Personal details
Born:
- Birthday: 1960-11-30
- Born Place: Nazareth, Israel
Also Known As:
Hiam Soualem, Hiam Abbas, Hiyam Abbass, Iliam Abbass, 히암 압바스
Hiam Abbass
Hiam Abbass (born November 30, 1960 in Nazareth, Israel) is a distinguished Palestinian-French actress, writer, and director whose remarkable career spans over three decades . Raised in Deir Hanna and beginning in the Palestinian theatre collective El-Hakawati, her early work laid the foundation for a powerful presence in Arab cinema alongside acclaimed films such as Satin Rouge, The Syrian Bride, Paradise Now, Free Zone, and Insyriated. She has also made her mark in international cinema, appearing in Steven Spielberg’s Munich—for which she served as dialect coach—Tom McCarthy’s The Visitor, Ridley Scott’s Exodus: Gods and Kings, Denis Villeneuve’s Blade Runner 2049, and most recently in Insidious: The Red Door (2023). Abbass debuted as a director and screenwriter with the feature film Inheritance (2012), after creating short films Le Pain and La Danse éternelle . On television, she’s best known for her compelling roles in HBO’s Succession as Marcia Roy and Hulu’s Ramy, earning widespread recognition for portraying complex, authentic characters across languages and cultures. Influential both onscreen and off, Abbass has been an advocate for nuanced Arab representation in Hollywood and a creative collaborator—serving as consultant on Spielberg’s Munich and Iñárritu’s Babel. In 2023, she featured in the documentary Bye Bye Tiberias, directed by her daughter Lina Soualem, reflecting on her exile from Palestine and intergenerational stories of identity. With dual Israeli and French citizenship, fluency in multiple languages, and an unwavering commitment to storytelling, Hiam Abbass continues to be a powerful voice in global cinema.
