Simon Abkarian was born on March 5, 1962, into a French - Armenian family. Young Simon Abkarian grew up in a trilingual environment, he learned French at school in addition to his native Armenian, and also learned English by watching American films since he was a child. He also won awards for his performance as Eliahou in 'To Take a Wife (2004) by director Ronit Elkabetz.That same year Abkarian gave a stellar performance in his first leading role in English, co-starring as He, a passionate Lebanese doctor turned cook who is in love with an American woman (Joan Allen) in Yes (2004) directed by Sally Potter. He made a step forward in his film career with the supporting role as Alex Dimitros in Casino Royale (2006), playing in several powerful scenes opposite Daniel Craig.