Ali Abbasi

He has received various accolades, including an Un Certain Regard award, four Robert Awards, and a German Film Award, in addition to nominations for seven European Film Awards, a Goya Award, and two Guldbagge Awards. His films have also been nominated for multiple Academy Awards.

Ali Abbasi studied at National Film School of Denmark. The recorded working language is Iranian and Persian. The field of work recorded is film, film direction and film screenwriting. Works named in the authority record are Shelley, Border, Holy Spider and The Apprentice. Distinctions recorded are Un certain regard Award, Danish Writers Guild Best Screenplay Award, Robert Award for Best Director and Robert Award for Best Screenplay.

• Name — Ali Abbasi • Born — 1981 • Birthplace — Tehran, Iran • Education — * Tehran Polytechnic • KTH Royal Institute of Technology • National Film School of Denmark • Occupation — * Director • screenwriter • producer • Years Active — 2008–present

Abbasi attended Tehran Polytechnic until 2002, when he emigrated to Sweden to study architecture at the KTH Royal Institute of Technology in Stockholm. After earning his bachelor of arts in 2007, he enrolled at the National Film School of Denmark, earning a degree in 2011 with the short film M for Markus.

In 2018, Abbasi premiered his second film, Border. It won the Un Certain Regard award at the Cannes Film Festival, was selected as the Swedish entry for the Best Foreign Language Film at the 91st Academy Awards. Although the film didn't get a nomination in that category, it earned a nomination for Best Makeup and Hairstyling.

His third feature film, Holy Spider, came out in 2022 and was a Persian-language co-production between Sweden, Denmark, France, and Germany. Based on the true story of Saeed Hanaei, a serial killer who targeted sex workers and killed sixteen women from 2000 to 2001 in Mashhad, Iran, the film depicts a fictional female journalist investigating a serial killer. The film was selected to compete for the Palme d'Or at the 2022 Cannes Film Festival, where it premiered on 22 May 2022. Zar Amir Ebrahimi, who starred in the film, won the festival's Best Actress Award. The film was selected as the Danish entry for Best International Feature Film at the 95th Academy Awards, and made the December shortlist.

Abbasi's latest film, The Apprentice, a portrait of a young Donald Trump, premiered at the 2024 Cannes Film Festival. The film was nominated for two Oscars at the 97th Academy Awards, including Best Actor for Sebastian Stan and Best Supporting Actor for Jeremy Strong.

Abbasi lives in Copenhagen and continues to hold an Iranian passport.

In February 2025, Abbasi was accused of groping an unnamed actor at a Golden Globes after-party hosted by Creative Artists Agency (CAA). No named witnesses publicly came forward about the alleged incident, however. Abbasi himself released a statement clarifying his account of what occurred. Initial reports suggested that Abbasi was dropped by his own representatives at CAA as well as by his management and legal teams, due to the incident, but Abbasi clarified in his statement that he himself had ended those relationships in "a long-term career decision".

• Year — Title — Episode(s) — Director — Writer — Notes — Ref(s). references • 2023 — The Last of Us — "When We Are in Need", "Look for the Light" — 2 episodes

Ali Abbasi is recorded as having received Un certain regard Award, Danish Writers Guild Best Screenplay Award and Robert Award for Best Director. Recognition and collections. Abbasi received Un certain regard Award, Danish Writers Guild Best Screenplay Award, Robert Award for Best Director, Robert Award for Best Screenplay and The Carl Theodor Dreyer Prize.