Paul Rhys

Paul Rhys trained at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (RADA) after receiving a Bernard Shaw Scholarship. While still a student, he appeared in A Woman of No Importance at the Glasgow Citizens Theatre and made his film debut in Absolute Beginners (1986). He graduated from RADA after receiving the William Pole Prize and the Bancroft Gold Medal.

Rhys's film career includes Lionheart (1987), Tumbledown (1988), Vincent & Theo (1990), Chaplin (1992), 102 Boulevard Haussmann (1992), Rebecca's Daughters (1992), From Hell (2001), Food of Love (2002), Love Lies Bleeding (2006), Becoming Colette (2018), Hellraiser: Deader (2005), Napoleon (2023), and Saltburn (2023).

His television credits include Tumbledown (1988), A Dance to the Music of Time (1997), The Heroes (1998), Gallowglass (1993), The Healer (1994), Anna Karenina (2000), The Deal (2003), Beethoven (2005), The Ten Commandments (2006), Borgia (2011–2014), Spooks, Luther, Agatha Christie's Poirot (2008), The Assets (2014), Turn: Washington's Spies (2014–2017), Victoria (2016–2019), Being Human, Da Vinci's Demons (2013–2015), A Discovery of Witches (2020–2021), Men Up (2023), and Tip Toe (2026).

On stage, Rhys has performed with the Glasgow Citizens Theatre, the Royal Shakespeare Company, the Young Vic, the Donmar Warehouse, the Royal National Theatre, the Barbican, and the Almeida Theatre. His theater credits include Bent, Measure for Measure, The Invention of Love, King Lear, Long Day's Journey into Night, Design for Living, Hamlet (2000), Vanishing Points, The Dark Is Rising, The Master and Margarita (2010, 2012), and Uncle Vanya (2016).

In addition to his screen and stage work, Rhys has appeared in more than 100 BBC Radio dramas. His radio credits include The Saint (1995), The Idiot (2002), Charles and Mary (2011), and The Rivals (2011–2013).