In Hollywood, actors of Middle Eastern or South Asian descent are often typecast as the villains, particularly with the recent onslaught of films and television shows centering on terrorism. What is refreshing therefore, is the casting of Pakistani actor Faran Tahir as Captain Robau in the recent box office hit Star Trek. Tahir has a string of film and television credits under his belt, from Iron Man and Charlie Wilson’s War to 24 and Sleeper Cell. However, as IMDB indicates, Tahir has largely played the villain on film and television.
That is, until JJ Abrams‘ Star Trek. Captain Robau is the captain of the Kelvin, the starship on which James T. Kirk‘s father, George Kirk is first officer. For those who are familiar with the Star Trek franchise, past captains were often portrayed as weak in order to bolster perceptions of Captains Kirk and Picard. In this film, however, Tahir plays Robau as a heroic and strong leader. In an interview with TrekMovie.com, the film’s co-writer and executive producer Roberto Orci noted, “Being a captain in Starfleet should be a special position and we don’t feel that another captain has to be diminished in order to elevate Captain Kirk. If you are a captain in Starfleet you are a cool mother f—er.”
Trekmovie.com added, “The fact that Tahir is Pakistani also cannot be ignored…Like the Germans and Russians of past generations, many of today’s popular culture villains are played by those of Middle-Eastern or South-west Asian descent. But just like Gene Roddenberry put a Russian onto the bridge of the Enterprise in the height of the Cold War, JJ Abrams has put a Pakistani into the captain’s chair in the post-9/11 world.” The casting is a throwback to Star Trek’s history of “color-blind” roles and is reminiscent of Star Trek creator Gene Roddenberry’s vision of a future where every person lives up to his or her fullest potential, regardless of race or ethnicity. Tahir, in an interview with SciFi Wire, said, “The biggest compliment is that he [director Abrams] was looking for a certain quality. He could have found that in me, he could have found that in [anyone else]. And it just happened to be me, and … the added … layer to that is that, yeah, I happen to be of a certain descent, and … the casting was [in] the spirit of what Star Trek is about.”
The fact that a Pakistani actor has “made it” in Hollywood is a positive development in of itself, regardless of what roles he gets to play. However, the casting of Tahir as a starship captain is a definite added plus, particularly given the stereotyping and perceptions of Muslims in the West, as well as the typecasting that has always been prevalent in Hollywood. Below is Tahir’s interview with TV Guide about the film [thanks Pro-Pakistan]:
AWESOME..he rocks…
I had no idea he was Pakistani! Though, I should have guessed that after seeing him in Iron Man. And, I’m so happy he got a decent role rather than that of the stereotypical terrorist. We have a lot of talented people in Pakistan, it’s about time someone took notice! Now if only we could get Pacino or De Niro to do a movie with our beloved Nadeem 😛
I actually didn’t realize he was Pakistani either until I saw his name in the Star Trek credits!
I think there have been recent films and shows where the typecasting habit is broken down a bit. Latinos were often portrayed as maids or low-income workers in tv and film, but now with stars like Eva Longoria, Jennifer Lopez, Eva Mendes, etc. that has changed for the better. Same goes for other minorities like African-Americans, Asians, etc.
In terms of Muslims, the one thing that always annoys me when I watch movies about the war or terrorists is how they’re ALWAYS Arabs or South Asians. Granted, the fact that the major brand of terrorism we’re fighting in the world right now is Islamist extremism, their portrayal in Hollywood leads many to think that ALL Muslims are terrorists. Or all Muslim women are oppressed, etc.
oh my gosh, this is such fascinating information. thanks for sharing it. enjoyed reading your post and watching the video you posted.
Thanks sos!!
ps lovin’ the blog stats!
I didnt realize this either. I’ll have to watch Star Trek again!
Tony Shalhoub, a lebanese, plays a brilliant hero detective in Monk. Before he was typecasted in roles as a villain in movies. I think he’s really good at acting as an OCD detective. It’s refreshing to know Hollywood recognizes good actors regardless of their race!
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He reminds me of Vin Diesel. The Pakistani Vin Diesel. What say you I get cast in a Hollywood role? I’m sure I could play a lamp post or a brick well quite well. You just stand there motionless…
I am sure it’s not hard to be an extra. You could play “Man Walking through Store #3,” not to be confused with “Man Eating Sandwich in Store #5”.
Are you serious? I had no idea! I don’t think anyone could have guessed! This is amazing.
This is great Kalsoom! Has he done anyone work in Pakistan?
Yes, he actually began his career doing Urdu plays! Here is a link to the Dawn profile on him, where they say after his studies he came back to Pakistan and did an Intezar Hussain play. It’s actually a well done tv clip: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BRCOT_xlmnc
Being a trekkie, it was doubly refreshing to see him in a prominent and more importantly a positive role. Let’s hope this proves to be a stepping stone for him and he goes on to land a bigger and better role.
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Thanks for stopping by.Have a good night.
kalsoom, i’m impressed at how versatile you are!! maybe you’re just a star trek nerd like myself, but its great that you analyzed star trek so thoughtfully and were able to link it to this actor. well done!
Thanks Fahd! I actually didn’t know Star Trek very well, but I did read a lot of articles on the original series etc. after I saw the film and whilst writing this piece 🙂 Glad you enjoyed it!
his parents r paki not him! he was born in LA…. 😮
Yeah he was born in LA, but he moved back to Pakistan soon after and lived there until he went to college. Whether he’s Pakistani or Pakistani-American is irrelevant in my opinion. I think it’s great that someone from his background has made it in Hollywood.
He looks a hell of a lot similar to Aamir Sohail, the former Pakistani cricketer and opening batsman. Particularly in “Iron Man”, he looks almost like his twin brother :-).
P.S. Can’t believe none of you guys didn’t see the similarity! 😀