Riz Ahmed Shocks Hollywood with Secret Marvel Series Casting—Everything We Know So Far

Dateline — 22 August 2025 RIZ AHMED’S HIGH-WIRE RETURN WITH “RELAY” IGNITES BOX-OFFICE AND OSCAR BUZZ A NEW CHAPTER FOR THE “SOUND OF METAL” STAR After becoming the first Muslim actor to win a lead-acting Oscar, Riz Ahmed spent two years producing shorts and championing inclusive storytelling. Now he’s back in front of the camera, headlining David Mackenzie’s pulse-pounding whistle-blower thriller “Relay,” which opened in U.S. theaters today via Bleecker Street. Early ticket-sales tracking shows the film outperforming comparable late-August releases, driven largely by Ahmed’s global fan base and a 78 percent Fresh score on Rotten Tomatoes. WHAT “RELAY” IS ABOUT Ahmed plays Ash, a hyper-efficient “fixer” who helps corporate whistle-blowers retract evidence in exchange for multimillion-dollar hush deals. When biotech researcher Sarah Grant (Lily James) hires him, the pair trigger a lethal cat-and-mouse chase across New York and upstate rail lines. Deadline praises Ahmed’s “calm, quiet cool” and calls the film “a new spin on the whistle-blower drama” while The Washington Post notes that he “rises to the occasion” in a thriller that recalls 1970s classics. COLLABORATING WITH LILY JAMES & DAVID MACKENZIE Director Mackenzie re-teams with the British actor after courting him for five years. Principal photography wrapped in late 2024, with Ahmed performing most of his own disguise-heavy stunts. On-set insiders say the actor remained in character between takes to perfect Ash’s minimal-dialogue mystique—a tactic Mackenzie encouraged to heighten realism. CRITICAL EARLY RESPONSE • 78 % on Rotten Tomatoes, critics’ consensus: “taut, topical, and anchored by Ahmed’s steely presence.” • Deadline: “Ahmed is the film’s USP … he commands the screen even before he speaks.” • Washington Post: “A no-nonsense throwback elevated by Ahmed’s nerve-ending intensity.” OSCAR POSITIONING Bleecker Street confirms a fall awards push in Best Actor, Original Screenplay and Editing. Academy voters historically reward transformative thrillers released in late summer, a window that benefited titles like “Hell or High Water,” also directed by Mackenzie. BEYOND “RELAY”: WHAT’S NEXT FOR RIZ AHMED • Streaming: Ahmed’s semi-autobiographical dramedy series “Quarter Life” is slated for Amazon Prime Video in early 2026. • Producing: His banner Left Handed Films is developing the comics adaptation “Exit West,” with Ahmed expected to star. • Music: A follow-up to his hip-hop EP “Englistan” is rumored for winter, featuring South Asian electronic producers. PERSONAL LIFE & RECENT SECURITY SCARE Earlier this summer, Ahmed and novelist wife Fatima Farheen Mirza welcomed their first child but were robbed of “really precious items” shortly afterwards, he revealed to People magazine. The couple have since increased security and remain “focused on gratitude,” Ahmed said during press rounds. HOW & WHERE TO WATCH “Relay” is now playing in 2,300 North American theaters with premium-large-format options; an international rollout begins 29 August in the U.K., India and Australia. VOD and streaming windows are expected 45 days post-theatrical. BOTTOM LINE Combining timely corporate-ethics themes with Ahmed’s magnetic star power, “Relay” looks poised to dominate late-summer search traffic and insert the actor back into serious awards contention. Keep this page bookmarked for box-office updates, streaming dates and exclusive interviews as Riz Ahmed’s latest reinvention gathers momentum worldwide.