Rahel Romahn (born ) is a Kurdish-Iraqi born Australian actor.

Early life

Born in

Kurdistan Kurdistan (, ; ), or Greater Kurdistan, is a roughly defined geo- cultural region in West Asia wherein the Kurds form a prominent majority population and the Kurdish culture, languages, and national identity have historically been based. G ...

, in Northern Iraq, Romahn's family fled Saddam Hussein’s regime when he was three, initially hiding in Turkey for a year, then emigrating to Australia, where he grew up in

Parramatta Parramatta (; ) is a suburb (Australia), suburb and major commercial centre in Greater Western Sydney. Parramatta is located approximately west of the Sydney central business district, Sydney CBD, on the banks of the Parramatta River. It is co ...

, in western Sydney. Despite having to adjust to a new language and culture, Rohman was performing in school productions by grade three, playing

Fagin Fagin () is the secondary antagonist in Charles Dickens's 1838 novel ''Oliver Twist''. In the preface to the novel, he is described as a " receiver of stolen goods". He is the leader of a group of children (the Artful Dodger and Charley Bates ...

in ''

Oliver Twist ''Oliver Twist; or, The Parish Boy's Progress'', is the second novel by English author Charles Dickens. It was originally published as a serial from 1837 to 1839 and as a three-volume book in 1838. The story follows the titular orphan, who, ...

'' and

Hook A hook is a tool consisting of a length of material, typically metal, that contains a portion that is curved/bent back or has a deeply grooved indentation, which serves to grab, latch or in any way attach itself onto another object. The hook's d ...

in ''

Peter Pan Peter Pan is a fictional character created by Scottish novelist and playwright J. M. Barrie. A free-spirited and mischievous young boy who can fly and never grows up, Peter Pan spends his never-ending childhood having adventures on the mythical ...

''. Romahn describes himself as "an oddball recluse who loved to mimic people and accents." After watching

Al Pacino Alfredo James Pacino ( ; ; born April 25, 1940) is an American actor. Known for his intense performances on stage and screen, Pacino is widely regarded as one of the greatest actors of all time. His career spans more than five decades, duri ...

in '' Scarface'', he was inspired to express himself creatively. He got further into acting, after hearing a radio advertisement for a local drama school when he was 13, and took screen acting workshops in Sydney. After Romahn finished high school, he worked in customer service for a leading Australian bank, while honing his acting skills at home after hours. Stage and screen appearances followed.

Career

Romahn initially scored a small role in '' Underbelly'' in 2010. From there he starred in his breakthrough role in SBS miniseries ''

The Principal ''The Principal'' is a 1987 action comedy film starring Jim Belushi, Louis Gossett Jr. and Rae Dawn Chong. Written by Frank Deese and directed by Christopher Cain, it was filmed in Oakland, California, and at Northgate High School in near ...

''. Other roles he has played include the TV series '' Shantaram'' and ''

Mr Inbetween ''Mr Inbetween'' is an Australian dark comedy-crime drama television series which premiered on FX on 25 September 2018 in the United States, followed by Fox Showcase in Australia on 1 October 2018. The series is a serialisation of the 2005 fe ...

'', miniseries '' Australian Gangster'' and films '' Little Monsters'', ''

Ali's Wedding ''Ali's Wedding'' is a 2017 Cinema of Australia, Australian romantic comedy feature film from Matchbox Pictures. It is directed by Jeffrey Walker (director), Jeffrey Walker and written by Osamah Sami and stars Sami, Helana Sawires, Don Hany and ...

'', '' Down Under'' and ''

Alex & Eve ''Alex & Eve'' is a 2015 Australian romantic comedy film directed by Peter Andrikidis and written by Alex Lykos based on Lykos's 2006 play of the same name. The film adaptation was released in October 2015 by producer, Murray Fahey's distribution ...

''. He has also appeared in a number of stage roles, most recently as

Mozart Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (27 January 1756 – 5 December 1791) was a prolific and influential composer of the Classical period (music), Classical period. Despite his short life, his rapid pace of composition and proficiency from an early age ...

(opposite

Michael Sheen Michael Christopher Sheen (born 5 February 1969) is a Welsh actor. After training at London's Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (RADA), he worked mainly in theatre throughout the 1990s with stage roles in ''Romeo and Juliet'' (1992), ''Don't Fool wi ...

Antonio Salieri Antonio Salieri (18 August 17507 May 1825) was an Italian composer and teacher of the classical period (music), classical period. He was born in Legnago, south of Verona, in the Republic of Venice, and spent his adult life and career as a subje ...

) in ''

Amadeus Amadeus may refer to: People and fictional characters * Amadeus (name) Amadeus is a theophoric name, theophoric given name derived from the Latin words ' – the Imperative mood, imperative of the word ' ("to love") – and ' ("god"). As a Compou ...

'' at the

Sydney Opera House The Sydney Opera House is a multi-venue Performing arts center, performing arts centre in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. Located on the foreshore of Sydney Harbour, it is widely regarded as one of the world's most famous and distinctive b ...

in 2023. For his performance in ''

'', Romahn was nominated for the 2016

AACTA Award for Best Guest or Supporting Actor in a Television Drama The AACTA Award for Best Guest or Supporting Actor in a Television Drama is an accolade given by the Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Arts (AACTA), a non-profit organisation whose aim is to "identify, award, promote and celebrate Austra ...

and the 2016 Logie Award for Most Outstanding Newcomer. In 2022, he was also the winner of the annual Heath Ledger Scholarship, selected from a field of more than 600 candidates.

Personal life

Romahn is a fan of English football club,

Liverpool Liverpool is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. It is situated on the eastern side of the River Mersey, Mersey Estuary, near the Irish Sea, north-west of London. With a population ...

Filmography

Film

Television

Stage

https://shanahan.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/ROMAHN-Rahel-150524.pdf

Awards

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Romahn, Rahel Living people Australian stage actors Australian film actors Australian television actors 21st-century Australian male actors Year of birth missing (living people)