Biography
Diamand Abou Abboud is a Lebanese actress, writer, director, and drama professor who studied at the Department of Theater, Cinema, & Television of the Lebanese University's Institute of Fine Arts and Architecture, where she also obtained her master's degree in acting and directing and where she currently teaches.
Initially kick-starting her career in Lebanese theater, Diamand participated in over 14 successful plays, including some that she wrote and directed herself, before writing and directing her first short film POINT VIRGULE, which earned her the Special Jury Award at the European Film Festival in Beirut.
After appearing in several Lebanese, Arab, and international series and short films, Abo Abboud eventually got her cinematic debut in Samir Habchi’s BEIRUT OPEN CITY (2008) alongside Egyptian star Khaled El Nabawy, and starred in Bahij Hojeij’s HERE COMES THE RAIN (2010) two years later.
Diamand’s roles on both the big and small screens varied between Egyptian, Lebanese, and international projects, and her artistic career included several films that received great international attention in various prestigious festivals, with the actress coming into international prominence after starring in Ziad Doueiri’s THE INSULT (2017).
The film premiered at the 74th Venice International Film Festival and was selected as the Lebanese entry for Best Foreign Language Film at the 90th Academy Awards before actually being nominated. The role earned her a French-speaking Supporting Actress Award at the 2018 Francophone Cinema Trophies in Saint Louis.
Among Abou Abboud’s more prominent projects is Philippe Van Leeuw’s INSYRIATED (2017), in which she starred alongside renowned actress Hiam Abbass and earned two awards for — the Valois of Best Actress at the Angoulême Film Festival and the Best Actress Award at the Cairo International Film Festival.
The Lebanese actress also starred in Dominik Moll’s mini-series EDEN (2019), which was produced by ARTE, as well as Netflix’s first-ever original Arabic film Wissam Smayra’s PERFECT STRANGERS (2022) — an Arab remake of the 2016 Italian film PERFETTI SCONOSCIUTI — alongside a star-studded cast that included Mona Zaki, Nadine Labaki, and Eyad Nassar.
Before that, in 2013, Abou Abboud starred in VOID, which she also co-wrote alongside Georges Khabbaz; the film earned her several local and international awards, including the Best Script Award at the Malmö Arab Film Festival, the Best Actress Award at the Al Dakhla Festival in Morocco, the Best Actress Award at the Lebanese Movie Awards, as well as a Murex d’Or for Best Actress. It was also one of the films in consideration to be Lebanon’s official submission for the 88th Academy Awards.
In that same year, Diamand starred in Mahmoud Hojeij’s STABLE UNSTABLE, which premiered at the Dubai International Film Festival and earned her a Murex d'Or Award for Best Lebanese Film Actress.
In 2018, Abou Abboud took to the stage in both France and Belgium for THE FOURTH WALL — an adaptation of the eponymous novel by Sorj Chalandon — and made her debut on the Egyptian small screen in Mahmoud Kamel’s AL SEHAM AL MARIQA, which was co-written by Sherine, Khaled, and Mohamed Diab, costarring alongside Sherif Salama, Shery Adel, Aïcha Ben Ahmed, as well as Wust ElBalad’s Hany Adel, whom she married earlier in 2023.
Diamand then returned to Lebanese drama in 2020 with two Shahid series — BEIRUT 6:07, and Mark Eid and Zahi Farah’s FIXER — as well as Majdi Smiri’s AL NAHAT alongside Bassel Khaiat and Carol Abboud. And, in 2021, she starred in Samer El-Barqawi’s ANA alongside Taim Hassan and Razane Jammal, as well as Rodney Haddad’s AMNESIA.
Among Abou Abboud’s more recent works is Mira Shaib’s Lebanese dramedy ARZÉ, in which she plays a single mother. The film was shot in Beirut in 2022, produced by Ambient Light and Egyptian producer Ali El Arabi, and is set to premiere as part of the Official Competition of the 45th Cairo International Film Festival. Diamand also starred in Kamla Abou Zekry’s Shahid series BITLOU' AL ROUH (2022) alongside Menna Shalaby and Elham Shahin and Hisham Bizri’s thriller ELEKTRA (2023).
Lastly, Diamand recently made her debut starring role in Egyptian cinema alongside Ahmed Hatem in HASSAN EL MASRI, which is another collaboration for her with director Samir Habchi.
Her acting career aside, Abou Abboud has also participated as a jury member in several local and international film festivals, including the Festival International du Film Francophone, the Cairo International Film Festival, the Journées Cinématographiques de Carthage, the Malmö Arab Film Festival, and others. Additionally, she is currently working on preparing for her Ph.D. in theater.