Sam Esmail (born September 17, 1977)
is an American film and television producer, director, and screenwriter who runs the production company Esmail Corp.
He is best known as the creator, writer and director of the award-winning
USA Network
USA Network (simply USA) is an American basic cable television channel owned by the NBCUniversal Television and Streaming division of Comcast's NBCUniversal through NBCUniversal Cable Entertainment. It was originally launched in 1977 as Madison ...
television series ''
Mr. Robot
''Mr. Robot'' is an American drama thriller television series created by Sam Esmail for USA Network. It stars Rami Malek as Elliot Alderson, a cybersecurity engineer and hacker with social anxiety disorder, clinical depression and dissociative ...
'' (2015–2019), starring
Rami Malek
Rami Said Malek (; , ; born May 12, 1981) is an American actor. He is known for portraying computer hacker Elliot Alderson in the USA Network television series ''Mr. Robot'' (2015–2019), for which he received the Primetime Emmy Award for Outs ...
. He also wrote and directed the feature film ''
Comet
A comet is an icy, small Solar System body that, when passing close to the Sun, warms and begins to release gases, a process that is called outgassing. This produces a visible atmosphere or coma, and sometimes also a tail. These phenomena ar ...
'' (2014). He directed and produced the acclaimed
Amazon Prime Video
Amazon Prime Video, also known simply as Prime Video, is an American Video on demand#Subscription models, subscription video on-demand Over-the-top media service, over-the-top Streaming media, streaming and Renting, rental service of Amazon (c ...
psychological thriller ''
Homecoming
Homecoming is the tradition of welcoming back alumni or other former members of an organization to celebrate the organization's existence. It is a tradition in many high schools, colleges, and churches in the United States, Canada and Liberia.
...
'' (2018–2020), starring
Julia Roberts
Julia Fiona Roberts (born October 28, 1967) is an American actress. Known for her leading roles in films encompassing a variety of genres, she has received multiple accolades, including an Academy Award, a British Academy Film Award, and thr ...
and
Janelle Monáe
Janelle Monáe Robinson (; born December 1, 1985) is an American singer, rapper and actress. She is signed to Atlantic Records, as well as to her own imprint, the Wondaland Arts Society. Monáe has received eight Grammy Award nominations. Monà ...
,
and produced
USA
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country Continental United States, primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., ...
's ''
Briarpatch
''Briarpatch'' is an independent alternative news magazine based in Saskatchewan, Canada and distributed across Canada and internationally.
''Briarpatch'' is published six times a year by Briarpatch Incorporated, an independent non-profit organi ...
'' (2020),
Starz
Starz (stylized as STARZ since 2016; pronounced "stars") is an American premium cable and satellite television network owned by Lions Gate Entertainment, and is the flagship property of parent subsidiary Starz Inc. Programming on Starz consist ...
's
''Gaslit'' (2022), and
Peacock
Peafowl is a common name for three bird species in the genera ''Pavo (genus), Pavo'' and ''Afropavo'' within the tribe Pavonini of the family Phasianidae, the pheasants and their allies. Male peafowl are referred to as peacocks, and female pea ...
's ''
Angelyne
Angelyne (born Ronia Tamar Goldberg, September 12, 1950) is an American singer, actress, media personality, and model who came to prominence in 1984 after the appearance of a series of iconic billboards in and around Los Angeles, California, wi ...
'' (2022) and ''
The Resort'' (2022). As of 2023, Esmail is attached to produce a number of upcoming television series and films, including ''Metropolis'' (a miniseries adaptation of the
1927 silent film), and the film ''
Leave the World Behind''—both for which he also serves as director and writer—and a new ''Battlestar Galactica'' television series to serve as a soft reboot of the
2004 show's universe.
Esmail's work often centers on the themes of alienation, technology, and
American society
The society of the United States is based on Western culture, and has been developing since long before the United States became a country with its own unique social and cultural characteristics such as dialect, music, arts, social habits, ...
, and he is known to work with
cinematographer
The cinematographer or director of photography (sometimes shortened to DP or DOP) is the person responsible for the photographing or recording of a film, television production, music video or other live action piece. The cinematographer is the ch ...
Tod Campbell and producer Chad Hamilton of
Anonymous Content
Anonymous Content (AC) is an American entertainment company founded in 1999 by CEO Steve Golin. It is based in Los Angeles with offices in Culver City, New York City and London.
History
Anonymous Content was founded in 1999 by CEO Steve Gol ...
.
Early life
Esmail was born to
Egyptian
Egyptian describes something of, from, or related to Egypt.
Egyptian or Egyptians may refer to:
Nations and ethnic groups
* Egyptians, a national group in North Africa
** Egyptian culture, a complex and stable culture with thousands of years of ...
immigrant parents in
Hoboken, New Jersey
Hoboken ( ; Unami: ') is a city in Hudson County in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 U.S. census, the city's population was 60,417. The Census Bureau's Population Estimates Program calculated that the city's population was 58,690 i ...
.
He has an older sister and two younger brothers, including Samer Esmail who was a post-production coordinator for ''Mr. Robot'' and ''Homecoming''. His family is Muslim
Muslims ( ar, المسلمون, , ) are people who adhere to Islam, a monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God of Abrah ...
.
When he was five years old, his family moved to South Carolina
)''Animis opibusque parati'' ( for, , Latin, Prepared in mind and resources, links=no)
, anthem = " Carolina";" South Carolina On My Mind"
, Former = Province of South Carolina
, seat = Columbia
, LargestCity = Charleston
, LargestMetro = ...
and then to Charlotte, North Carolina
Charlotte ( ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of North Carolina. Located in the Piedmont region, it is the county seat of Mecklenburg County. The population was 874,579 at the 2020 census, making Charlotte the 16th-most populo ...
. As a kid, Esmail was very interested in technology. He acquired his first computer when he was nine and began computer programming
Computer programming is the process of performing a particular computation (or more generally, accomplishing a specific computing result), usually by designing and building an executable computer program. Programming involves tasks such as ana ...
a few years later. He attended high school in Summerville, South Carolina
Summerville is a town in the U.S. state of South Carolina situated mostly in Dorchester County, with small portions in Berkeley and Charleston counties. It is part of the Charleston-North Charleston-Summerville Metropolitan Statistical Area. Su ...
, where he said, "I used to hold Stanley Kubrick
Stanley Kubrick (; July 26, 1928 – March 7, 1999) was an American film director, producer, screenwriter, and photographer. Widely considered one of the greatest filmmakers of all time, his films, almost all of which are adaptations of nove ...
film festivals at my house in high school. These are not cool things. Back in my day, those are things that you would get beaten up for," adding, "When you're a funny-looking Egyptian growing up in Jersey and South Carolina, it kind of gets rough." The family eventually moved back to Sewell, New Jersey
Sewell ( ) is a census-designated place and unincorporated community within Mantua Township in Gloucester County, New Jersey. It is named for United States Senator William Joyce Sewell. Sewell is served as U.S. Postal Service ZIP Code 08080.< ...
, where Esmail graduated from Washington Township High School in 1995.
Esmail attended New York University
New York University (NYU) is a private research university in New York City. Chartered in 1831 by the New York State Legislature, NYU was founded by a group of New Yorkers led by then-Secretary of the Treasury Albert Gallatin.
In 1832, the ...
where he studied film and computer science. He graduated in 1998 from the university's Tisch School of the Arts
The New York University Tisch School of the Arts (commonly referred to as Tisch) is the performing, cinematic and media arts school of New York University.
Founded on August 17, 1965, Tisch is a training ground for artists, scholars of the a ...
. While attending the school, Esmail worked in its computer lab before being put on academic probation for hacking emails there.
After graduating he briefly worked for an internet start-up
A startup or start-up is a company or project undertaken by an entrepreneur to seek, develop, and validate a scalable business model. While entrepreneurship refers to all new businesses, including self-employment and businesses that never intend t ...
, before founding his own ISP
An Internet service provider (ISP) is an organization that provides services for accessing, using, or participating in the Internet. ISPs can be organized in various forms, such as commercial, community-owned, non-profit, or otherwise private ...
software company called Portal Vision. At age 20, he raised US$6 million in venture capital
Venture capital (often abbreviated as VC) is a form of private equity financing that is provided by venture capital firms or funds to startups, early-stage, and emerging companies that have been deemed to have high growth potential or which ha ...
funding during the dot-com boom
The dot-com bubble (dot-com boom, tech bubble, or the Internet bubble) was a stock market bubble in the late 1990s, a period of massive growth in the use and adoption of the Internet.
Between 1995 and its peak in March 2000, the Nasdaq Compos ...
but the software quickly became outdated when broadband internet began replacing dial-up
Dial-up Internet access is a form of Internet access that uses the facilities of the public switched telephone network (PSTN) to establish a connection to an Internet service provider (ISP) by dialing a telephone number on a conventional telepho ...
. He left his position as president and chief technology officer to briefly attend Dartmouth College
Dartmouth College (; ) is a private research university in Hanover, New Hampshire. Established in 1769 by Eleazar Wheelock, it is one of the nine colonial colleges chartered before the American Revolution. Although founded to educate Native A ...
's creative writing program.
Esmail moved to Los Angeles in 2001 where he attended the AFI Conservatory
The AFI Conservatory is a private not-for-profit graduate film school in the Hollywood Hills district of Los Angeles. Students (called "Fellows") learn from the masters in a collaborative, hands-on production environment with an emphasis on st ...
. He graduated with a Master of Fine Arts
A Master of Fine Arts (MFA or M.F.A.)
is a terminal degree in fine arts, including visual arts, creative writing, graphic design, photography, filmmaking, dance, theatre, other performing arts and in some cases, theatre management or arts admini ...
in directing in 2004.
Career
2004–2014: Early career and ''Comet''
After graduating the AFI Conservatory in 2004, Esmail struggled to find work and held odd jobs. He worked as an assistant Film editor for a few years and was eventually able to establish a career as a post-production
Post-production is part of the process of filmmaking, video production, audio production, and photography. Post-production includes all stages of production occurring after principal photography or recording individual program segments.
The ...
supervisor of behind-the-scenes features and television specials; his work included helping to edit episodes of reality television shows for Lifetime
Lifetime may refer to:
* Life expectancy, the length of time a person is expected to remain alive
Arts, entertainment, and media
Music
* Lifetime (band), a rock band from New Jersey
* ''Life Time'' (Rollins Band album), by Rollins Band
* ...
and A&E and stand-up specials for Comedy Central
Comedy Central is an American basic cable channel owned by Paramount Global through its network division's MTV Entertainment Group unit, based in Manhattan. The channel is geared towards young adults aged 18–34 and carries comedy programming ...
, HBO
Home Box Office (HBO) is an American premium television network, which is the flagship property of namesake parent subsidiary Home Box Office, Inc., itself a unit owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. The overall Home Box Office business unit is ba ...
's documentary series ''Tourgasm
''Tourgasm'' is an American documentary television series that aired on HBO in 2006. The series follows the 2005 30-day 20-show stand-up comedy tour featuring Dane Cook and three of his best friends in the industry: Robert Kelly, Gary Gulman, ...
'' and ''HBO First Look'', and "the making of" features for The Fast and the Furious
''Fast & Furious'' (also known as ''The Fast and the Furious'') is a media franchise centered on a series of action films that are largely concerned with street racing, heists, spies, and family. The franchise also includes short films, a t ...
franchise, as well as supervise the 2010 A&E documentary ''The Battle for Late Night''.
When not working as a full-time editor, Esmail worked on writing screenplays. Frustrated with his career, Hollywood, and its films, Esmail began writing his own feature films. His screenplay, ''Sequels, Remakes & Adaptations'' landed on 2008's Black List
Blacklisting is the action of a group or authority compiling a blacklist (or black list) of people, countries or other entities to be avoided or distrusted as being deemed unacceptable to those making the list. If someone is on a blacklist, t ...
, a yearly survey of over six hundred production companies and film executives of the "most liked" motion picture screenplays not yet produced. After this, he was able to find representation
Representation may refer to:
Law and politics
*Representation (politics), political activities undertaken by elected representatives, as well as other theories
** Representative democracy, type of democracy in which elected officials represent a ...
in Hollywood and began working more as a screenwriter; he wrote another screenplay that also landed on the Black List the following year and co-wrote the horror film ''Mockingbird
Mockingbirds are a group of New World passerine birds from the family Mimidae. They are best known for the habit of some species mimicking the songs of other birds and the sounds of insects and amphibians, often loudly and in rapid succession. ...
'' with writer Bryan Bertino
Bryan Michael Bertino (born October 17, 1977) is an American filmmaker. He is best known as the writer/director of '' The Strangers'' (2008), as well as writing its sequel, '' The Strangers: Prey at Night'' (2018), with Ben Ketai.
Early life a ...
, which was released in 2014.
He wrote seriously for years before stopping to focus on his passion, directing. He began writing his own feature-length directorial debut, ''Comet
A comet is an icy, small Solar System body that, when passing close to the Sun, warms and begins to release gases, a process that is called outgassing. This produces a visible atmosphere or coma, and sometimes also a tail. These phenomena ar ...
,'' which was released by IFC Films
IFC Films is an American film production and distribution company based in New York. It is an offshoot of IFC owned by AMC Networks. It distributes mainly independent films under its own name, select foreign films and documentaries under its S ...
in 2014. ''Comet'' premiered at the Los Angeles Film Festival
The LA Film Festival was an annual film festival that was held in Los Angeles, California, and usually took place in June. It showcased independent, international, feature, documentary and short films, as well as web series, music videos, episod ...
and had a limited box office release.
2014–present: ''Mr. Robot'' and prestige television
''Mr. Robot''
Originally intending it as a follow-up feature film to ''Comet'', Esmail began working on the technological thriller ''Mr. Robot
''Mr. Robot'' is an American drama thriller television series created by Sam Esmail for USA Network. It stars Rami Malek as Elliot Alderson, a cybersecurity engineer and hacker with social anxiety disorder, clinical depression and dissociative ...
'' in the late 2000s, inspired in part by the 2008 financial crisis
8 (eight) is the natural number following 7 and preceding 9.
In mathematics
8 is:
* a composite number, its proper divisors being , , and . It is twice 4 or four times 2.
* a power of two, being 2 (two cubed), and is the first number of t ...
and the Arab Spring
The Arab Spring ( ar, الربيع العربي) was a series of Nonviolent resistance, anti-government protests, Rebellion, uprisings and Insurgency, armed rebellions that spread across much of the Arab world in the early 2010s. It began in T ...
. He has said that the main character, Elliot, is a "thinly-veiled version" of himself; like Elliot, Esmail also suffers from social anxiety and is from Washington Township in New Jersey. He was later inspired to take what he had written and create a pilot for what he imagined would be a four-or-five season show. He shopped his projects around to many different television networks
Network, networking and networked may refer to:
Science and technology
* Network theory, the study of graphs as a representation of relations between discrete objects
* Network science, an academic field that studies complex networks
Mathematics
...
and began developing the show with USA Network
USA Network (simply USA) is an American basic cable television channel owned by the NBCUniversal Television and Streaming division of Comcast's NBCUniversal through NBCUniversal Cable Entertainment. It was originally launched in 1977 as Madison ...
in 2014.
''Mr. Robot
''Mr. Robot'' is an American drama thriller television series created by Sam Esmail for USA Network. It stars Rami Malek as Elliot Alderson, a cybersecurity engineer and hacker with social anxiety disorder, clinical depression and dissociative ...
'' premiered on the USA Network on June 24, 2015. Esmail is the creator, executive producer and head writer of the series. Beginning with season two, Esmail also directed all episodes of the show; in total he directed thirty-eight of its forty-five episodes. The first season of the show was critically acclaimed and Esmail himself was nominated for two Emmys
The Emmy Awards, or Emmys, are an extensive range of awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international television industry. A number of annual Emmy Award ceremonies are held throughout the calendar year, each with the ...
, among other awards. The following three seasons of the show premiered in July 2016, October 2017, and October 2019, respectively.
In a 2015 interview, Esmail explained the influence of his experiences as a first-generation American on his work, saying, "I tend to write about alienated figures who can't connect with others and who are kind of distant from American culture. It's not something I am consciously doing but it's something that happens to be infused inside me because of my experience growing up in America."
Esmail Corp and television production
Following the wide recognition of ''Mr. Robot'', Esmail formed his own production company
A production company, production house, production studio, or a production team is a studio that creates works in the fields of performing arts, new media art, film, television, radio, comics, interactive arts, video games, websites, music, and ...
, Esmail Corp. In early 2017, Esmail was called on by Universal Pictures
Universal Pictures (legally Universal City Studios LLC, also known as Universal Studios, or simply Universal; common metonym: Uni, and formerly named Universal Film Manufacturing Company and Universal-International Pictures Inc.) is an Ameri ...
to produce a film centered around the Bermuda Triangle
The Bermuda Triangle, also known as the Devil's Triangle, is an urban legend focused on a loosely defined region in the western part of the North Atlantic Ocean where a number of aircraft and ships are said to have disappeared under mysterio ...
, but production has since not been carried through.
Esmail was one of the executive producers and director of the Amazon Video
Amazon Prime Video, also known simply as Prime Video, is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming and rental service of Amazon offered as a standalone service or as part of Amazon's Prime subscription. The service pri ...
series ''Homecoming
Homecoming is the tradition of welcoming back alumni or other former members of an organization to celebrate the organization's existence. It is a tradition in many high schools, colleges, and churches in the United States, Canada and Liberia.
...
'', starring Julia Roberts
Julia Fiona Roberts (born October 28, 1967) is an American actress. Known for her leading roles in films encompassing a variety of genres, she has received multiple accolades, including an Academy Award, a British Academy Film Award, and thr ...
and Bobby Cannavale
Roberto Michael Cannavale (; born May 3, 1970) is an American actor. He is best known for various television roles, including leading roles in ''Third Watch'', ''Vinyl'', and ''Mr. Robot'', as well as recurring roles in ''Will & Grace'', which wo ...
. He received strong reviews for his direction of the show, which premiered in November 2018. In 2018, Esmail worked on creating the television show ''Briarpatch
''Briarpatch'' is an independent alternative news magazine based in Saskatchewan, Canada and distributed across Canada and internationally.
''Briarpatch'' is published six times a year by Briarpatch Incorporated, an independent non-profit organi ...
'' with journalist and producer Andy Greenwald
Andy Greenwald (born May 19, 1977) is an American author, critic, podcaster, screenwriter, and television producer.
Life and career
Greenwald grew up in Philadelphia and currently lives in Los Angeles, California. He graduated from Friends' C ...
, who previously hosted the ''Mr. Robot'' aftershow
An aftershow or after-show is a genre of television talk show whose topic is another television program. An aftershow is typically broadcast immediately after a new episode of its corresponding program to help retain the audience, and to provide ad ...
''Hacking Robot'' on USA. The show, which Esmail executive produced, was picked up by USA Network in 2019. The show was released in 2020 as well as the second season of ''Homecoming''.
Partnership with Universal Content Productions
In February 2019, it was announced that Esmail had signed his company to a four-year exclusive deal with Universal Content Productions
Universal Content Productions (UCP) is an American television production company operating within the Universal Studio Group division of NBCUniversal.
History Universal Cable Productions
In July 2008, Universal Cable Productions was split off ...
with whom he had already produced ''Mr. Robot'', ''Homecoming'', and ''Briarpatch''. Following this announcement, a number of projects in development were announced which would be sold and produced in the following few years.
In 2019, it was announced that Esmail was developing a limited series Limited series may refer to:
*Limited series, individual storylines within an anthology series
*Limited series, a particular run of collectables, usually individually numbered
*Limited series (comics), a comics series with a predetermined number of ...
with Emmy Rossum
Emmanuelle Grey Rossum (born September 12, 1986) is an American actress, director, and singer. She is known for her portrayal of List of Shameless (American TV series) characters#Fiona Gallagher, Fiona Gallagher in the television series ''Shame ...
for the NBCUniversal
NBCUniversal Media, LLC is an American multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate corporation owned by Comcast and headquartered at 30 Rockefeller Plaza in Midtown Manhattan, New York City, United States.
NBCUniversal is primari ...
streaming service Peacock
Peafowl is a common name for three bird species in the genera ''Pavo (genus), Pavo'' and ''Afropavo'' within the tribe Pavonini of the family Phasianidae, the pheasants and their allies. Male peafowl are referred to as peacocks, and female pea ...
based on the Los Angeles pseudo-celebrity Angelyne
Angelyne (born Ronia Tamar Goldberg, September 12, 1950) is an American singer, actress, media personality, and model who came to prominence in 1984 after the appearance of a series of iconic billboards in and around Los Angeles, California, wi ...
. Produced during the first half of 2020, ''Angelyne
Angelyne (born Ronia Tamar Goldberg, September 12, 1950) is an American singer, actress, media personality, and model who came to prominence in 1984 after the appearance of a series of iconic billboards in and around Los Angeles, California, wi ...
'' was ultimately released May 19, 2022.
In September 2020, Esmail sold two dramas to ABC
ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script known as the alphabet.
ABC or abc may also refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media Broadcasting
* American Broadcasting Company, a commercial U.S. TV broadcaster
** Disney–ABC Television ...
; in January 2021, a pilot was ordered for the first of those shows, ''Acts of Crime'', but was not picked up by the network.
In February 2020, it was also announced that Esmail would be producing a new television series with ''Homecoming'' collaborator Julia Roberts based on the '' Slow Burn'' podcast's coverage of the Watergate scandal
The Watergate scandal was a major political scandal in the United States involving the administration of President Richard Nixon from 1972 to 1974 that led to Nixon's resignation. The scandal stemmed from the Nixon administration's continual ...
. Titled '' Gaslit'', production began in Spring 2021 and it premiered on Starz
Starz (stylized as STARZ since 2016; pronounced "stars") is an American premium cable and satellite television network owned by Lions Gate Entertainment, and is the flagship property of parent subsidiary Starz Inc. Programming on Starz consist ...
in April 2022. Also in 2020, it was announced that Esmail will direct a film adaptation
A film adaptation is the transfer of a work or story, in whole or in part, to a feature film. Although often considered a type of derivative work, film adaptation has been conceptualized recently by academic scholars such as Robert Stam as a dial ...
of the novel '' Leave the World Behind'' for Netflix with Roberts. Production began in April 2022, at which time it was announced that the Obamas’ Higher Ground Productions
Higher Ground Productions, also known simply as Higher Ground, is an American production company founded in 2018 by former United States President Barack Obama and former First Lady Michelle Obama.
History
In May 2018, the Obamas launched Higher ...
had joined the project as producers.
In June 2021, it was announced that Peacock
Peafowl is a common name for three bird species in the genera ''Pavo (genus), Pavo'' and ''Afropavo'' within the tribe Pavonini of the family Phasianidae, the pheasants and their allies. Male peafowl are referred to as peacocks, and female pea ...
had picked up '' The Resort,'' a darkly comedic television series which features true crime
True crime is a nonfiction literary, podcast, and film genre in which the author examines an actual crime and details the actions of real people associated with and affected by criminal events.
The crimes most commonly include murder; about 40 per ...
stories that took place at resort
A resort (North American English) is a self-contained commercial establishment that tries to provide most of a vacationer's wants, such as food, drink, swimming, lodging, sports, entertainment, and shopping, on the premises. The term ''resort ...
s. First announced in 2020, Esmail, who serves as executive producer, developed the project with screenwriter Andy Siara. The eight episode series went into production in 2022.
In March 2022, Apple ordered to series the television adaptation of the 1927 sci-fi classic ''Metropolis
A metropolis () is a large city or conurbation which is a significant economic, political, and cultural center for a country or region, and an important hub for regional or international connections, commerce, and communications.
A big c ...
,'' to be written, directed, and produced by Esmail. The project was first revealed in 2016.'
In development
Since 2018, Esmail has been developing a film with Universal Pictures
Universal Pictures (legally Universal City Studios LLC, also known as Universal Studios, or simply Universal; common metonym: Uni, and formerly named Universal Film Manufacturing Company and Universal-International Pictures Inc.) is an Ameri ...
and ''Mr. Robot'' star Rami Malek based on the memoir ''American Radical: Inside the World of an Undercover Muslim FBI Agent'' by Tamer Elnoury and Kevin Maurer; the story centers on a Muslim
Muslims ( ar, المسلمون, , ) are people who adhere to Islam, a monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God of Abrah ...
FBI
The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is the domestic Intelligence agency, intelligence and Security agency, security service of the United States and its principal Federal law enforcement in the United States, federal law enforcement age ...
agent working for the agency post-9/11
The September 11 attacks, commonly known as 9/11, were four coordinated suicide terrorist attacks carried out by al-Qaeda against the United States on Tuesday, September 11, 2001. That morning, nineteen terrorists hijacked four commercial ...
. Two years following the initial announcement, in September 2020, it was announced that screenwriter Nazrin Choudhury
Nazrin Choudhury is a British screenwriter and actress of Bangladeshi descent, best known for her radio dramas and extensive work in American television.
Early life
Choudhury was born in South West London, England to parents of Bangladeshi or ...
is attached to pen the film. As of 2019, Esmail and Malek were also working together on another undisclosed project.
In February 2020, it was announced that Esmail would develop one of the initial projects for Condé Nast's new Wired Studio; called ''Tell Tale Heart'', his film is based on the 2019 Wired article of the same name. He began developing television series ''The American Throne'' with director Julius Onah
Julius Onah (born February 10, 1983) is a Nigerian-American filmmaker and occasional actor.
...
in 2021. Other projects in various stages of pre-production include a miniseries
A miniseries or mini-series is a television series that tells a story in a predetermined, limited number of episodes. "Limited series" is another more recent US term which is sometimes used interchangeably. , the popularity of miniseries format h ...
based on '','' an ensemble comedy ''False Alarm'' produced with Paul Feig
Paul Samuel Feig (; born September 17, 1962) is an American actor, comedian and filmmaker. He is known for directing films starring frequent collaborator Melissa McCarthy, including ''Bridesmaids'' (2011), '' The Heat'' (2013), ''Spy'' (2015) ...
, and a Coast guard
A coast guard or coastguard is a maritime security organization of a particular country. The term embraces wide range of responsibilities in different countries, from being a heavily armed military force with customs and security duties to ...
-centered procedural. Esmail is also developing a series for the ''Battlestar Galactica
''Battlestar Galactica'' is an American science fiction media franchise created by Glen A. Larson. The franchise began with the Battlestar Galactica (1978 TV series), original television series in 1978, and was followed by a short-run sequel se ...
'' franchise for NBCU with Michael Lesslie as showrunner. As of 2019, he is also producing a scripted podcast
A podcast is a program made available in digital format for download over the Internet. For example, an episodic series of digital audio or video files that a user can download to a personal device to listen to at a time of their choosing ...
series for the UCP Audio network called ''This End Up''.
Personal life
In August 2015, Esmail became engaged to actress Emmy Rossum
Emmanuelle Grey Rossum (born September 12, 1986) is an American actress, director, and singer. She is known for her portrayal of List of Shameless (American TV series) characters#Fiona Gallagher, Fiona Gallagher in the television series ''Shame ...
after dating for two years. He had directed her in his debut film, ''Comet
A comet is an icy, small Solar System body that, when passing close to the Sun, warms and begins to release gases, a process that is called outgassing. This produces a visible atmosphere or coma, and sometimes also a tail. These phenomena ar ...
''. Rossum is of mixed Russian Jewish
The history of the Jews in Russia and areas historically connected with it goes back at least 1,500 years. Jews in Russia have historically constituted a large religious and ethnic diaspora; the Russian Empire at one time hosted the largest pop ...
descent on her mothers side. The two married on May 28, 2017, at a Reform
Reform ( lat, reformo) means the improvement or amendment of what is wrong, corrupt, unsatisfactory, etc. The use of the word in this way emerges in the late 18th century and is believed to originate from Christopher Wyvill#The Yorkshire Associati ...
synagogue in New York City. On May 24, 2021, Rossum gave birth to their daughter.
Esmail is fluent in Arabic
Arabic (, ' ; , ' or ) is a Semitic languages, Semitic language spoken primarily across the Arab world.Semitic languages: an international handbook / edited by Stefan Weninger; in collaboration with Geoffrey Khan, Michael P. Streck, Janet C ...
, notably giving part of his acceptance speech at the Golden Globes
The Golden Globe Awards are accolades bestowed by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association beginning in January 1944, recognizing excellence in both American and international film and television. Beginning in 2022, there are 105 members of t ...
in the language.
Esmail suffers from social anxiety disorder
Social anxiety disorder (SAD), also known as social phobia, is an anxiety disorder characterized by sentiments of fear and anxiety in social situations, causing considerable distress and impaired ability to function in at least some aspects ...
and credits his wife Rossum in helping him with it.
Esmail splits his time between New York City and Los Angeles.
Filmography
Film
Television
Accolades
References
External links
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Esmail, Sam
Living people
1977 births
People from Hoboken, New Jersey
American male writers
American directors
American screenwriters
American people of Egyptian descent
American Muslims
American film producers
Tisch School of the Arts alumni
AFI Conservatory alumni
Writers from Hoboken, New Jersey
Television producers from New Jersey
People from Washington Township, Gloucester County, New Jersey
Washington Township High School (New Jersey) alumni