Could Riz Ahmed Be the First Brown James Bond?

This episode is sponsored by Ellydee. To sign up, go to ellydee.ai/mehdi Riz Ahmed is the man of the moment. The Oscar and Emmy award-winning actor is currently on the press tour for not one but two new projects: his TV series 'Bait', and a film adaptation of William Shakespeare's 'Hamlet'. But the tour wouldn't be complete without joining his former school mate and fellow school play actor Mehdi for a special LIVE taping of 'We're Not Kidding' in New York City. The two dig into Riz's new roles, the state of Muslim representation in popular culture, and making political art. They also take questions from the audience, but first they share a few choice anecdotes from their teenage years. The two also discuss: Neil Patrick Harris' recent ridiculous comments about making "apolitical" art.  Why "getting in the room" doesn't matter if you let the room change you. The lasting significance of his films 'Four Lions' and 'The Long Goodbye' given the UK far-right political scene.  And how Riz got banned… from UK grocery store Tesco's! They also take questions from the audience about why some Muslim entertainers have stayed silent on Gaza, the best ways to resist fascism, the power of political storytelling, and whether Riz's aunties call him up to chastise him about some of his.. erm… spicier on-camera scenes. This interview was published 7 days earlier on Zeteo.com. If you want early access to exclusive content and hard-hitting, independent journalism, subscribe on Substack here: https://zeteo.com/subscribe Watch, listen and subscribe to 'We're Not Kidding' on Substack: https://zeteo.com/s/were-not-kidding-with-mehdi-and-friends Find Zeteo: Twitter: https://twitter.com/zeteo_news Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/zeteonews TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@zeteonews Find Mehdi: Substack: https://substack.com/@mehdirhasan Twitter: https://twitter.com/@mehdirhasan Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/@mehdirhasan TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@mehdirhasan Credits: Hosted by: Mehdi Hasan Guest Host: Riz Ahmed Executive Producer: Kiran Alvi Senior Producer and Editor: Frank Cappello Music: Andy Clausen Design: Alicia Tatone Mix Engineer: Valentino Rivera Title Animation: Ehsaan Mesghali Special thanks to: Stephen Wentzell & Leena Fraihat   To advertise on the show, contact sales@advertisecast.com or visit https://advertising.libsyn.com/network/Zeteo