- Dileep Rao
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Dileep Rao Born Dileep A. Rao
Los Angeles, CaliforniaOccupation Actor Years active 2006-present Dileep A. Rao is an American actor who has appeared in feature films and television series. He starred in Sam Raimi's horror film Drag Me to Hell (2009), James Cameron's science fiction film Avatar (2009), and Christopher Nolan's thriller Inception (2010).
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Life and career
Rao was born in Los Angeles, California to Indian parents, a physicist mother and an engineer father.[1][2] and grew up in Yanbu, Saudi Arabia, Denver, Colorado, and Claremont, California. He has one sister who is a professor at NYU. He graduated from Claremont High School and the University of California, San Diego, with a B.A., later receiving an M.F.A. from the American Conservatory Theater in San Francisco where he was a classmate of Anna Belknap and Elizabeth Banks.
Rao's first role after graduating was in the American premiere of Indian Ink by Tom Stoppard. Rao moved to Los Angeles and began working in regional theater including at the Berkeley Rep, South Coast Repertory, and for the Manhattan Theater Club.
He competed on Jeopardy! on June 7, 2002, and won $34,400.[3] On June 8, 2008, Rao was randomly selected from over 1600 entrants to play the NPR Weekend Edition Sunday puzzle on air with Will Shortz.[4]
Filmography
Year Film Role Notes 2009 Drag Me to Hell Rham Jas Avatar Dr. Max Patel 2010 Inception Yusuf Nominated—Central Ohio Film Critics Association Award for Best Ensemble
Nominated—Phoenix Film Critics Society Award for Best Ensemble
Nominated—Scream Award for Best Ensemble
Nominated—Washington D.C. Area Film Critics Association Award for Best EnsembleHigh average box office
As of February 22, 2011, the average U.S. domestic box office of Dileep Rao's movies was over $363 million and $1.2 billion worldwide. This is an extremely high average, especially for an actor who has appeared in multiple movies. Among actors tracked by Box Office Mojo, the highest average for an actor with multiple movies is Emma Watson with an average of $252 million. Lee Unkrich is reported with an "average" of over $400 million, but this is from a voice appearance in a single film.[5]
TV roles
- Standoff as Robert (2006)
- Brothers & Sisters as Arlo Natterson (2008)
References
- ^ http://www.aiasandiego.org/2010-design-awards-all-star-mc-presenters
- ^ http://www.deccanherald.com/content/3968/whats-buzz.html
- ^ "Dileep Rao". J-Archive. http://www.j-archive.com/showplayer.php?player_id=2962. Retrieved 20 July 2010.
- ^ NPR Weekend Edition, June 8, 2008
- ^ Box office figures from BoxOfficeMojo.com
External links
Categories:- Living people
- Actors from Los Angeles, California
- American film actors
- American people of Indian descent
- American stage actors
- Jeopardy! contestants
- University of California, San Diego alumni
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