Kathreen Khavari
Kathreen Khavari (born June 23, 1983) is an American actress, writer, and producer who first gained attention[1] when her sketch Brain of Terror, in which she played eleven different characters, went viral after it was featured on Upworthy.[2] She's best known for her role as Patricia on HBO's Insecure, Samantha on HBO's Big Little Lies, and for voicing Ms. Marvel in Avengers Assemble, Marvel Rising, and Spider-Man on Disney XD.[3][4][5]
Kathreen Khavari | |
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Khavari at the 2019 WonderCon | |
Born | |
Nationality | American |
Occupation | Actress, writer, producer, voice actress |
Early life
Khavari was born and raised in Oakland, California to Iranian immigrant parents. After graduating from Skyline High School, she attended the University of California, Berkeley, studying public health, then later earned a Master's degree from the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine in Control of Infectious Diseases.[6]
Career and activism
Khavari realized her childhood passion of acting was unwavering, and upon returning home from London, she took small acting jobs while working in the public health field.[7]
In response to Trump's "Muslim Ban," Khavari made headlines at the premier of Big Little Lies when she wore a dress that read "My Iranian Mother Teaches Your Kids How to Read".[8][9][10][11][12]
Khavari's satirical sketches, which she posts to her YouTube channel Brain of Terror, touch on various social justice issues, including gun control, Islamophobia, women's reproductive rights, and police brutality against black men in America.[13][14]
Khavari’s Oakland-based pilot, Embrace, debuted at the 2020 Sundance Film Festival in their Indie Episodic category.[15][16] The pilot also won the Episodic Pilot Competition Jury Award at SXSW[17] “For its originality of voice, its depiction of characters and relationships that are both enigmatic and appealing, as well as telling an absorbing story in a world unseen on television at the moment.”[18]
Filmography
Film
Year | Title | Role | Director |
---|---|---|---|
2020 | The Night (2020 Film) | Elahe | Kourosh Ahari |
2016 | Mascots (2016 Film) | Bosphorus Cooper (Las Palmas Desk Clerk) | Christopher Guest |
Television
Year | Title | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
2011 | Love Bites | Young Lawyer | Episode: "Firsts" |
2011 | Blue Bloods | Alya Demir (uncredited) | Episode: "Thanksgiving" |
2013 | Famous Farrah | Farrah Satrapi/ “Dorian Plague” | Main role |
2016-2018 | Avengers Assemble | Ms. Marvel / Kamala Khan (voice) | Recurring role |
2016-2018 | Insecure | Patricia | Recurring role |
2017 | Big Little Lies | Samantha | Recurring role |
2017 | Ginger Snaps | Cheerleader #1 (voice) | Recurring role |
2017 | Be Cool, Scooby-Doo! | Zara (voice) | Episode: "Protein Titans 2" |
2017-2018 | Marvel Future Avengers | Ms. Marvel / Kamala Khan (voice) | English dub |
2018 | Stretch Armstrong and the Flex Fighters | Young Riya Dashti (voice) | 2 episodes |
2018 | Marvel Rising: Initiation | Ms. Marvel / Kamala Khan (voice) | TV film |
2018 | Marvel Rising: Secret Warriors | Ms. Marvel / Kamala Khan, Mom (voice) | TV film |
2018 | Marvel Rising: Chasing Ghosts | Ms. Marvel / Kamala Khan (voice) | TV film |
2018 | Spider-Man | Ms. Marvel / Kamala Khan, Shannon Stillwell (voices) | Recurring role |
2019 | Marvel Rising: Heart of Iron | Ms. Marvel / Kamala Khan (voice) | TV Film |
2019 | Marvel Rising: Battle of the Bands | Ms. Marvel / Kamala Khan (voice) | TV Film |
2019 | Marvel Rising: Operation Shuri | Ms. Marvel / Kamala Khan (voice) | TV Film |
2020 | Embrace | Co-writer (with Chuck Neal) and star | Main role |
2021 | DeadEndia | Badyah (voice) | In production; Netflix original animated series |
Video games
Year | Title | Role |
---|---|---|
2018 | Marvel Battle Lines | Ms. Marvel / Kamala Khan |
2019 | Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3: The Black Order | Ms. Marvel / Kamala Khan |
References
- King, Jamilah. "Iranian-American Actress Gets Fed Up With Hollywood's Racism". Color Lines. Race Forward. Retrieved January 23, 2014.
- Lamour, Joseph. "This actress is having the most entertaining identity crisis I've seen in a while". Upworthy. Upworthy. Retrieved February 6, 2014.
- "Women of Marvel Podcast Kat Khavari". Marvel.com. Marvel.
- Damore, Meagan. "NYCC: Marvel Animation Promises More Ms. Marvel, Black Panther, Venom". CBR.com. CBR. Retrieved October 9, 2017.
- Dietsch, TJ. "'MARVEL'S AVENGERS: ULTRON REVOLUTION' PLUNGES INTO CIVIL WAR". Marvel.com. Marvel. Retrieved January 27, 2017.
- "Episode 12: The Importance of Persistence in Acting and Business with Kathreen Khavari". TheAsianAmericanVoice.com. The Asian American Voice.
- Khavari, Kathreen. "Author Kathreen Khavari". Huffpost.com. Huffington Post.
- Jensen, Erin. "Reese Witherspoon, daughter Ava Phillippe are twins at 'Big Little Lies' premiere". USA Today. USA Today. Retrieved February 8, 2017.
- Patel, Arti. "Actress Kathreen Khavari Has A Pretty Blunt Message For Trump On Her Dress". Huffingtonpost.com. Huffington Post. Retrieved February 9, 2017.
- Ongley, Hannah. "Actress Kathreen Khavari Wears a Bold Political Message To Her Latest Premiere". I-D.vice.com. i-D. Retrieved February 9, 2017.
- Fuller, Gillian. "Kathreen Khavari of 'Big Little Lies' Wore a Scathing Anti-Trump Dress on the Red Carpet". Allure.com. Allure. Retrieved February 9, 2017.
- Wood, Zoe. "The fashion world speaks out: 'Without immigration, we'd be selling potato sacks'". Theguardian.com. The Guardian. Retrieved October 14, 2017.
- Aran, Isha. "The voice of Ms. Marvel is a superhero in her own right". Splinternews.com. Splinter News. Retrieved September 14, 2016.
- Sayed, Kelli. "Muslim Ms. Marvel Issues Reigh of Terror". Altmuslimah.com. Alt Muslimah. Retrieved November 7, 2016.
- "Embrace". Sundance.org. Sundance Institute.
- Ramos, Dino-Ray. "'Embrace':Iranian Immigrant Dramedy Looks to Create Connection in a Divisive Time—Sundance Studio". Deadline Hollywood. Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved February 4, 2020.
- Roberts, Jordan. "The 2020 SXSW Film Festival Announces Jury and Special Awards". SXSW. SWSX. Retrieved March 24, 2020.
- Mcnary, Dave. "SXSW Film Festival Unveils 2020 Winners After Cancellation". Variety. Variety. Retrieved March 24, 2020.