Matthew Rhys' private life off-screen - including 'class act' partner Keri Russell

Following his double Emmy win, Matthew hailed his other half as a "class act" while speaking with journalists in the press room.

When asked about the competition between himself and Keri, who was nominated for Lead Actress in a Drama for her role in The Diplomat, Matthew joked: "It's not playful. I've got a lot of money on myself."

"The kids ran a book, and I was the odds-on favorite," he continued. "It's going to be a rough week for her. I'm sorry – I don’t know if I am to be perfectly honest.

"You know, she's always the class act," Matthew said of his partner. "She sends her fellow nominees Gloria Steinem quotes about being linked and not judged, and I’m the one going, 'Wahoo!'"

He added that Keri was "always really the winner, if I'm perfectly honest. And I think next year she might get one, that's my bet."

Keri and Matthew first started dating after the pair played husband and wife, Phillip and Elizabeth Jennings, in the hit spy drama, The Americans. While they first met back in 2002, the actors reconnected on the set of the espionage series, which aired from 2013 to 2018 and followed two undercover Soviet spies in America during the Cold War in the late '80s.

Keri and Matthew's romance was confirmed in 2014 after they were spotted on a date at The Public Theatre in New York City. Two years later, in May 2016, they welcomed their son, Sam. 

Keri and Matthew make a great time both in front of and behind the camera, with the California-born actress praising her other half as "an incredible partner" during an interview with the Wall Street Journal.

When quizzed on how the couple divide their household chores, the Felicity star said: "Matthew is an incredible partner in that regard. His mom and dad were both teachers. They both had big, everyday jobs and so they shared tasks really well, and they taught him that. And he is an incredible dad and helper in the way that most moms are. We have a very good, natural, unspoken thing. He usually does trash. I usually do dinner, and sometimes he'll do the cleanup."

Sharing her thoughts on the secret to a good relationship, Keri said to "give people a break", adding it's important to acknowledge that everyone has "bad days where you kind of miss each other". "I just try to pay attention when I can. And getting away from kids occasionally is really important, and we try to do that," she said.

Matthew also shared an insight into their relationship whilst chatting with People in 2017, admitting that the pair "absolutely" needed alone time after spending most of their days working together on The Americans. Praising Keri, he continued: "She has the patience of a saint, so that helps. That is basically it," before joking: "And alcohol. The great leveler, the great equalizer. Everything is so much better after a good, solid half-bottle of red wine!"

Keri and Matthew, who live in Brooklyn, New York, welcomed their son Sam in May 2016, revealing his name and sex two months later. While the couple like to keep their son out of the spotlight, Matthew previously spoke of his desire for Sam to learn the Welsh language. He told Deadline, "I only speak to him in Welsh, and he understands everything I say. He'll always answer me in English. He’ll pepper a few words sometimes in Welsh, I think just to please me." 

Keri is also a mother to two older children from her previous marriage to Shane Deary. Her eldest son, River, was born in 2007, and her daughter Willa arrived in 2012. Opening up about motherhood, Keri previously spoke to People about personalising her parenting to each of her children. "I think it's just different [based on] the kid. You never know," she said in 2017. "You get what you get, and they're all so different and wild and weird and good in their own way."