Riz Ahmed to Create, Produce, and Star in a Comedy Series for Prime Video

Half-hour series, developed under Ahmed’s Left Handed first-look deal with Amazon MGM Studios 

(Photo Credit: Chris Pizzello – Pool via Reuters)

CULVER CITY, California—June 20, 2024—Today, Prime Video announced it has ordered a yet-to-be-titled half-hour series from Academy Award and Emmy winner Riz Ahmed who will also produce, write, and star in the series. Emmy winner Ben Karlin (Modern Family, The Colbert Report, The Daily Show) is attached to executive produce and will showrun with Ahmed. The series will premiere exclusively on Prime Video in more than 240 countries and territories worldwide.

The series follows Shah Latif, a struggling actor on the cusp of landing the role of a lifetime, only to find himself thrust into a full blown existential crisis and trippy conspiracy thriller all at the same time.

This marks Ahmed’s return to television following his 2017 double Emmy nominations: guest star for Girls and lead actor for The Night Of, the latter of which he won. The series was created by Ahmed and developed under his production company, Left Handed, through their first-look deal with Amazon MGM Studios.

“I’ve wanted to tell this story for a long time. It’s personal, bold, and a lot of fun. It feels so good to be writing and creating it now with this incredible team,” said Riz Ahmed.

“Riz Ahmed is a gifted writer, actor, and producer, and we have been energized by his passion,” said Vernon Sanders, head of television, Amazon MGM Studios. “Led by Riz and the hilarious Ben Karlin, and guided by Rola Bauer’s Pan-English team, this series is sure to delight our global Prime Video customers and make them laugh.”

The show is executive produced by Ahmed and Allie Moore for Left Handed, and Jake Fuller on behalf of Jax Media. Ben Karlin will executive produce and is showrunning with Ahmed. Roopesh Parekh (Willow, His Dark Materials) will also serve as executive producer. The series is produced by Jax Media and Amazon MGM Studios.

Alongside Ahmed, the writers room includes playwright and television veteran Dipika Guha (The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, Black Monday, Sneaky Pete), creator of the Patriot Act, Prashanth Venkataramanujam, Karen Joseph Adcock (The Bear, Swarm, Yellow Jackets, Atlanta), Azam Mahmood (Industry, Ramy), and novelist Fatima Farheen Mirza.
 

About Left Handed
Left Handed is the production company started by Riz Ahmed, focused on stretching culture with bold stories. The company continues to have a first-look deal with Amazon Studios, which was announced in January 2021.  Allie Moore oversees production and development for film and television.

Left Handed won the Academy Award for Best Live Action Short Film with The Long Goodbye in 2022, and made history the same year with Jonas Poher Rasmussen’s Flee; the first movie to earn Oscar nominations in the categories of Best Animated Feature, Best Documentary Feature and Best International Feature. Most recently, Left Handed executive produced Saim Sadiq’s film, Joyland, the first Pakistani film at Cannes, which won both the Un Certain Regard Jury Prize and Queer Palm, as well as the Indie Spirit Award for Best International Feature in 2023. The company’s debut feature Mogul Mowgli, directed by Bassam Tariq, won the International Critics’ Prize at the Berlin Film Festival, was nominated for a BAFTA Award for ‘Best British Film,’ and received six British Independent Film Awards nominations, with the film taking home ‘Best Debut Screenwriter’ for Ahmed and ‘Best Music.’  Left Handed currently has a wide-ranging slate of upcoming projects, including a reimagining of Hamlet from Aneil Karia, which is currently in post-production, and an adaptation of Booker Prize Nominated Novel Exit West for Netflix in partnership with the Obamas’ Higher Ground Productions and Joe and Anthony Russo’s AGBO.
 

About Prime Video
Prime Video is a one-stop entertainment destination offering customers a vast collection of premium programming in one application available across thousands of devices. On Prime Video, customers can find their favorite movies, series, documentaries, and live sports – including Amazon MGM Studios-produced series and movies Road House, The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power, Fallout, Reacher, The Boys, and The Idea of You; licensed fan favorites American Fiction and The Boys in the Boat; Prime member exclusive access to coverage of live sports including Thursday Night Football, WNBA, and NWSL, and acclaimed sports documentaries including Bye Bye Barry and Federer; and programming from partners such as Max, Crunchyroll and MGM+ via Prime Video Channels add-on subscriptions, as well as more than 500 free ad-supported (FAST) Channels. Prime members in the U.S. can share a variety of benefits, including Prime Video, by using Amazon Household. Prime Video is one benefit among many that provides savings, convenience, and entertainment as part of the Prime membership. All customers, regardless of whether they have a Prime membership or not, can rent or buy titles, including blockbusters such as Challengers and The Fall Guy, via the Prime Video Store, and can enjoy content such as Jury Duty and Bosch: Legacy free with ads on Freevee. Customers can also go behind the scenes of their favorite movies and series with exclusive X-Ray access. For more info visitwww.amazon.com/primevideo.