking around the studio on my hands and knees, just trying to recreate the mannerisms of the animal – finding the balance between man and beast.”
As it just so happens, one of the actors best-known for capturing the role of a mythical creature is, in fact, Benedict Cumberbatch. His portrayal of the dragon Smaug, in The Hobbit, is a masterclass of physical acting – the behind the scenes ‘making of’ video on YouTube has more than 6.5 million views. You can’t help but wonder what Cumberbatch will think of Elsayed’s Minotaur, but I reckon I could make a pretty good guess.
Before we finish up, Elsayed and I are talking about key pieces of advice that he has picked up along the way. He shares a story of how he learnt that on-screen, a little can go a long way.
“I remember my first director bringing me over after a take and playing me back the tape. He told me: ‘You’re acting. Stop acting. Less is more.’ And at first I was like, ‘What are you talking about? I’m an actor. I act.’ But then later on I saw The Wolf of Wall Street, and watched Matthew McConaughey in the brief scene he’s in, and it just hit me how effortless he was. It was so subtle. It was like the cameras just happened to be rolling when he was speaking. And, ever since then, that’s what I try to do. Be myself and let the camera do the rest.” That’s how you know you’re onto something.
Photography by Sam Rawadi / Styling by Nour Bou Ezz / Grooming by Sebastiani Skander / Produced by Steff Hawker
