Shabana Azeez’s latest TV role in The Airport Chaplain couldn’t be more different to the one that catapulted her to global fame on The Pitt. Yet, it’s exactly why she said yes to the new eight-part Aussie series that “captures the high-stakes world of a bustling international airport, told through the struggles and triumphs of the workers who keep it running”.
In The Airport Chaplain, Azeez steps into the shoes of Mira, a young mother and the tough-talking boss of fast-moving fixer Tobias Wallace (Hugo Weaving). Meanwhile, fans have grown to love the Aussie actor over the last two years thanks to her role as ambitious medical student Victoria Javadi on The Pitt.
“It’s a very different character to Victoria on The Pitt where it’s like a 20-year-old academic prodigy… to somebody in their early 30s [on The Airport Chaplain], a young mum and working,” Azeez tells Draw Your Box.
Listen to our podcast interview with Shabana Azeez below:
Azeez believes that every character she’s played has taught her something new about herself, and in this instance, she greatly admires Mira’s ability to balance compassion with boundaries while managing employees.
“She’s a really thoughtful leader, and she’s a really great manager if you give her the opportunity to be a great manager,” Azeez explains. “But she’s not going to just be like, ‘Yeah, you can have everything you want’.”
Mira definitely subscribes to the notion of ‘tough love’, which Azeez says is “still love”.
“She still really cares about her workplace, and she really cares about the airport and the people in it. She’s just a realist and kind… but not nice.”
The actor recognises some of these traits in herself, that have perhaps developed in more recent years as she’s navigated the cut-throat entertainment industry with grown confidence.
“I feel like I’ve stopped being a people pleaser,” she says. “I used to be a real people pleaser, but then I think I got to the point where I was like, ‘Oh, I’m too tired. Like, I cannot continue like this. I’m way too tired.’
“I think so many women are recovering people pleasers or just people pleasers, and I feel like people pleasing… pleases the wrong people,” she continues, explaining it kept her from “connecting with people that I really wanted to connect with”.
As Azeez mentions that parts of this is still “a work in progress”, she also reflects on how significantly her life has changed in just the past few years. From her breakout role in 2023 film Birdeater, to voicing Princess Saira in Lesbian Space Comedy, and playing Victoria on the Emmy award-winning series The Pitt, Azeez’s showreel is nothing short of impressive. The latter role has firmly placed her on the Hollywood map, offering a fast-paced showbiz experience that’s vastly different to life back home in Australia. So, how does she navigate switching between the two?
“I think it’s only very recently that I’ve become employed – you know what I mean? Like, I don’t know what to do. I’m very like, ‘How do you stay grounded?’” she reflects.
“I think reading is really great. I think for me, this year was so crazy – like the whirlwind of Hollywood. And coming back and working with like Hugo Weaving and getting access to all these creative spaces that I never had access to before, is really like a whirlwind.
“I think it requires critical thinking about it. I think I’ve been doing a lot of journalling about ‘What did that mean to me? Why did I like that?’ Because I don’t think I want to like it for the wrong reason.”
Azeez couldn’t be more proud of the time she spent filming The Airport Chaplain in and around Melbourne earlier this year. And as she now celebrates the show’s premiere – not just on SBS in Australia, but in over 190 countries and regions on Netflix – she’s excited for what the future could hold.
“A Bong Joon Ho film would be like my dream [project]. I love him. I love Greta Gerwig. I love Rob Pattinson’s career, and I think that I’d love to be like Rob Pattinson.”
Needless to say, we’ll be watching this space!
The Airport Chaplain is now streaming on SBS On Demand.
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