‘No regrets’: British actor Riz Ahmed loves Malaysian food so much he gained weight during ‘The Big Fix’ Penang shoot (VIDEO)

Nick Grimshaw (left) and Riz Ahmed on the Dish from Waitrose podcast. — Screengrabs via Instagram/dish_podcast

By Malay Mail

First Published: Sunday, 08 Nov 2026 1:05 PM MYT

KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 8 — British actor Riz Ahmed has said he loved Malaysian food so much while filming in Penang that he gained weight during the shoot and had to get his trousers refitted.

The Emmy-winning actor made the admission during an appearance on the Dish from Waitrose podcast, hosted by broadcaster Nick Grimshaw and Michelin-starred chef Angela Hartnett.

Host Grimshaw asked, “You’re a big fan of Malaysian food as well?”

Ahmed said, “What I like about Malaysian food is, it’s Indonesian food, Indian food, obviously its own kind of Malay flavours and Chinese food, all kind of thrown together. So you get this amazing mix of stuff.

“Obviously they do the rotis, they do rotis with rendang, with not nasi goreng, but with a twist.”

He said, “I gotta tell you, I put on so much weight there they had to refit my costume... Literally they had to redo my trousers, they had to do the whole thing.”

However, he said he had "no regrets" about the experience.

Ahmed, 43, is a British-Pakistani actor and rapper who won an Emmy for his role in The Night Of and received an Oscar nomination for Sound of Metal.

During the podcast, the actor discussed his time in Malaysia while working on the Netflix film The Big Fix, a crime thriller starring Mark Wahlberg and directed by Baltasar Kormákur.

The film, inspired by a true story, follows a former Interpol officer who uncovers an international football match-fixing operation.

Dish from Waitrose has been running since 2022 and has featured guests including Gordon Ramsay, Dua Lipa and Benedict Cumberbatch. 

The podcast pairs celebrity guests with food conversations and cooking segments.