Firass Dirani (born ) is an Australian film and television actor.

Early life and education

Firass Dirani was born in

Blacktown Blacktown is a suburb in New South Wales, Australia, west of the Sydney central business district. It is one of the most multicultural places within Sydney, Greater Sydney. History Before the arrival of the First Fleet in 1788, the area of ...

in western

Sydney Sydney is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales and the List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Syd ...

in and grew up in the suburb of Werrington. He is of Lebanese descent. He worked in his family's shop for ten years. He attended

St Paul's Grammar School St Paul's Grammar School is an independent, non-denominational Christian, co-educational early learning, primary and secondary day school. The school was founded in 1983 in , an outer western suburb of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. St ...

and graduated in 2002. He went on to study acting at the Actors College of Theatre and Television (ACTT) in Sydney, graduating from the Professional Actor Program in 2004.

Career

Dirani played the main role of Nick Russell, the Red Mystic Ranger in ''

Power Rangers Mystic Force ''Power Rangers Mystic Force'' is the fourteenth season of the television series ''Power Rangers'' and is based on the 29th ''Super Sentai'' tokusatsu series '' Mahō Sentai Magiranger''. The season premiered on February 20, 2006 as part of the ...

'' in 2006. He then played the recurring role of Amen Salim in 2007 series ''

Kick A kick is a physical strike using the leg, in unison usually with an area of the knee or lower using the foot, heel, tibia (shin), ball of the foot, blade of the foot, toes or knee (the latter is also known as a knee strike). This type of ...

''. He pursued his acting career in Hollywood before receiving a call to play the main role of John Ibrahim in '' Underbelly: The Golden Mile'' in 2010, the role which made him a household name in Australia. In 2010, he was nominated for the

Inside Film Awards The IF Awards, formerly known as the Inside Film Awards, Lexus Inside Film Awards, Kodak IF Awards, and Jameson IF Awards, was an annual awards ceremony and broadcast platform for the Australian film industry. Its name derives from its origins at ...

'Out of the Box' award and also won the

GQ Australia ''GQ Australia'' is an Australian lifestyle publication and the Australian version of men's magazine ''GQ''. Published by NewsLifeMedia, a division of News Corp Australia, the print and digital men's title offers advice, news and features acros ...

Men of the Year ‘Best Television Actor’ award in the same year. In April 2010, Dirani was named Cleo Bachelor of the Year. In 2011, he won two

Logie Awards The TV Week Logie Awards (known colloquially as The Logies) is an annual ceremony celebrating and honouring the best shows and stars in Australian television, sponsored and organised by the magazine ''TV Week''. The event is telecast live and ...

– for Best New Talent and the Graham Kennedy Logie for Best Actor. In 2012, Dirani went on to play Gary Montebello in drama series ''

The Straits ''The Straits'' is an Australian television drama series for ABC1 filmed in Cairns, the Torres Strait Islands and other Far North Queensland locations. The series is based on an idea by actor Aaron Fa'aoso and produced by Penny Chapman and Hel ...

'', before securing the ongoing main role of Justin in Logie-winning comedy drama ''

House Husbands ''House Husbands'' is an Australian television comedy drama. The show debuted on the Nine Network on 2 September 2012. Set in Melbourne, ''House Husbands'' stars Firass Dirani, Gyton Grantley, Rhys Muldoon and Gary Sweet as four fathers who ...

'' from 2012 to 2017. In 2014 he briefly relocated to New York City where he undertook an intensive six week course of study at the

Atlantic Theater Company The Atlantic Theater Company is an Off-Broadway non-profit theater company based in the Chelsea neighborhood of Manhattan, New York City. Founded in 1985 by playwright David Mamet, actor William H. Macy, and a group of acting students, the compan ...

. In 2020, Dirani participated in

Seven Network Seven Network (stylised 7Network, and commonly known as Channel Seven or simply Seven) is an Australian commercial free-to-air Television broadcasting in Australia, television network. It is owned by Seven West Media, Seven West Media Limited, ...

's reality program '' SAS Australia''. He was given the 'villain edit', after repeatedly talking back and disrespecting the elite staff, prompting backlash from viewers on social media. Dirani was selected to be a part of the Socceroos’ FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 squad announcement, where he narrated the football journey of the Socceroos over 100 years. In 2023, Dirani was cast in the Australian version of British series ''

The Office ''The Office'' is the title of several mockumentary sitcoms based on a British series originally created by Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant as '' The Office'' in 2001. The original series also starred Gervais as manager and primary charac ...

'', but did not make it to the production stage. Dirani's film credits include the award-winning drama '' The Black Balloon'' (2008), ''

The Combination The Combination was a league during the early days of English football. It had two incarnations; the first ran only for the 1888–89 season for teams across Northern England and the Midlands, and was disbanded before completion. The second ...

'' (2009) and 2012 thriller '' Last Dance''. He has also starred in Hollywood fare such as sci-fi film '' Pitch Black'' (2000) opposite

Vin Diesel Mark Sinclair (born July 18, 1967), known professionally as Vin Diesel, is an American actor and film producer. One of the world's highest-grossing actors, he is best known for portraying Dominic "Dom" Toretto in the '' Fast & Furious'' fra ...

, action film '' Killer Elite'' (2011) alongside an all-star cast including

Robert De Niro Robert Anthony De Niro ( , ; born August 17, 1943) is an American actor, director, and film producer. He is considered to be one of the greatest and most influential actors of his generation. De Niro is the recipient of List of awards and ...

Jason Statham Jason Statham ( ; born 26 July 1967) is an English actor. He is known for portraying tough, gritty, or violent characters in various action thriller films, and has been credited for leading the resurgence of action films during the 2000s and 2 ...

, and

Clive Owen Clive Owen (born 3 October 1964) is an English actor. He first gained recognition in the United Kingdom for playing the lead role in the ITV series '' Chancer'' from 1990 to 1991. He received critical acclaim for his work in the film '' Close ...

and Mel Gibson's Oscar-winning biographical war epic ''

Hacksaw Ridge ''Hacksaw Ridge'' is a 2016 epic biographical war film directed by Mel Gibson and written by Andrew Knight and Robert Schenkkan, based on the 2004 documentary '' The Conscientious Objector'' directed by Terry Benedict. Set in World War II, A ...

'' (2015).

Personal life

Dirani formerly dated fellow actor

Melanie Vallejo Melanie Vallejo is an Australian actress best known for portraying Madison Rocca, the Blue Mystic Ranger in '' Power Rangers Mystic Force'', and Sophie Wong in the Australian television series '' Winners & Losers''. Early life and education ...

who he met when they worked together on ''

''. Dirani was the subject of a finalist portrait in the

Archibald Prize The Archibald Prize is an Australian portraiture art prize for painting, generally seen as the most prestigious portrait prize in Australia. It was first awarded in 1921 after the receipt of a bequest from J. F. Archibald, J. F. Archib ...

in 2021, painted by artist, Jeremy Eden. In 2017, Dirani embarked on a trip to

Nairobi Nairobi is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Kenya. The city lies in the south-central part of Kenya, at an elevation of . The name is derived from the Maasai language, Maasai phrase , which translates to 'place of cool waters', a ...

Kenya Kenya, officially the Republic of Kenya, is a country located in East Africa. With an estimated population of more than 52.4 million as of mid-2024, Kenya is the 27th-most-populous country in the world and the 7th most populous in Africa. ...

for two months to run a sports program, which saw him organise some football goalposts to be built while visiting a local charity, so that the kids could play with more suitable equipment.

Filmography

Film

Television

Theatre

Awards

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Dirani, Firass Year of birth missing (living people) Male actors from Sydney Australian male film actors Australian people of Lebanese descent Living people Logie Award winners