Erick Avari is an Indian-American television, film and theater actor known
primarily for his roles in science-fiction serial productions.
Early life Erick Avari was born Nariman Eruch Avari
in Darjeeling, West Bengal, India, into an old Parsi-Zoroastrian family. His
father, Eruch Avari, ran two movie theatres, the Capitol and the Rink. His
early education was at the prestigious North Point School, which he attended as
a day-scholar. He later studied at the College of Charleston.
Erick is a member of the Avari-Madan family of Darjeeling and Calcutta. His
great-great-grandfather was Jamshedji Framji Madan, one of the pioneers of
Indian cinema. Career
Avari is known for his roles in such films as Stargate, Flight of the Living
Dead, The Mummy, Daredevil, Home Alone 4, Planet of the Apes, and Mr. Deeds. He
is one of only two actors, along with Alexis Cruz, to appear in both the
original Stargate movie and the spin-off series Stargate SG-1. Before arriving in
Los Angeles in 1991, his extensive work onstage garnered him praise from theater
critics across America, most notably as Vasquez, in 'Tis Pity She's a Whore with
Val Kilmer at the Joseph Papp Public Theater, and as Sir Richard at The
Guthrie Theater's memorable production of The Screens.
He has made guest appearances on Castle, The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, Heroes,
Hope & Faith, Law & Order, Burn Notice, Lie to Me, Party Down, Star Trek: The
Next Generation, seaQuest DSV, Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, Star Trek:
Enterprise, The West Wing, The X-Files, Dharma & Greg, Babylon 5, Alias, The
O.C., The Sarah Silverman Program, Leverage, Lois & Clark: The New
Adventures of Superman, Covert Affairs, and Human Target. He appeared in cameo
roles in JAG; Living People; NYPD Blue; Cheers; Murder, She Wrote; Roseanne;
Judging Amy; NCIS; and Everwood. In the video game Zork Grand Inquisitor, he
played Grand Inquisitor Mir Yannick, a ruthless dictator who serves as the
game's main villain. He also appeared in The Librarian: Return to King Solomon's
Mines. Beginning in the autumn of 2006, a
photograph of Avari and a recording of his voice have been used in the role of
Chandra Suresh in Heroes. He did not appear onscreen until the episode "Seven
Minutes to Midnight", as his character is part of the backstory and had died
before the events of the pilot. When his character does appear, it is only in
flashbacks until the episode "Six Months Ago", when the story centers on six
months before the events of the pilot episode. In this episode, Suresh moves
to New York and contacts people on "the list" he generated of those he believes
to have special genetic aberrations. Over the course of his career, Avari has
portrayed representatives of more than 24 ethnicities. As of November 2006, he
has appeared in 33 feature films and over 70 television episodes. Avari has
appeared with Brent Spiner in four different productions: Star Trek: The
Next Generation, Independence Day, The Master of Disguise, and Home Alone 4. He
performed opposite Richard Gere in a drama film based on a true story: Hachi:
A Dog's Tale, in which he played Jasjeet, an Indian hot dog vendor.
Avari was scheduled to reprise in his role as Kasuf in the Stargate SG-1
Season Six finale "Full Circle", but was unable to do so due to his commitment to
Dragnet. In January 2009, he played a cell phone
salesman in Paul Blart: Mall Cop, and in October 2009, he was cast as Omar on
Days of Our Lives. In 2014, Avari voiced Master Rahool in
the science fiction video game Destiny. TV series
The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air Heroes
Hope & Faith Law & Order
Lie to me Star Trek: The Next Generation
Burn Notice seaQuest DSV
Star Trek: Deep Space Nine Star Trek: Enterprise
Roseanne Martin
The West Wing The X-Files
Dharma & Greg Babylon 5
Alias The O.C.
The Sarah Silverman Program Leverage
Lois and Clark The New Adventures of Superman
Major Crimes Human Target
Stargate SG1 The Mentalist
NCIS: LA Grimm
Warehouse 13 References
External links Official Website
Erick Avari at the Internet Movie Database