Mozhan Navabi

Mozhan Navabi

Mozhan L. Navabi (born 1979/1980) is an American film and television actress. She is known for her roles in The Blacklist and House of Cards and played Soraya Manutchehri in The Stoning of Soraya M.. From the 2006 start of her career, she was credited as Mozhan Marnò, but has been credited by her maiden name, Navabi, since a 2024 guest appearance on an episode of Law & Order.

Early life and education

Mozhan Navabi

Navabi was born in Los Angeles. Her parents are both from Pahlavi Iran and met in California. She was educated at Phillips Academy in Andover, Massachusetts. She received her B.A. in French and German comparative literature from Barnard College of Columbia University and her M.F.A. in acting from the Yale School of Drama.

Personal life

Mozhan Navabi

As of 2015, she was living in Brooklyn, New York, having moved there sometime before filming began in 2014 for her first season on The Blacklist. In addition to English she speaks French, German, Persian, and some Italian.

Career

Mozhan Navabi

Mozhan Navabi played the title role in the 2008 film The Stoning of Soraya M., set in Iran, about a woman whose husband falsely accuses her of adultery, resulting in her death by stoning. In addition she has had roles in a number of television series including The Paul Reiser Show, The Glades, Hung, The Mentalist, Bones, The Unit, Medium, K-ville, and Standoff. Navabi also appeared in the Untitled John Wells Medical Drama Pilot, which was not aired. She also stars in Ana Lily Amirpour's directorial debut, A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night, produced by Elijah Wood, under his company, The Woodshed. In 2011, Navabi voiced Mirabelle Ervine, a Breton mage and Master Wizard of the College of Winterhold, in the critically acclaimed video game The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim. She played reporter Ayla Sayyad on seasons 2 and 3 of the acclaimed Netflix series House of Cards, for which she was nominated for a SAG award. She played Mossad agent and assassin Samar Navabi in seasons 2-6 of The Blacklist.

Navabi also directs and writes screenplays. Her first feature-length screenplay, When the Lights Went Out, was a quarter finalist for the Nicholl Fellowship. She adapted When the Lights Went Out as a play and it was mounted at New York Stage and Film in July 2013 starring Laura Innes, and directed by Kate Whoriskey. Navabi’s short film, Incoming, which she wrote and directed, was accepted to and

In February 2024, Navabi was cast in the Netflix limited series Zero Day, in the recurring role of Melissa Kornblau.

Filmography

Mozhan Navabi

Note: credited as Mozhan Marnò from 2006 to 2023, credited as Mozhan Navabi since 2024

Film

<table><thead><tr><th>Year</th><th>Title</th><th>Role</th><th>Notes</th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td>2007</td><td>Charlie Wilson's War</td><td>Refugee Camp Translator #2</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>2008</td><td>August</td><td>Ashley</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>Traitor</td><td>Leyla</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>2009</td><td>The Stoning of Soraya M.</td><td>Soraya Manutchehri</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>StereoLife</td><td>Gwendolyn Leeds</td><td>Short film</td></tr><tr><td>2010</td><td>Apples</td><td>Lucky</td><td>Short film (voice role)</td></tr><tr><td>2014</td><td>A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night</td><td>Atti</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>2019</td><td>London Arabia</td><td>Mrs. Hassan</td><td>Short film</td></tr><tr><td>Wonder Woman: Bloodlines</td><td>Doctor Cyber</td><td>Direct-to-video (voice role)</td></tr><tr><td>2021</td><td>iGilbert</td><td>Detective Rivera</td><td>Last film credit as Mozhan Marnò</td></tr><tr><td>2024</td><td>A Chair for Her</td><td>Lameece</td><td>Short film First film credit as Mozhan Navabi</td></tr></tbody></table>

Television

<table><thead><tr><th>Year</th><th>Title</th><th>Role</th><th>Notes</th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td>2006</td><td>The Unit</td><td>Protocol Chief</td><td>Episode: "Security"</td></tr><tr><td>Standoff</td><td>Agnacia</td><td>Episode: "Life Support"</td></tr><tr><td>2007</td><td>Shark</td><td>Maria Lutrova</td><td>Episode: "Gangster Movies"</td></tr><tr><td>K-Ville</td><td>Jodi Mazetta</td><td>Episode: "Ride Along"</td></tr><tr><td>2009</td><td>Bones</td><td>Azita Jabbari</td><td>Episode: "A Night at the Bones Museum"</td></tr><tr><td>Medium</td><td>Rachel</td><td>Episode: "The Devil Inside, Part 2"</td></tr><tr><td>2009, 2011</td><td>The Mentalist</td><td>Nicki Weymouth</td><td>2 episodes</td></tr><tr><td>2010</td><td>Hung</td><td>Samara</td><td>Episode: "The Middle East is Complicated"</td></tr><tr><td>The Glades</td><td>Renee LeFleur</td><td>Episode: "Cassadaga"</td></tr><tr><td>2011</td><td>The Paul Reiser Show</td><td>Zeba</td><td>Recurring role</td></tr><tr><td>2012</td><td>Ringer</td><td>Marguerite</td><td>Episode: "P.S. You're an Idiot"</td></tr><tr><td>In Plain Sight</td><td>Charlotte</td><td>Episode: "Sacrificial Lamb"</td></tr><tr><td>2014–2015</td><td>House of Cards</td><td>Ayla Sayyad</td><td>Recurring role (seasons 2–3)</td></tr><tr><td>2014, 2019</td><td>Madam Secretary</td><td>Roxanne Majidi</td><td>2 episodes</td></tr><tr><td>2014–2022</td><td>The Blacklist</td><td>Samar Navabi</td><td>Main cast (seasons 2–6), guest episode (season 9)</td></tr><tr><td>2019</td><td>The Affair</td><td>Petra</td><td>Recurring role (season 5)</td></tr><tr><td>2021</td><td>Maid</td><td>Tara</td><td>Limited-run series, 2 episodes</td></tr><tr><td>2022</td><td>Pam & Tommy</td><td>Gail Chwatsky</td><td>Miniseries, recurring role</td></tr><tr><td>Fleishman Is in Trouble</td><td>Nahid</td><td>Miniseries, recurring role (last TV credit as Mozhan Marnò)</td></tr><tr><td>2024</td><td>Law & Order</td><td>Stacey Dean</td><td>Episode: "Unintended Consequences" (first TV credit as Mozhan Navabi)</td></tr><tr><td>2025</td><td>Zero Day</td><td>Melissa Kornblau</td><td>Miniseries, recurring role</td></tr><tr><td>The Beast in Me</td><td>Esme Noor</td><td>Miniseries, episode: "Thanatos"</td></tr></tbody></table>

Video games

Year	Title	Role
2011	The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim	Mirabelle Ervine, Namira
2016	1979 Revolution: Black Friday	Bibi Golestan

Audio recordings

Year	Title	Author	Role
2015	Hausfrau	Jill Alexander Essbaum	Narrator
2016	The Other Einstein	Marie Benedict	Narrator
Missoula	Jon Krakauer	Narrator
The Guest Room	Chris Bohjalian
2018	Song of a Captive Bird	Jasmin Dzarnik	Narrator
2019	The Stationery Shop	Marjan Kamali	Narrator
The Other Americans	Laila Lalami	Nora
2020	The Paris Diversion	Chris Pavone	Narrator
The Book of Longings	Sue Monk Kidd	Narrator
2024	The Perfect Marriage	Jeneva Rose	Narrator
2025	The Perfect Divorce	Jeneva Rose	Narrator
Good Girl	Aria Aber	Narrator

Awards and nominations

Mozhan Navabi

Year	Association	Category	Nominated work	Result
2009	Satellite Awards	Best Supporting Actress – Motion Picture	The Stoning of Soraya M.	Nominated
2015	Screen Actors Guild Awards	Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series	House of Cards	Nominated