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Actor Sajid Hasan shines in Prime Video’s upcoming original comedy series Bait, and if the first teaser is anything to go by, he’s having a lot of fun doing it as the wonderfully deadpan desi dad to Riz Ahmed’s perpetually frazzled lead.

Starring Ahmed, who also serves as showrunner, Bait follows Shah Latif, a struggling British-Pakistani actor who suddenly finds himself in the middle of an absurd media storm after rumours suggest he could be the next James Bond.

The teaser, set almost entirely in a living room that feels instantly familiar to anyone who’s ever survived a family “discussion”, kicks off with Shah’s sister (Aasiya Shah) reading out a report claiming her brother is Bond-bound. She checks again, squeals that it’s “legit”, and in walk the parents — Sheeba Chaddha as the already-proud mum and Hasan as the dad who cuts straight to the important question: “Did Craig Daniel die?”

While Shah insists it’s only an audition, Chaddha’s character is already declaring her son “super James Bond, my Shaju”, rubbing his shoulders. Guz Khan’s character, meanwhile, is less convinced, arguing that “James Bond is white” and — for reasons only he can explain — becoming increasingly concerned about how much sex James Bond has.

As the volume rises (as it always does), Hasan’s character plays the cautious realist, warning, “This is their country, don’t provoke them,” even as the rest of the family begins planning life after global superstardom. And then comes the line that cracked us up: Hasan offering to be a body double for the sex scenes, only to be immediately shut down by his on-screen wife. Desi dads, global stage, same old energy.

Though he made a brief appearance in the teaser, a veteran Pakistani actor — whose career spans decades of television, theatre and film — casually holding his own amidst an international ensemble feels significant, even if the show itself isn’t making a big song and dance about it.

Beyond the family circus, Bait promises to explore Shah Latif’s attempt to prove he’s worthy of a career-defining role while navigating pressure from his family, an ex-lover and a public that’s suddenly very invested in what he represents.

Prime Video’s first-look images suggest the show will balance fast-paced comedy with some very real emotional stakes about visibility, ambition and what success costs when you’re never quite allowed to just be an actor.

That tension also surfaces in the teaser, where Shah tries — and mostly fails — to explain to his family that even being considered for a “brown James Bond” is a big deal in itself, something to be proud of.

The six-episode series also stars Guz Khan, Aasiya Shah and Sheeba Chaddha, and will premiere on Prime Video on March 25, with all episodes dropping at once in over 240 countries and territories.

With Ahmed steering the ship both on screen and behind the scenes, Bait looks set to poke fun at the industry’s obsession with representation while also acknowledging how heavy that burden can be when it lands on one person’s shoulders.