“Mr. Robot” star Rami Malek today received a Screen Actors Guild nomination for Outstanding Performance By a Male Actor In a Drama Series.
“USA is enormously proud of Rami Malek, who brilliantly played a very complex lead role, both through his masterful narration sequences and his compelling on-screen portrayal of Elliot,” said USA Network President Chris McCumber. “We are thrilled the Screen Actors Guild recognized his incredible work.”
“Rami Malek has given ‘Mr. Robot’ its beating heart and tortured soul,” said Jeff Wachtel, Chief Content Officer, Universal Cable Entertainment. “It’s impossible to imagine this groundbreaking show with any other actor at its center.”
The nomination comes on the heels of a string of recent awards and nominations for the series. Most recently, “Mr. Robot” won the Gotham Independent Film Award for Breakthrough Long Form Series and received two Writers Guild Award nominations for drama and new series. The series was also recognized with three Satellite Award nominations for drama series and actors Rami Malek and Christian Slater. Slater was also nominated for Favorite Cable TV Actor at the 2016 People’s Choice Awards. The series took home its first win in March of 2015 at this year’s South By Southwest Festival, where it nabbed the coveted Audience Award in the Episodics category. “Mr. Robot” was also named an official selection of the 2015 Tribeca Film Festival in April.
“Mr. Robot” follows Elliot (Malek), a young programmer who works as a cyber-security engineer by day and as a vigilante hacker by night. Elliot finds himself at a crossroads when the mysterious leader (Christian Slater) of an underground hacker group recruits him to destroy the firm he is paid to protect. Compelled by his personal beliefs, Elliot struggles to resist the chance to take down the multinational CEOS he believes are running (and ruining) the world. The series also stars Portia Doubleday (“Her”), Carly Chaikin (“Suburgatory”), and Martin Wallström (“Simple Simon”).
The first season received tremendous buzz, becoming a critically acclaimed hit with a nearly perfect score on Rotten Tomatoes. The series also resonated with a large audience, ranking as the summer’s #2 basic cable scripted series and #4 new basic cable scripted series of the year in L7 P18-49 and P25-54. To-date, “Mr. Robot” has been sampled 23MM times across all platforms, including linear, VOD, iTunes, USAnetwork.com and multiple digital outlets. The series is regularly ranked among the top five most downloaded series on iTunes.
Prior to “Mr. Robot,” Malek’s television credits include memorable arcs on “24” and “The Pacific” – a performance that garnered rave reviews and led to him being cast by Tom Hanks in “Larry Crowne” at Universal and ‘Bill Condon’ in the last installment of “Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn.” He has also appeared in Paul Thomas Anderson’s “The Master” opposite Philip Seymour Hoffman, Joaquin Phoenix and Amy Adams. Malek also recently starred in “Night at the Museum 3” opposite Ben Stiller.
The 22nd Annual Screen Actors Guild Award winners will be announced at a ceremony in Los Angeles on Saturday, January 30, 2016. The dramatic second season of “Mr. Robot” returns in Summer 2016.
