[9][16] In 2018 Elbay starred in Diamond Dust, the feature-film adaptation of Ahmed Mourad's bestselling novel, and Fork & Knife, which premiered at the 2018 El Gouna Film Festival.

[35] In September 2021, Elbay was announced as a principal cast member of the Netflix series Kaleidoscope alongside Giancarlo Esposito, Paz Vega, Rufus Sewell, Tati Gabrielle, Peter Mark Kendall and Jai Courtney.

Her character Judy Goodwin is described as “the crew's demolitions specialist, headstrong and independent — an eccentric spitfire with a sarcastic edge who is clever and talented enough to stay a step ahead of her mistakes.” The series shot in New York and debuted on January 1, 2023, claiming the number one spot on Netflix's most-watched list.

In 2024, Elbay joined Netflix’s award-winning series The Diplomat as Nora Koriem, Chief of staff to Vice President Grace Penn (Allison Janney).

[46][47] In 2019, she hosted the opening ceremony of the 2019 El Gouna Film Festival, during which she wore a dress made of recycled plastic hand-worked by refugee women and sponsored by the UNHCR.

[50][51] Elbay is described in MENA publications as an advocate for women's rights and contributed to the cancellation of a concert by Moroccan singer Saad Lamjarred due to his history of rape and assault.

[58] During the COVID-19 pandemic, Elbay announced her departure from a lead role in MBC Masr series Forgetfulness (Luebet Al Nesyan) due to a preexisting heart condition.