Aghdashloo began acting in Iran in the late 1970s before departing during the Revolution. Her breakthrough role came in 2003’s House of Sand and Fog, for which she received a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress. Two years later, she guest-starred in season four of 24, and in 2006 she appeared in X-Men: The Last Stand with Patrick Stewart, Kelsey Grammer and Famke Janssen.
In 2008 she won a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Miniseries or Movie for her portrayal of Sajida Talfah in the BBC docudrama House of Saddam; she also guest-starred on The Simpsons, voicing Mina, one of the show’s first Muslim characters.
