Matthew Rhys

Matthew Rhys Evans (/riːs/ REESS; born 8 November 1974^[2][3]) is a Welsh actor. He gained recognition for playing Kevin Walker in the family drama series Brothers & Sisters (2006–2011) and Philip Jennings in the spy drama series The Americans (2013–2018). For his performance in The Americans, he won a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series in 2018 and the Critics' Choice Television Award for Best Actor in a Drama Series in 2019. He was also Emmy-nominated for his guest role in Girls (2017) and for playing the title role in the period series Perry Mason (2020–2023).

Matthew Rhys
Rhys in 2011
Born	Matthew Rhys Evans (1974-11-08) 8 November 1974 (age 50) Cardiff, Wales
Education	Royal Academy of Dramatic Art
Occupation	Actor
Years active	1997–present
Partner	Keri Russell (2014-present) [1]
Children	1

In film, Rhys appeared as Dylan Thomas in The Edge of Love (2008) and as Daniel Ellsberg in The Post (2017) and starred as a cynical journalist in A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood (2019). He has also voiced several characters in animated series, including Emperor Belos in The Owl House (2020–2023).

Early life and education

Rhys was born in Cardiff, Wales, on 8 November 1974^[2] (some sources say 4 November).^[3] His first language is Welsh.^[4] He grew up in Cardiff and attended Welsh-medium schools, Ysgol Gynradd Gymraeg Melin Gruffydd (in Whitchurch, Cardiff) and Ysgol Gyfun Gymraeg Glantaf (in Llandaff North, Cardiff). In 1993, he was awarded the Patricia Rothermere Scholarship.^[5]

At age 17, after playing Elvis Presley in a school musical, he applied to and was accepted at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (RADA) in London.^[6] During Rhys's time at RADA, he appeared in the BBC police series Backup and in House of America. He returned to Cardiff to act in his own language in the Welsh film Bydd yn Wrol (Be Brave),^[7] for which he won Best Actor at the BAFTA Cymru (Welsh BAFTAs).

Career

Rhys at the 2007 GLAAD Awards

In January 1998, Rhys went to New Zealand to star in Greenstone, a colonial costume drama for television. He then landed a role in Titus, Julie Taymor's adaptation of Titus Andronicus, starring Anthony Hopkins and Jessica Lange. Next he played Ray in Peter Hewitt's comedy film Whatever Happened to Harold Smith? After returning to Wales, he did two consecutive films with Jonathan Pryce: The Testimony of Taliesin Jones, a film about a dysfunctional single-parent family in which he played the elder son, and Sara Sugarman's comedy Very Annie Mary, in which he played the role of Nob. Rhys would later reunite with Very Annie Mary star Rachel Griffiths on Brothers & Sisters.^[8]

In 2000, Rhys played the lead role in Metropolis, a drama series for Granada TV about the lives of six twenty-somethings living in London.^[6] Next he starred in Peaches, the film of the play written and directed by Nick Grosso.^[9][10] Rhys starred as Benjamin in the 2000 world premiere of the stage adaptation of The Graduate, alongside Kathleen Turner at the Gielgud Theatre in London's West End.^[11] Rhys travelled to Ireland to star in the 18th-century swashbuckling adventure The Abduction Club.^[12] He played the lead role of Darren Daniels in Tabloid and then returned to New Zealand to shoot the epic drama The Lost World for the BBC. His other film credits include the independent horror film Deathwatch in Prague and Fakers, a comic crime caper.

In 2003, he played Justin Price in the final episode of the long-running television series Columbo.^[13] He appeared in the independent feature Love and Other Disasters, in Virgin Territory, and as poet Dylan Thomas in the love quadrangle biographical film The Edge of Love.^[14] He moved to Santa Monica after being cast in ABC's show Brothers & Sisters as gay lawyer Kevin Walker. The show had a five-season run, coming to an end in 2011.^[11]

A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood premiere, Toronto Film Festival, 2019

In January 2012, Rhys appeared in a BBC Two two-part drama adaptation of Charles Dickens's last, unfinished novel, The Mystery of Edwin Drood.^[15] The Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) aired it in the United States as one feature-length episode on 15 April 2012. In 2012, Rhys reprised Sir Alec Guinness's 1959 double role of John Barratt / Jacques DeGué in a new adaptation of Daphne du Maurier's The Scapegoat.^[16] That same year, Rhys was cast as Jimmy in the Roundabout Theatre Company's Off-Broadway revival of John Osborne's play, Look Back in Anger, at the Laura Pels Theatre in the Harold and Miriam Steinberg Center for Theatre. The production played a limited engagement through 8 April 2012.^[17] In 2013, Rhys starred in the television adaptation of the P. D. James novel Death Comes to Pemberley as Jane Austen hero Fitzwilliam Darcy.^[18]

He starred opposite Keri Russell in the FX series The Americans, a 1980s Cold War spy drama about Russian KGB sleeper agents (Rhys and Russell, who portray married KGB agents with two children, among other agents and handlers). Rhys and Russell are partners off-screen as well. The show debuted in January 2013.^[19] The series aired its sixth and final season in 2018. Rhys received a Primetime Emmy Award for his acting in the sixth season.^[20]

Business ventures

Patagonia productions

Rhys set up his own production company, Patagonia, in 2011. It has two projects in development. One of them involves an adaptation of a book titled Operation Julie, written by Lyn Ebenezer,^[21] about the biggest LSD drugs bust in Wales's history; Rhys bought the film rights in December 2010.^[22][23] In 2023, Rhys spoke on a podcast about how he has been working on a potential film about Glyndwr's life and the rebellion, and that the production has been in development for 12 years.^[24]

Pubs

With the help of Welsh actor Rhys Ifans, Rhys supported fundraising for the pub Vale of Aeron in Ystrad Aeron, Ceredigion, Wales.^[25][26] Rhys also invested in another pub in Pennal, a town in Gwynedd, North Wales, where his father grew up and Rhys would spend summers and Easters visiting. In 2019, the Glan Yr Afon (also Riverside) was put on the market without any buyers, but through a campaign supported by Rhys, there was a shares offering for the public which raised £450,000 to save the pub. The local community completed the purchase in December 2022.^[27][28][29]

Charter yacht

In New York City, Rhys owns and rents a charter boat named Rarebit. The Wheeler boat was constructed circa 1934; Rhys bought it from eBay after researching the venture in 2017. He rebuilt the boat himself with the advice of shipwrights.^[30][31][32]

Personal life

Rhys has been in a relationship with his The Americans co-star Keri Russell since 2014.^[33][34] They had their first child, a son, in 2016.^[35][36] In interviews conducted in 2021, they referred to each other as husband and wife.^[37][38] although in an interview in 2025, Rhys said “we literally haven’t got round to marriage yet” ^[39]

He is a supporter of Plaid Cymru,^[40] actively supporting Welsh independence.^{[41][better source needed]}

On 15 July 2008, Aberystwyth University honoured Rhys as a fellow.^[42] On 8 August 2008, he was honoured at the Welsh National Eisteddfod by being accepted as a member to the druidic order of the Gorsedd of the Bards^[43] for his contributions to the Welsh language and Wales. His bardic name in the Gorsedd is Matthew Tâf. In August 2009, Rhys took to the stage with the National Youth Orchestra of Wales as part of the National Eisteddfod.^[44]

Filmography

Film

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1996	Bydd yn Wrol	N/A
1997	House of America	Boyo
1999	Heart	Sean McCardle
	Titus	Demetrius
	Whatever Happened to Harold Smith?	Ray Smith
2000	Sorted	Carl
	The Testimony of Taliesin Jones	Jonathan
2001	Peaches	Frank
	Tabloid	Darren Daniels
	Very Annie Mary	Nob
2002	The Abduction Club	James Strang
	Deathwatch	Doc Fairweather
	Shooters	Eddie
2003	Y Mabinogi	Lleu Llaw Gyffes
2004	Fakers	Nick Edwards
2006	Love and Other Disasters	Peter Simon
2007	Virgin Territory	Count Dzerzhinsky
2008	The Edge of Love	Dylan Thomas
2010	Luster	Joseph Miller
	Patagonia	Mateo
2012	The Scapegoat	John Standing / Johnny Spence
2015	Burnt	Montgomery Reece
	Come What May	Percy
2017	The Post	Daniel Ellsberg	[45]
2018	Mowgli: Legend of the Jungle	John Lockwood	[46]
2019	A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood	Lloyd Vogel	[47]
	The Report	New York Times reporter	[48]
2021	Seal Team	Grimes (voice)	[49]
2023	Cocaine Bear	Andrew C. Thornton II
2024	IF	Ghost (voice)	[49]
	Watchmen	Dan Dreiberg / Nite Owl, additional voices	Direct-to-video[50][49]
	Saturday Night	George Carlin	[51]
2025	Hallow Road	TBA	Post-production[52]

Television

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1997	Backup	PC Steve 'Hiccup' Higson	6 episodes
1999	Greenstone	Sam Markham	Unknown episodes
2000	A History of Britain	N/A	Unknown episodes
	Metropolis	Matthew Bishop	5 episodes
2001	The Lost World	Edward Malone	2 episodes
2003	Columbo	Justin Price	Episode: "Columbo Likes the Nightlife"
	Partners and Crime	N/A	Television film
	POW	Alfie Harris	Episode #1.5
2006	Beau Brummell: This Charming Man	Lord Byron	Television film
2006–2011	Brothers & Sisters	Kevin Walker	Main role
2010	Mr Hollywood	—	Producer; S4C-TV documentary[53]
2011	LA Phil Live	Hamlet	Episode: "Dudamel Conducts Tchiakovsky"
2012	The Mystery of Edwin Drood	John Jasper	2 episodes
2013	Death Comes to Pemberley	Fitzwilliam Darcy	3 episodes
2013–2018	The Americans	Philip Jennings	Main role
2014	Under Milk Wood	New York Voice	Television film
2015	Archer	Lloyd Llewellyn (voice)	Episode: "Achub y Morfilod"; credited for episode's story
	The Bastard Executioner	Gruffudd y Blaidd / the Wolf	4 episodes
2016–2020	The Wine Show	Himself (co-host)	Main role
2017	Girls	Chuck Palmer	Episode: "American Bitch"
	Snowdonia 1890	Narrator	Main role
2018	Death and Nightingales	Billy	3 episodes
	Down the Caravan	Dai	Television film
2019	BoJack Horseman	Justin Kenyon (voice)	Episode: "A Quick One, While He's Away"
	Carpool Karaoke: The Series	Himself (co-host)	Season 2, episode 17
	Infinity Train	Aloysius, Alrick (voice)	2 episodes[49]
2020–2023	Perry Mason	Perry Mason	Main role; also executive producer[54]
	The Owl House	Emperor Belos (voice)	Recurring role[55][49]
2022	Tuca & Bertie	Figgy (voice)	6 episodes
2023	Extrapolations	Junior	Episode: "2037: A Raven Story"
	Gremlins	Riley Greene (voice)	10 episodes[56][49]
2024	The Wingfeather Saga	Gammon Felda/The Florid Sword (voice)	Season 2 recurring role; 3 episodes[57]
2025	Towards Zero	Inspector Leach	Three-part miniseries
TBA	Wyrd	Wyrd	FX's TV show[58]
	The Beast in Me		Filming[59]

Theatre

Year	Play	Role	Playwright	Venue	Ref.
1997	Cardiff East	Tommy	Peter Gill	Royal National Theatre	[60]
	Grace Note	Nick	Samuel Adamson	The Old Vic	[61]
	One More Wasted Year	Pierre	Christophe Pellet	Royal Court Theatre	[62]
	Stranger's House (Fremdes Haus)	Yanne	Dea Loher		[63]
2000	The Graduate	Benjamin Braddock	Charles Webb	Gielgud Theatre	[64]
2002	The Associate	Tiny	Simon Bent	Royal National Theatre	[65]
2003	Under Milk Wood	Mog Edwards	Dylan Thomas	New Theatre (Cardiff)
2004	King Lear	Edmund	William Shakespeare	Royal Shakespeare Company	[66]
	Macbeth	Macduff		The Young Vic	[67]
	Romeo and Juliet	Romeo		Royal Shakespeare Company	[68]
2012	Look Back in Anger	Jimmy	John Osborne	Roundabout Theatre Company	[69]

Awards and nominations

Award	Year	Category	Nominated work	Result	Ref.
Critics' Choice Television Awards	2013	Best Actor in a Drama Series	The Americans	Nominated	[70]
	2014	Best Actor in a Drama Series	The Americans	Nominated	[71]
	2015	Best Actor in a Drama Series	The Americans	Nominated	[72]
	2016	Best Actor in a Drama Series	The Americans	Nominated	[73]
	2019	Best Actor in a Drama Series	The Americans	Won	[74]
	2021	Best Actor in a Drama Series	Perry Mason	Nominated	[75]
Drama League Award	2004	Distinguished Performance	Look Back in Anger	Nominated	[76]
Golden Globe Awards	2016	Best Actor – Television Series Drama	The Americans	Nominated	[77]
	2018	Best Actor – Television Series Drama	The Americans	Nominated	[78]
	2020	Best Actor – Television Series Drama	Perry Mason	Nominated	[79]
Primetime Emmy Awards	2016	Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series	The Americans (episode: "The Magic of David Copperfield V: The Statue of Liberty Disappears")	Nominated	[80]
	2017	Outstanding Guest Actor in a Comedy Series	Girls (episode: "American Bitch")	Nominated	[81]
		Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series	The Americans (episode: "Crossbreed")	Nominated
	2018		The Americans (episode: "START")	Won	[82]
	2021	Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series	Perry Mason (episode: "Chapter 8")	Nominated	[83]
Satellite Awards	2017	Best Actor – Television Series Drama	The Americans	Nominated	[84]
	2019	Best Actor – Television Series Drama	The Americans	Nominated	[85]
	2021	Best Actor – Television Series Drama	Perry Mason	Nominated
Screen Actors Guild Awards	2018	Outstanding Ensemble in a Drama Series	The Americans	Nominated	[86]
TCA Awards	2013	Individual Achievement in Drama	The Americans	Nominated
	2014	Individual Achievement in Drama	The Americans	Nominated
	2015	Individual Achievement in Drama	The Americans	Nominated
	2018	Individual Achievement in Drama	The Americans	Nominated

Bibliography

• Patagonia: Crossing the Plain (2010) – a photographic account of his month-long journey on horseback while filming a documentary on Patagonia, and the Welsh settlers who made it their home having journeyed from Wales in the late 19th century.