Richard Charles Roberts (born November 13, 1965) is a

Canadian Canadians () are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of their being ''C ...

actor An actor (masculine/gender-neutral), or actress (feminine), is a person who portrays a character in a production. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of the theatre or in modern media such as film, radio, and television. ...

. He is known for his work in various films and television.

Early life

Roberts was born in

Hamilton, Ontario Hamilton is a port city in the Canadian Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Ontario. Hamilton has a 2021 Canadian census, population of 569,353 (2021), and its Census Metropolitan Area, census metropolitan area, which encompasses ...

. He grew up in

Edmonton Edmonton is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Alberta. It is situated on the North Saskatchewan River and is the centre of the Edmonton Metropolitan Region, which is surrounded by Central Alberta ...

Alberta Alberta is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province in Canada. It is a part of Western Canada and is one of the three Canadian Prairies, prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to its west, Saskatchewan to its east, t ...

. He studied acting at the National Theatre School of Canada in Montreal, graduating in 1991.

Career

Roberts played Donald D'Arby in the series '' Traders'', for which he was nominated for a

Gemini Award The Gemini Awards were awards given by the Academy of Canadian Cinema & Television between 1986–2011 to recognize the achievements of Canada's English-language television industry. The Gemini Awards are analogous to the Emmy Awards given in t ...

. He moved briefly to Los Angeles in 1998 appearing in the CBS series '' L.A. Doctors'' alongside Ken Olin and Sheryl Lee. Roberts returned to Canada to star in '' An American in Canada'', which ran for two seasons. Most recently, Roberts was featured in Michael McGowan's series '' Between'', guest starred opposite

Kim Cattrall Kim Victoria Cattrall (; born 21 August 1956) is a British, Canadian, and American actress. She is known for her portrayal of Samantha Jones on HBO's ''Sex and the City'' (1998–2004), for which she received five Primetime Emmy Award nominati ...

in '' Sensitive Skin'' (TMN/Movie Central), appeared in ''Zoom'' (Pedro Morelli), ''God and Country'' (Ken Finkleman) and the miniseries '' The Book of Negroes'' (CBC). Other work includes guest starring roles on ''

Saving Hope ''Saving Hope'' is a Canadian supernatural medical drama television series set in Toronto in the fictional hospital Hope Zion. The series stars Erica Durance and Michael Shanks. The show's premise originated with Malcolm MacRury and Morwyn Br ...

'' (CTV/NBC), ''

Copper Copper is a chemical element; it has symbol Cu (from Latin ) and atomic number 29. It is a soft, malleable, and ductile metal with very high thermal and electrical conductivity. A freshly exposed surface of pure copper has a pinkish-orang ...

'' (BBC America), '' Cracked'' (CBC), '' Republic of Doyle'' (CBC), ''

Murdoch Mysteries ''Murdoch Mysteries'' is a Canadian television drama series that premiered on Citytv on January 20, 2008, and currently airs on CBC. The series is based on characters from the ''Detective Murdoch'' novels by Maureen Jennings and stars Yannick ...

'' (CBC), '' Cra$h & Burn'' (Showcase), '' Haven'' (SyFy), '' ZOS'' (Whizbang Films), and was featured regularly in the hit CBC series, '' This is Wonderland''. Roberts played Dennis MacDonald on Family's ''

Life with Derek ''Life with Derek'' is a Canadian television teen sitcom that aired on Family Channel (English) and VRAK.TV (French) in Canada and on Disney Channel in the United States. The series premiered on Family on September 18, 2005, and ran for four s ...

'', and the role of explorer John Rae in the 2008 docudrama '' Passage''. He also played the role of

Jim Jones James Warren Jones (May 13, 1931 – November 18, 1978) was an American cult leader, preacher and mass murderer who founded and led the Peoples Temple between 1955 and 1978. Jones and the members of his inner circle planned and orchestrat ...

in '' Jonestown: Paradise Lost'' which aired on the

History Channel History (formerly and commonly known as the History Channel) is an American pay television television broadcaster, network and the flagship channel of A&E Networks, a joint venture between Hearst Communications and the Disney General Entertainme ...

and the

Discovery Channel Discovery Channel, known as The Discovery Channel from 1985 to 1995, and often referred to as simply Discovery, is an American cable channel that is best known for its ongoing reality television shows and promotion of pseudoscience. It init ...

. He also played the evil Brooks Oliver in '' Eloise at Christmastime''. In 2012, he was tapped to play

Jack Layton John Gilbert Layton (July 18, 1950 – August 22, 2011) was a Canadian politician and academic who served as the leader of the New Democratic Party (NDP) from 2003 to 2011 and leader of the Official Opposition in 2011. He previously sat on T ...

in the

CBC CBC may refer to: Media * Cadena Baja California or Grupo Cadena, a radio and television broadcaster in Mexico * Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, Canada's radio and television public broadcaster ** CBC Television ** CBC Radio One ** CBC Music ** ...

biopic '' Jack'', alongside Sook-Yin Lee as Olivia Chow. '' Jack'' garnered him a

Canadian Screen Award The Canadian Screen Awards () are awards given for artistic and technical merit in the film industry recognizing excellence in Canadian film, English-language television, and digital media ( web series) productions. Given annually by the Academy ...

and an ACTRA Award for Best Actor. He played Matthew in the

series '' This Life''.

Theatre

A popular fixture on Canadian stages, Roberts headlined the

Tarragon Theatre The Tarragon Theatre is a theatre in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, and one of the main centers for contemporary playwriting in the country.

hit ''Enemy of the People,'' as well as ''The Accidental Death of an Anarchist'' and ''Waiting for Godot'' for Soulpepper Theatre Company. Additional theatre credits include the Belfry Theatre's production of ''Proud'', '' Tuesdays with Morrie'', and he made his

Stratford Festival The Stratford Festival is a repertory theatre organization that operates from April to October in the city of Stratford, Ontario, Canada. Founded by local journalist Tom Patterson in 1952, the festival was formerly known as the Stratford Shak ...

debut in the title role of ''

Zastrozzi ''Zastrozzi: A Romance'' is a Gothic novel by Percy Bysshe Shelley first published in 1810 in London by George Wilkie and John Robinson anonymously, with only the initials of the author's name, as "by P.B.S.". The first of Shelley's two early ...

''.

Writing

As a writer, Roberts' work ''Mimi'' (which he co-wrote with Allan Cole and Melody Johnson) premiered at The

Tarragon Theatre The Tarragon Theatre is a theatre in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, and one of the main centers for contemporary playwriting in the country.

and was nominated for a

Dora Award The Dora Mavor Moore Awards (also known as the Dora Awards or the Doras) are awards presented annually by the Toronto Alliance for the Performing Arts (TAPA), honouring theatre, Dance in Canada, dance and opera productions in Toronto. Named after ...

. His play ''Kite'' premiered to critical acclaim earning numerous Dora Award nominations for writing and production. Other writing credits include ''Nod'' (Theatre Gargantua) and ''Fish/Wife'' (Tarragon Theatre)

Personal life

Roberts is married to Marjorie Campbell; they have two sons.

Filmography

Awards and nominations

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Roberts, Rick 1965 births Living people Canadian male film actors Canadian male television actors Canadian male voice actors Canadian Screen Award winning actors Male actors from Edmonton Male actors from Hamilton, Ontario 21st-century Canadian male actors 20th-century Canadian male actors