Riz Ahmed Discusses Hamlet’s Universal Fear In Coffee Chats Episode 11

Coffee Chats is back, and this time with Riz Ahmed. ScreenRant‘s signature interview series returns for its 11th episode with the Bait star and beloved Star Wars player for a caffeinated conversation with host Liam Crowley about the actor’s latest film, Hamlet, a raw, action-thriller re-imagining of the Shakespeare classic.

In this episode of Coffee Chats, Ahmed swaps out coffee for matcha as he reflects on his Academy Award-nominated turn in Sound of Metal, his Star Wars audition, and his latest film, Hamlet, which Ahmed says was born out of a universal fear he believes is simmering right now in all of us: “Has the world gone crazy?”

Coffee Chats no.11 w/ Riz Ahmed

Ahmed’s Interpretation Of Hamlet Grew Out Of A Feeling He Believes Many Of Us Feel

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First introduced to Hamlet when he was 17, the 2026 adaptation Ahmed stars in largely depicts the same story of a man seeking revenge for his father’s murder, but with an action-packed twist.

Directed by Aneil Karia, the film is set in modern-day London, placing its focus on a British-South Asian family and business empire. And while the film keeps Shakespeare’s original dialogue intact, the shift comes in its setting as a high-stakes corporate thriller, with Hamlet‘s Ahmed serving as the film’s psychologically unstable central figure.

Riz Ahmed: I mean, I really loved the Baz Lurhman Romeo plus Juliet. It was badass. And when I was 17, my teacher gave me Hamlet. It blew my mind because, yes, I love poetry, I love the language. I know that can be an obstacle for some people, but I think it’s just like music. You don’t need to catch every word; you catch the feeling and the energy. But I really love the language. But beyond that, I just felt like this is so raw. Shakespeare is thought of as being so stuffy, and it can be performed like that and analyzed like that in English class. But it just felt so raw and so emotional.

Hamlet, this character, was feeling how I was feeling then and how I think so many of us are feeling now, which is like the world is so messed up. Am I losing my mind, or has the world gone crazy? That’s the central question in Hamlet. And it’s like, that is something that I think we can all relate to. It feels very real and visceral in this moment we’re living in. And so, we wanted to make a version of it that felt raw and real and like a roller-coaster ride. And our director said, “I want to make it like an action thriller. I want to shoot it like a first-person shooter, where you’re entering the room with him, you’re on his shoulder, you just experience things as he’s experiencing them.” And I’m very proud of what Aneil’s done with this. It’s very different.

Aneil Karia Was Brought On After Working With Ahmed On An Oscar-Winning Rap Video

After Shooting The Music Video, Ahmed Knew Karia Was The Guy For The Job

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The pair’s partnership was spawned back in 2020, when they teamed up to shoot the music video for Ahmed’s The Long Goodbye. The short film ultimately earned the pair an Oscar for Best Live Action Short at the 2022 Academy Awards.

Riz Ahmed: Well, it’s easy when you’re surrounded by geniuses like Aneil and Mike Leslie. Aneil Karis, as a director, has a background in doing rap music videos. And so, we knew he was the right person for this job because we actually did a rap music video together. It’s called The Long Goodbye. And we won an Oscar for that. And it was a mixture between really spoken-word poetry and an intense action thriller. And we made it, and it worked. And we were like, “This is exactly what we want to do with Hamlet. He’s our guy.” And when you’re working with people like Neil, you work with writers like Mike Leslie, you just feel so held. Actually, it’s just a joy, man.

Ahmed Prepared Extensively For Sound Of Metal By Spending Time With Deaf Community

Ahmed Learned Through His Sign Language Instructor What It Means To Be A True Listener

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Before The Long Goodbye, Ahmed was nominated for an Academy Award in 2019’s Sound of Metal, which sees him as drummer Ruben, who unexpectedly loses his hearing while touring with his girlfriend Lou. His life slowly begins to spiral before he eventually finds his way to a group home for Deaf addicts. Ahmed told ScreenRant he spent a lot of time with the Deaf community preparing for the role, but beyond learning sign language, he said the experience taught him “what listening” actually is.

Riz Ahmed: It’s interesting because I spent a lot of time in the Deaf community in New York, and my sign language instructor, Jeremy Lee Stone, JLS, really taught me, I think, the Deaf community taught me, what listening is. It’s not with your ears, it’s with your attention, it’s with your body, it’s with your energy, man, really. You can be hearing things and not really listening. And so it wasn’t so much turning off listening, it was really trying to listen with my energy, my eyes, and my senses more. It was leaning in with all the others listening. Does that make sense? It was more about that. And I think the Deaf community, in a way, taught me what listening really is, and taught me what communication really is. It’s about something to do with your energy.

Ahmed Sent 14 Self-Tapes For Bodhi Rook Audition

Ahmed Revealed That He Sent 14 Audition Tapes To Director Gareth Edward To Land The Star Wars Role

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While Ahmed has won an Oscar and has a nomination under his belt, it’s his Star Wars role that fans are perhaps the most passionate about. Ahmed played Bodhi Rook in 2016’s anthology film, Rogue One: A Star Wars Story. Looking back on his audition for the film, he said he got the invite from Gareth Edward, and proceeded to send 14 self-tapes in hopes of landing the role.

Riz Ahmed: So, Garreth Edwards called me up when I was shooting The Night Of, and he told me, “I love you for this role. You got to audition, send a tape.” And he made a big mistake because he gave me his email address, and so I just didn’t stop sending him auditions. I sent him 14 auditions, I think, over four days. Insane thing to do, in retrospect.

Slightly different costumes, slightly different vibes, slightly different accents. I just was going at it. And I think he gave me the role just so I’d leave him alone. So that was what it was like. And I think they even got a little mini feature on it in the DVD extras about that.

More About ScreenRant’s Coffee Chats

Custom Image by Laura Watson, Jacques Reeder

Coffee Chats operates as a mixture of personal discussion through the lens of coffee as well as a dive into the guest’s latest project. Along the way, we’ll hit a Cold Brew Open, give our First Sip Synopsis, discuss our personal Coffee Callbacks, share our dream Desert Island Drinks and more.

“I pride myself on being a conversationalist, and there’s no better setting to chat it up with someone than a cafe,” ScreenRant Reporter, Host Liam Crowley said. “Back when I attended Syracuse University, I used to make ‘coffee review’ videos with my friends on my social media. To essentially expand that 60-second concept into a full-blown production and be accompanied by some of the biggest names in Hollywood is a true ‘pinch me’ moment.“

“From the moment I reached out to Liam about joining ScreenRant’s New York team, we envisioned expanding our content offerings with engaging, in-depth interviews, including an original series,” ScreenRant Editorial, Branding, and PR Director Rob Keyes said. “Liam already had an idea for this, and Coffee Chats perfectly embodies this vision, offering a unique format that connects audiences with leading industry talent while supporting local businesses. We are thrilled to launch this series and collaborate with local establishments on this exciting initiative.”

“Over the past 21 years, ScreenRant has interviewed every star in Hollywood several times,” ScreenRant Content Director Alex Leadbeater said. “Across press junkets, red carpets, convention panels and beyond, we’ve been a constant presence in the entertainment industry. Coffee Chats builds upon this success to create a more intimate backdrop for a more personal, longer-form style of interview.“

Coffee Chats is created by Crowley, Keyes, and Leadbeater and is produced by Tiffany Loving, Laura Watson, Sierra Nutkevich, Jacques Reeder, John Aljets, Leah Nucum, Cesar Garcia, Kazden Risk, and Joe O’Shea.

Check out our other Coffee Chats episodes with…

Host

Liam Crowley

Creator(s)

Liam Crowley, Rob Keyes, Alex Leadbeater

Genre

Interview

Premiere Date

February 6, 2025

Publisher

ScreenRant

Release Date

April 10, 2026

Runtime

114 Minutes

Director

Aneil Karia

Writers

Michael Lesslie, William Shakespeare

Producers

Michael Lesslie, Riz Ahmed, James Wilson, Tommy Oliver