Dileep A. Rao (born July 29, 1973) is an American actor who has appeared in feature films and television series. He starred in Sam Raimi's horror film Drag Me to Hell (2009), James Cameron's science fiction film series Avatar (2009–present), and Christopher Nolan's thriller Inception (2010).
Early life and education Rao was born in Los Angeles, California, to a physicist mother and an engineer father, both of America - Kannadiga descent. He grew up in Yanbu, Saudi Arabia; Denver, Colorado; and Claremont, California. He has one sister, who is a professor at the University of Michigan's Ross School of Business. He graduated from Claremont High School and the University of California, San Diego, with a B.A., later receiving an M.F.A. from the American Conservatory Theater in San Francisco, where his class included Anna Belknap and Elizabeth Banks.
Career Rao's first role after graduating was in the American premiere of Indian Ink by Tom Stoppard. Rao moved to Los Angeles and began working in regional theater including at the Berkeley Rep, South Coast Repertory, and for the Manhattan Theater Club.
He competed on Jeopardy! on June 7, 2002, and won $34,400. On June 8, 2008, Rao was randomly selected from over 1,600 entrants to play the NPR Weekend Edition Sunday puzzle on air with Will Shortz.
In 2009, he appeared in Avatar and Drag Me to Hell. He was nominated for several awards as part of the ensemble cast in Christopher Nolan's 2010 film Inception, in which he played a pharmacologist.
Filmography
Film Year Film Role Notes2009Drag Me to HellRham JasAvatarDr. Max Patel2010InceptionYusuf2014Murder of a CatDoctor Mundhra2015Beeba BoysKash Sood2022Avatar: The Way of WaterDr. Max Patel2025Avatar: Fire and Ash
Television Year Title Role Notes 2002 Jeopardy! Himself 2 episodes 2006 Standoff Robert1 episode 2008 Brothers & Sisters Arlo Natterson 2012 Childrens Hospital Glenn Richard 2013 Touch Vikash Nayar 2 episodes 2015 Z Nation Odegard1 episode 2017 Mr. Robot Sandesh Markesh
References
External links
Interview with Dileep Rao