‘The Night Of’ Star Riz Ahmed Was Just as Surprised About Show’s Twists

Zaillian had given Ahmed the pilot script, but the actor known mostly for British indies like “Four Lions” had only the smallest inkling that his character would spend most of the series in Rikers Island jail, and no idea of the kind of changes he would undergo there.

“The Night Of” turned out to be a marathon production full of stops and starts, including recasting after the death of James Gandolfini, who was originally signed to play the weary lawyer who defends Naz.

In recent years, Ahmed, born in London to British-Pakistani parents, has been in a string of high-profile projects, including the films “Nightcrawler,” “Jason Bourne” and “Rogue One,” along with a two- episode arc on “Girls” in which he fathered Lena Dunham’s child.

“I would hope that my skin color or my religion wouldn’t define me as a person any more than an actress who has blond hair would be defined by the color of her hair,” he said.