OS
Omar Sharif
Actor, Producer, Writer
Died July 10, 2015 (83 years)
Michel Dimitri Shalhoub, known as Omar Sharif (Arabic: عمر الشريف), also spelled Omar El-Sherif, born April 10, 1932 in Alexandria and died July 10, 2015 in Cairo, is an Egyptian actor. The son of a precious wood merchant, he grew up in a united Christian family with his parents and his sister. Enrolled at Victoria College, a prestigious British school in Alexandria, the teenager studied science, and foreign languages, and would later discover theater classes. A brilliant student, he continued his studies at Cairo University where he obtained his diploma in mathematics and physics.
Caught up in his taste for acting, he was spotted at 21 by director Youssef Chahine who offered him a leading role in Struggle in the Valley (1954). The success was immediate, thanks to this role, the young leading man walked the red carpet of the Croisette at the Cannes Film Festival the same year. He became a star of Egyptian cinema then in full expansion, and collaborated again with Youssef Chahine (The Devil of the Desert, Black Waters). In 1962, he took on the role of Prince Sherif Ali in Lawrence of Arabia under the direction of David Lean. This film, the first outside Egypt for the actor, marks the beginning of a long friendship with Peter O'Toole and a turning point in Omar Sharif's career. He won the Golden Globe for Best Supporting Actor and decided to leave his native country for Hollywood. In 1955, Omar Sharif married the Egyptian actress Faten Hamama, whom he met on the set of Struggle in the Valley, and for whom he converted to Islam. Their son Tarek was born in 1957. The couple separated when the actor decided to pursue his career in Hollywood. Their divorce was finalized a few years later in 1974. The actor, a polyglot, then began an international career. David Lean offered him a new emblematic role with Doctor Zhivago (1965) in which he played opposite Geraldine Chaplin. His filmography includes more than a hundred films. The actor nevertheless had a more unhappy period on the big screen with some commercial failures (And Came the Day of Vengeance, The Rendezvous, The Horsemen). He returned to success in the 2000s with Monsieur Ibrahim and The Flowers of the Koran by François Dupeyron for which he was awarded the César for Best Actor in 2004. The same year, he starred in Hidalgo by Joe Johnston. Rarer on film sets, in 2009 he accepted the role of a painter suffering from Alzheimer's disease in I Forgot to Tell You alongside Emilie Dequenne. He appeared in his last film, Rock the Casbah by Laïla Marrakchi, in 2012.
In May 2015, his son, Tarek El-Sharif, announced in an interview that Omar Sharif had Alzheimer's disease. He died on July 10, 2015 following a heart attack. His funeral took place on July 12, 2015 in a mosque in Cairo and he was buried at the Sayyeda Nefisa cemetery in the south of the city.
Caught up in his taste for acting, he was spotted at 21 by director Youssef Chahine who offered him a leading role in Struggle in the Valley (1954). The success was immediate, thanks to this role, the young leading man walked the red carpet of the Croisette at the Cannes Film Festival the same year. He became a star of Egyptian cinema then in full expansion, and collaborated again with Youssef Chahine (The Devil of the Desert, Black Waters). In 1962, he took on the role of Prince Sherif Ali in Lawrence of Arabia under the direction of David Lean. This film, the first outside Egypt for the actor, marks the beginning of a long friendship with Peter O'Toole and a turning point in Omar Sharif's career. He won the Golden Globe for Best Supporting Actor and decided to leave his native country for Hollywood. In 1955, Omar Sharif married the Egyptian actress Faten Hamama, whom he met on the set of Struggle in the Valley, and for whom he converted to Islam. Their son Tarek was born in 1957. The couple separated when the actor decided to pursue his career in Hollywood. Their divorce was finalized a few years later in 1974. The actor, a polyglot, then began an international career. David Lean offered him a new emblematic role with Doctor Zhivago (1965) in which he played opposite Geraldine Chaplin. His filmography includes more than a hundred films. The actor nevertheless had a more unhappy period on the big screen with some commercial failures (And Came the Day of Vengeance, The Rendezvous, The Horsemen). He returned to success in the 2000s with Monsieur Ibrahim and The Flowers of the Koran by François Dupeyron for which he was awarded the César for Best Actor in 2004. The same year, he starred in Hidalgo by Joe Johnston. Rarer on film sets, in 2009 he accepted the role of a painter suffering from Alzheimer's disease in I Forgot to Tell You alongside Emilie Dequenne. He appeared in his last film, Rock the Casbah by Laïla Marrakchi, in 2012.
In May 2015, his son, Tarek El-Sharif, announced in an interview that Omar Sharif had Alzheimer's disease. He died on July 10, 2015 following a heart attack. His funeral took place on July 12, 2015 in a mosque in Cairo and he was buried at the Sayyeda Nefisa cemetery in the south of the city.
Movies & Shows on Plex
Known For
Filmography
| 2013 | Rock the Casbah · as Moulay Hassan |
| 2012 | Final Cut: Ladies and Gentlemen · as Cast |
| 2010 | 2 Everything 2 Terrible 2: Tokyo Drift · as Archival Footage |
| 2009 | I Forgot to Tell You · as Jaume |
| 2009 | The Traveller · as Hassan |
| 2009 | The Last Templar (TV Series) · as Konstantine |
| 2008 | |
| 2008 | 10,000 BC · as Narrator (voice) |
| 2006 | One Night with the King · as Prince Memucan |
| 2006 | Kronprinz Rudolf (TV Series) · as Hans Canon |
| 2006 | Fire at My Heart · as Principe Nicola |
| 2005 | The Ten Commandments (TV Series) · as Jethro |
| 2005 | St. Peter · as San Pietro |
| 2005 | St. Peter (TV Series) · as Pietro |
| 2005 | Filmmakers vs. Tycoons · as Sherif Ali (in 'lawrence Of Arabia') |
| 2004 | Hidalgo · as Sheikh Riyadh |
| 2003 | Monsieur Ibrahim · as Monsieur Ibrahim |
| 2002 | Building the Great Pyramid · as Nakht (voice) |
| 2001 | Shaka Zulu: The Citadel · as The King |
| 2001 | The Parole Officer · as Victor |
| 2001 | Censor · as Mr. Sharif |
| 2000 | |
| 1999 | The 13th Warrior · as Melchisidek |
| 1998 | Mysteries of Egypt · as Grandfather |
| 1997 | Heaven Before I Die · as Khalil Gibran |
| 1996 | Umm Kulthum · as Narrator |
| 1996 | Gulliver's Travels (1996) (TV Series) · as Sorcerer |
| 1995 | Catherine the Great · as Razumovsky |
| 1994 | Red Eagle · as Safar Khan |
| 1993 | |
| 1992 | Mrs. 'Arris Goes to Paris · as Marquis Hippolite |
| 1992 | |
| 1992 | Mother · as Hagop |
| 1991 | Beyond Justice · as Emir Beni-Zair |
| 1991 | War in the Land of Egypt · as Mayor Abdel Razek El-Shershaby |
| 1991 | Mother · as Hagop |
| 1991 | Memories of Midnight (TV Series) · as Constantin Demiris |
| 1991 | Desert Law · as Emir Beni-Zair |
| 1990 | The Rainbow Thief · as Dima |
| 1990 | Viaggio d'amore · as Rico |
| 1990 | Mountains of the Moon · as Arab Chief In Cairo (uncredited) |
| 1989 | The Puppeteer · as Mohamed Gad Al-Karim |
| 1988 | Les pyramides bleues · as Alex |
| 1988 | The Possessed · as Stepan Trofimovich Verkhovensky |
| 1988 | Keys to Freedom · as Jonathan |
| 1987 | Grand Larceny · as Rashid Saud |
| 1986 | Anastasia: The Mystery of Anna (TV Series) · as Czar Nicholas Ii |
| 1986 | Harem · as Sultan Hassan |
| 1986 | Peter the Great (TV Series) · as Prince Feodor Romodanovsky |
| 1984 | Top Secret! · as Agent Cedric |
| 1984 | The Far Pavilions (TV Series) · as Koda Dad |
| 1983 | Ayoub · as Ayoub/abdul Hamid Al-Sukkari |
| 1981 | Inchon · as Indian Brigadier |
| 1981 | |
| 1980 | Pleasure Palace · as Louie Lefevre |
| 1980 | Oh Heavenly Dog · as Bart |
| 1980 | The Baltimore Bullet · as The Deacon |
| 1980 | S.H.E: Security Hazards Expert · as Baron Cesare Magnasco |
| 1979 | Bloodline · as Ivo Palazzi |
| 1979 | |
| 1976 | The Pink Panther Strikes Again · as Egyptian Assassin (uncredited) |
| 1976 | Crime and Passion · as Andre Ferren |
| 1975 | Funny Lady · as Nick Arnstein |
| 1975 | Funny Girl to Funny Lady · as Nick Arnstein |
| 1974 | Juggernaut · as Captain Alex Brunel |
| 1974 | The Tamarind Seed · as Feodor Sverdlov |
| 1973 | Mysterious Island (TV Series) · as Captain Nemo |
| 1973 | The Mysterious Island of Captain Nemo · as Captain Nemo |
| 1972 | Le droit d'aimer · as Pierre |
| 1971 | The Burglars · as Abel Zacharia |
| 1971 | The Horsemen · as Uraz |
| 1971 | The Last Valley · as Vogel |
| 1969 | Che! · as Che Guevara |
| 1969 | The Appointment · as Federico Fendi |
| 1969 | Mackenna's Gold · as Colorado |
| 1968 | Mayerling · as Rudolf, Crown Prince Of Austria |
| 1968 | Funny Girl · as Nick Arnstein |
| 1967 | More Than a Miracle · as Prince Rodrigo Fernandez |
| 1967 | The Night of the Generals · as Major Grau |
| 1966 | The Poppy Is Also a Flower · as Dr. Rad |
| 1965 | Doctor Zhivago · as Dr. Yuri Zhivago |
| 1965 | The Mamelukes · as Ahmed |
| 1965 | Marco the Magnificent · as Sheik Alla Hou |
| 1965 | Genghis Khan · as Genghis Khan / Temujin |
| 1964 | The Yellow Rolls-Royce · as Davich |
| 1964 | Behold a Pale Horse · as Francisco |
| 1964 | The Fall of the Roman Empire · as Sohamus |
| 1962 | Lawrence of Arabia · as Sherif Ali |
| 1961 | A Man in Our House · as Ibrahim Mohammed |
| 1961 | |
| 1961 | Rumor of Love · as Hussein |
| 1960 | The River of Love · as Khalid |
| 1960 | The Beginning and the End · as Hassanein |
| 1960 | My Only Love · as Adel |
| 1960 | |
| 1959 | |
| 1959 | Struggle on the Nile · as Muhassab |
| 1959 | For the Sake of a Woman · as شكري زدحمد |
| 1959 | |
| 1959 | Rendezvous with a Stranger · as Magdi |
| 1958 | Goha · as Goha |
| 1958 | Lady of the Castle · as Adel |
| 1958 | Beach of the Secrets · as Mamduh Ezzat |
| 1957 | Sleepless · as Aziz |
| 1957 | Land of Peace · as Ahmed |
| 1956 | The Lebanese Mission · as Mokrir |
| 1956 | Dark Waters · as Ragab |
| 1955 | Our Best Days · as Ahmad |
| 1954 | Devil of the Sahara · as Essam |
| 1954 | The Blazing Sun · as Ahmed |