Samuel Peter W. Riley (born 8 January 1980) is an English actor and singer.James Mottram: The only people for me are the mad ones. Independent on Sunday: The New Review, 30 January 2011, pp 10–13 He is best known for his performance in the 2007 biographical film Control about the life of Ian Curtis, as protagonist Sal Paradise in the 2012 adaptation of the Jack Kerouac novel On the Road, and as Diaval in the 2014 film Maleficent. Riley received renown for his portrayal of Fitzwilliam Darcy in the 2016 film Pride and Prejudice and Zombies.
Early life and education Riley was born in Menston, Leeds,West Yorkshire, the son of Amanda, a nursery school teacher, and Andrew Riley, a textile agent. He was educated at Malsis School, an independent school in the village of Cross Hills in North Yorkshire, and at Uppingham School, an independent school in the market town of Uppingham in Rutland.
Career Acting His breakthrough performance came when he played the role of Ian Curtis in the film Control, a biopic about the lead singer of the 1970s post-punk band Joy Division. The film received high critical acclaim due in good part to Riley's performance, which won him a selection of awards including the British Independent Film Award for "Most Promising Newcomer" a BAFTA "Rising Star" nomination; and a Mark Kermode nod for Best Actor 2007.
Prior to his portrayal of Ian Curtis, Riley played The Fall frontman Mark E. Smith in the Michael Winterbottom film 24 Hour Party People, which details the Factory Records era and featured Sean Harris as Ian Curtis. Riley's scenes, however, were omitted from the final cut.
In September 2007, Riley was cast in Gerald McMorrow's British science fiction film Franklyn. He starred as the lead role in 13, an English language remake of the French thriller 13 Tzameti, released in the U.S. 28 October 2011. He played the role of Pinkie Brown in Brighton Rock alongside Helen Mirren, an adaption of Graham Greene's novel, released 4 February 2011. He also starred in Walter Salles' film adaptation of Jack Kerouac's autobiographical On the Road playing the narrator and protagonist Sal Paradise. He also has a small role in the 2011 German comedy , in which his wife Alexandra Maria Lara plays the female lead. His role is listed as "Wagenmeister".
In Byzantium (2012), a film directed by Neil Jordan, he appears alongside Gemma Arterton and Saoirse Ronan as Darvell.
In 2012, Riley was cast as Diaval in Disney's Maleficent, alongside Angelina Jolie. The film was released May 2014.
In 2015, he played Benoit Labarie in Saul Dibb's film adaptation of Irène Némirovsky's novel Suite Française, opposite Michelle Williams, Matthias Schoenaerts, Kristin Scott Thomas and Ruth Wilson.
Riley was also cast as Fitzwilliam Darcy (Mr. Darcy) in the film, Pride and Prejudice and Zombies, released in February 2016.
Riley played the 'not-so welcome' returning prodigal brother David in the 2018 film Happy New Year, Colin Burstead by Ben Wheatley.
Modelling He featured in the autumn/winter 2008 publicity campaign for the British fashion house Burberry, supervised by Christopher Bailey and shot by Mario Testino.Millar, Jamie; GQ; Sam Riley Exclusive!, February 2011. CQ.com ; retrieved 9 February 2011. He modelled the fall/winter 2014 Stefano Pilati-designed couture collection of Ermenegildo Zegna.Stefano Pilati concept zegna.com He was named one of GQs 50 best dressed British men in 2015.
Music For a few years Riley was the lead singer of the Leeds band 10,000 Things, with whom he achieved moderate success. After their first release on indie label Voltage Records in 2002, they signed to major label Polydor for one self-titled album. They disbanded in 2005.
Personal life As of 2011, Riley lives in Berlin with his wife, Romanian-German actress Alexandra Maria Lara. They met while filming Control, married in August 2009 and have a son born in January 2014.
Filmography Film Year Title RoleNotes 2007 Control Ian Curtis Bratislava International Film Festival Award for Best ActorBritish Independent Film Award for Most Promising NewcomerChicago International Film Festival Award for Best ActorEdinburgh International Film Festival Award for Best British PerformanceEmpire Award for Best Newcomer Kermode Award for Best Actor International Cinephile Society Award for Best ActorLondon Film Critics Circle Award for British Breakthrough of the Year – ActingNominated – BAFTA Awards – Rising Star AwardNominated – British Independent Film Award for Best ActorNominated – Evening Standard British Film Award for Best ActorNominated – London Film Critics Circle Award for British Actor of the YearNominated – Online Film Critics Society Award for Breakthrough Performer 2008 Franklyn Milo 2010 13 Vincent Ferro Brighton Rock Pinkie Brown Nominated – Evening Standard British Film Award for Best Actor 2012 On the Road Sal Paradise Byzantium Darvell 2014The Dark ValleyGreider Maleficent Diaval 2015 Suite Française Benoit Labarie 2016 Pride and Prejudice and Zombies Fitzwilliam Darcy Free Fire Stevo 2018 Happy New Year, Colin Burstead David Sometimes Always Never Peter 2019 Radioactive Pierre Curie Maleficent: Mistress of Evil Diaval 2020 RebeccaJack Favell 2021The VaultJames 2022 She Is Love Idris2023 Firebrand Thomas Seymour Widow Clicquot Louis Bohne2025 Islands Premiered at 75th Berlin International Film Festival in Berlinale Special in February 2025. Bulk Corey
Television Year Title RoleNotes 2017 SS-GB Douglas Archer BBC One mini-series2026Black DovesTBA TBA Berlin Noir Robert Lanz Upcoming series
References
External links
Sam Riley at the British Film Institute