Rufus Sewell Biography

Rufus Sewell is a British actor who originated the role of Septimus Hodge in Tom Stoppard’s Arcadia in 1993 and Jan in Stoppard’s Rock ‘n’ Roll in 2006. His performance in Rock ‘n’ Roll won him an Olivier Award for Best Actor in a Play and a Tony Best Actor in a Play Award nomination. Sewell is particularly known for his villainous roles in films like A Knight’s Tale, Helen of Troy, The Legend of Zorro, Bless the Child,  and The Illusionist.

Rufus Sewell Age

Sewell was born Rufus Frederik Sewell on October 29, 1967, in Hammersmith, London, England. He is 57 years old as of 2024. Sewell celebrates his birthday on October 29th.

Rufus Sewell Height

Sewell stands at an approximate height of 6 feet and 0 inches.

Rufus Sewell Family

Sewell was born to Jo and William John Frederick Sewell. His mother is a Welsh artist and a classically trained pianist. On the other hand, his father is an Anglo-Australian and a BAFTA-nominated Animation Director. He worked as an animator on the Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds segment of animation for the Beatles’ Yellow Submarine film.

William was born in Australia to British parents. His parents divorced when he was five, and his father passed away in 1978 at the age of 54. Subsequently, his mother lived at The Pelican, Laugharne, Carmarthenshire. Sewell has a brother named Caspar and admits to being a difficult teenager.

Rufus Sewell Wife

Sewell has been married thrice. He is currently married to American actress Vivian Benitez. They exchanged vows in July 2024 after dating for 2 years. He proposed to her in December 2023. She was born on December 6, 1996, in New York City, and is 28 years old as of 2024. She has appeared in films like Arsenal, Criminal Minds, and Sky Dancers Grown Up.

Before Vivian, Sewell was married to Amy Gardner, a scriptwriter and producer. They married in 2004 and divorced in 2006. Prior to their divorce, they had a son named William Douglas Sewell. William was born on March 18, 2002, and is 23 years old as of 2025. Sewell’s first marriage was to his long-term girlfriend and Australian fashion journalist, Yasmin Abdallah. They married in 1999 and divorced in 2000.

Rufus Sewell Children

Sewell has a son named William from his marriage to Amy Gardner and a daughter named Lola from his relationship with Ami Komai. William was born on March 18, 2002, and is 23 years old as of 2025. Lola was born in 2013 and is 12 years old as of 2025.

Rufus Sewell Net Worth

Sewell has an estimated net worth of approximately $8 million, which he has earned through being an actor.

Rufus Sewell A Knight’s Tale

Sewell starred as Count Adhemar of Anjou in A Knight’s Tale in 2001 for 7 episodes. Count Adhemar is a wealthy and seasoned knight who becomes antagonistic toward William Thatcher after he intrudes upon a conversation between him and Jocelyn. He sees William as an inferior knight and taunts him in front of Jocelyn and the public.

Rufus Sewell The Holiday

Sewell starred as Jasper Bloom in The Holiday in 2006. Jasper is Iris Simpkins’s emotionally needy ex-boyfriend and colleague at The Daily Telegraph in London.

Rufus Sewell Victoria

Sewell starred as the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, Lord Melbourne, in Victoria from 2016 to 2017. Lord Melbourne is Queen Victoria’s friend and favorite advisor. She harbors an intense infatuation for him.

Rufus Sewell Scoop/Prince Andrew

A February 2023 announcement revealed that he had joined the cast of Netflix’s Scoop as Prince Andrew opposite Gillian Anderson as Emily Maitlis, Billie Piper, and Keeley Hawes. He portrays Prince Andrew during a TV interview about his relationship with convicted sex offender, Jeffrey Epstein, and claims of his sexual assault of a minor on Newsnight, the BBC Two news and current affairs programme.

Rufus Sewell Education

Sewell joined Orleans Park School in Twickenham, where he studied until his departure in 1984. He later joined West Thames College, where he auditioned for drama school at his drama teacher’s request. Eventually, he joined the Royal Central School of Speech and Drama in London.

Rufus Sewell Career

After graduating from college, Judi Dench worked as his agent after he directed him in a play while at the Central School of Speech and Drama. His breakthrough came in 1993 when he starred as the unpleasant Tim in Michael Winner’s Dirty Weekend. Michael picked him for the role after he watched his performance in a play at the Criterion Theatre. That same year, he starred in BBC’s Middlemarch and on stage in Tom Stoppard’s Arcadia at The Royal National Theatre (Lyttelton).

Sewell starred in Cold Comfort Farm in 1995, Dark City in 1998, Amazing Grace, The Illusionist, and  The Holiday. He is particularly known for his villainous roles in films like A Knight’s Tale, Helen of Troy, The Legend of Zorro, Bless the Child, and The Illusionist.

Sewell read Russell Thorndike’s stories of Doctor Syn on BBC Radio between 2006 and 2009. Even though he’s known for his work in costume dramas, he prefers roles in modern pieces like playing Petruchio in BBC’s 2005 version of Shakespeare’s The Taming of the Shrew. This role won him a Best Actor nomination at the 2006 BAFTA Television Awards. This production marked the fourth time that he had acted in a work based on a Shakespeare play since becoming a professional actor: previously appearing in Henry IV, Part 1 in 1995, Hamlet in 1996, and Macbeth in 1999.

2008 to present;

In 2008, Sewell made an appearance in HBO’s John Adams as Alexander Hamilton. He received critical acclaim for his performance as Charles II in the BBC’s Charles II: The Power and the Passion. He appeared in Downloading Nancy, the controversial film released on 5 June 2009.

Sewell starred in the premiere and first run of Tom Stoppard’s Rock ‘n’ Roll at the Royal Court Theatre from June to July 2006 and at the Duke of York’s Theatre from July until November 2006. His performance in the play won him awards in the Best Actor category at the Evening Standard Awards, the Olivier Awards, and the Critics’ Circle Awards.

Sewell has recorded eleven of Ian Fleming’s James Bond books on 36 CDs for Collins. He played the lead role of Dr. Jacob Hood in Eleventh Hour and starred as Tom Builder in The Pillars of the Earth in 2010. He portrayed the Italian detective Aurelio Zen in BBC One’s Zen. Additionally, he played a minor role in The Tourist opposite Angelina Jolie and Johnny Depp.

Sewell portrayed the lead vampire, Adam, in Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter. Further, he starred as Ethics Man in Darkside and Autolycus in The Dark Side of the Moon. He provided the voice-over for Sir Claude in Blinky Bill the Movie. Moreover, he starred as John Smith in The Man in the High Castle and  Lord Melbourne in Victoria. A February 2023 announcement revealed that he had joined the cast of Netflix’s Scoop as Prince Andrew opposite Gillian Anderson as Emily Maitlis, Billie Piper, and Keeley Hawes. Since 2023, he has starred as Hal Wyler in The Diplomat.

Rufus Sewell Movies and TV Shows

Sewell has starred in several movies and TV shows during his career, such as

• Twenty-One
• A Man of No Importance
• Middlemarch
• The Woodlanders
• The Very Thought of You
• Illuminata
• In a Savage Land
• Martha, Meet Frank, Daniel and Laurence
• Extreme Ops
• Paris, je t’aime
• Eleventh Hour
• Vinyan
• Hotel Noir
• All Things to All Men
• The Devil’s Hand
• Blinky Bill the Movie
• Gods of Egypt
• Old
• The Pale Horse
• The Trouble with Jessica
• Kaleidoscope