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Paul Rhys (born 19 December 1963) is a Welsh theatre, television and film actor.

Early life

Rhys was born in Neath to working class Catholic parents, Kathryn Ivory and Richard Charles Rhys, a labourer. He is of part Irish descent on his mother's side. From the age of ten, he bred and trained horses, becoming a highly accomplished rider. A committed punk during his youth, Rhys sang in several bands. His first acting job was playing Liverpudlian judo expert Ralph in John Godber's hit play Bouncers, before leaving for London, where he qualified for his Equity card by singing jazz standards at lunchtime for Peter Boizot's Pizza Express and Kettners.

Career

Rhys received a Bernard Shaw Scholarship to study at RADA. In the first term he was spotted by Philip Prowse and was invited to perform in Oscar Wilde's A Woman of No Importance at the Glasgow Citizens Theatre, playing the illegitimate son, Gerald. He also appeared as Dean Swift in Julian Temple's film Absolute Beginners. Rhys completed his education at RADA by winning the William Pole prize and the Bancroft Gold Medal.

Film

His next film role was in Franklin J. Schaffner's Lionheart. After a brief spell at the Royal Shakespeare Company he played opposite Colin Firth in Richard Eyre's award-winning film Tumbledown. Soon after this, he appeared in Vincent & Theo, directed by American film director Robert Altman, as Vincent van Gogh's younger brother Theo van Gogh. Continuing the theme of famous brothers, Paul then played Sydney Chaplin opposite Robert Downey, Jr.'s Charlie Chaplin in Richard Attenborough's Chaplin. He went on to play Massis in Alan Bennett's 102 Boulevard Haussmann. He then appeared opposite Peter O'Toole in Rebecca's Daughters. A series of films then followed including From Hell, Food of Love, Love Lies Bleeding, Becoming Colette and Hellraiser: Deader. He appears as Talleyrand in Ridley Scott's 2023 epic Napoleon and as Duncan in Emerald Fennell's Saltburn.

Television

Running parallel to Rhys's film work has been a diverse and notable television career, working in leading roles with directors such as Mike Hodges, Stephen Frears, Sir Richard Eyre, Philip Martin, Christopher Morahan, Tom Vaughan, Edward Hall, Harry Bradbeer in productions including Tumbledown, A Dance to the Music of Time, The Heroes, Ghosts, Gallowglass, The Healer, Anna Karenina, The Deal, Beethoven, The Ten Commandments, Borgia, Luther, and Spooks.

In 2008 Rhys appeared in the series "Agatha Christie's Poirot". In 2014, he played the lead as traitor Aldrich Ames, in The Assets miniseries, then as King George III in Turn: Washington's Spies and as Sir John Conroy in Victoria. He has made a minor industry out of playing vampires: Being Human (as Ivan); as Vlad, the Prince of Wallachia aka Dracula in seasons 1–3 of the 2015 series Da Vinci's Demons; and as Andrew Hubbard in two seasons of the 2020–2021 hit, A Discovery of Witches. In 2023, he appears as Tommy in the BBC film, Men Up.

Theatre

Rhys’ early stage work included performances at Glasgow Citizen’s Theatre, Royal Shakespeare Company, Riverside Studios, Compass Theatre, and Young Vic. His first appearance at the Royal National Theatre was opposite Ian McKellen in Bent, subsequently playing Angelo in Simon McBurney's Measure for Measure for which he won the Critics' Circle Theatre Award; Housman in The Invention of Love; and Edgar in King Lear, for which he was nominated for an Olivier Award. He appeared as Edmund in Long Day's Journey into Night and as Leo in Design for Living at The Donmar Warehouse, performing opposite Rachel Weisz and Clive Owen. In 2000 he played the title role in Hamlet at the Young Vic and later in Tokyo and Osaka. He received several awards for this performance. Rhys continued his collaboration with Simon McBurney in Vanishing Points, The Dark is Rising, and The Master in Master and Margarita. The show opened at the Barbican in 2010 and continued on international tour, returning to the Barbican for a second sell-out season in 2012. In 2016, he starred in a new version of Chekhov's Uncle Vanya by Robert Icke at The Almeida Theatre alongside Tobias Menzies, Jessica Brown-Findlay and Vanessa Kirby.

Real-life characters played by Rhys have included Vlad Tepes, Ludwig van Beethoven, Peter Mandelson, Paul McCartney, Thomas De Quincey, A. E. Housman, Frédéric Chopin, Marcus Tullius Cicero and Charles Talleyrand.

On two occasions, Rhys was taken to hospital while working on a stage production, once with pneumonia and, on the other occasion, with exhaustion. In the title role in Howard Brenton's play Paul at the Royal National Theatre, he was unable to continue as he had lost an unhealthy amount of weight, dropping from 76 to 57 kilograms (168 to 126 lb).

Radio

Rhys has acted in over one hundred BBC Radio dramas. His roles include: Simon Templar in Leslie Charteris' The Saint (1995), Prince Myshkin in Fyodor Dostoevsky's The Idiot (2002), Charles Lamb in Carlo Gébler's Charles and Mary (2011), and Jacques Futrelle's Augustus S.F.X. Van Dusen in The Rivals (2011–2013).

Personal life

Rhys was in a relationship with the late Australian actress Arkie Whiteley, with whom he appeared in Gallowglass. When Whiteley was diagnosed with terminal cancer at the age of 36, he nursed her until her death.

Filmography

Film

Television

Theatre

References

1. "Trivia - Paul Rhys". Internet Movie Database. Retrieved 2 December 2024.
2. "Wales ~ Land Of My Fathers". Wales ~ Land Of My Fathers. Retrieved 12 July 2021.
3. Vanity Fair. Condé Nast Publications. 1986. p. 61.
4. Wales Online: "Actor Paul Rhys on the day he mud wrestled Ray Winstone", 12 November 2011. Retrieved 14 March 2013
5. "BENT (1990) with Ian McKellen". www.mckellen.com. Retrieved 12 July 2021.
6. Gibbons, Fiachra (8 November 1999). "Award victory for play denied West End run". The Guardian. Retrieved 11 September 2016.
7. "The Master and Margarita - review". The Guardian. 22 March 2012. Retrieved 30 June 2021.
8. "Theatre review: The Master and Margarita at Barbican Theatre". British Theatre Guide. Retrieved 30 June 2021.
9. BBC Press Office
10. Guardian Reviews, The Deal, Channel 4, 16/9/2003
11. "Actor Paul Rhys on the day he mud wrestled Ray Winstone". WalesOnline. 12 November 2011. Retrieved 26 June 2017.
12. "Leslie Charteris - The Saint". BBC Radio. Retrieved 26 April 2023.
13. "Fyodor Dostoevsky - The Idiot". BBC Radio. Retrieved 26 April 2023.
14. "Charles and Mary". BBC Radio. Retrieved 26 April 2023.
15. "The Rivals". BBC Radio. Retrieved 26 April 2023.
16. "The will to win". Sydney Morning Herald. 14 December 2002. Retrieved 20 June 2021.
17. "Shortly after my girlfriend died I felt her shouting for help..." Free Library. 24 January 2003. Retrieved 20 June 2021.
18. Film Actors. IFilm Publishing. 2002. p. 430. ISBN 978-1-58065-020-5.
19. Carole Zucker (1999). In the Company of Actors: Reflections on the Craft of Acting. Psychology Press. p. 222. ISBN 978-0-415-92545-7.

External links

• Paul Rhys at IMDb

• 1963 births
• 20th-century Welsh male actors
• 21st-century Welsh male actors
• Alumni of the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art
• Critics' Circle Theatre Award winners
• Living people
• Actors from Neath
• Welsh Roman Catholics
• Welsh male stage actors
• Welsh male film actors
• Welsh male television actors
• Welsh people of Irish descent