Academy Award winner Rami Malek has shared a disturbing encounter with law enforcement where officers mistook him for a robbery suspect based on his appearance, The Guardian reports. The Bohemian Rhapsody star, 43, recounted being forcibly placed on a police vehicle’s hood after officers wrongly identified him as a Latino suspect. “I got thrown on the bonnet of an LAPD cop car because someone had robbed a liquor store and stolen a woman’s bag,” Malek revealed. “They said the [thief] was of Latin descent and, ‘You fit the description.’”
Malek, who describes himself as “white passing” but has “very distinctive features,” was saved from further trouble when his Caucasian friend intervened, telling officers, “Actually, sir, he’s Egyptian. Not Latin.” The actor recalled the intensity of the moment: “I remember how hot that engine was, they must have been racing over there and it was almost burning my hands.”
Videos by PopCulture.com
The incident reflects deeper struggles with identity that Malek, born to Egyptian immigrant parents who moved to the US in 1978, has navigated throughout his life. “I don’t know how you ever get over that,” he shared with The Guardian about feeling different. His father, he noted, struggled to accept “certain aspects” of American culture while raising the family in Sherman Oaks, Los Angeles.
This awareness of representation has influenced his career choices. When accepting his role as the villain in 2021’s No Time to Die, Malek insisted his character wouldn’t perpetuate harmful stereotypes. “That was one thing that I discussed with [director] Cary Fukunaga,” he told The Mirror. “We cannot identify him with any act of terrorism reflecting an ideology or a religion. That’s not something I would entertain, so if that is why I am your choice then you can count me out.” He added, “But that was clearly not his vision. So he’s a very different kind of terrorist.”
The Mr. Robot star has remained proudly connected to his heritage while building his Hollywood career. “I am Egyptian. I grew up listening to Egyptian music. I loved Omar Sharif,” he stated. “These are my people. I feel so gorgeously tied to the culture and the human beings that exist there.”
Looking back at the police incident, Malek remembered finding dark humor in the dangerous situation: “I remember laughing on the cop car, thinking, ‘OK, this is a very precarious situation. I may well be going to jail for something I’ve not done.’” The actor made these revelations during a wide-ranging interview about his upcoming role as Oedipus at London’s Old Vic theatre.
