Despite living in America for 20 years now, Matthew Rhys still calls his native country Wales his "home". The star has been honest about having torn feelings about leaving his beloved hometown for his career stateside.
He originally relocated across the pond to star in ABC's Brothers & Sisters, and now has a full-on life there with his partner Keri Russell and their 10-year-old son, Sam. Discover what Matthew has to say about his movie-star surroundings in Brooklyn and missing his homeland, along with feelings of shame for not going back more frequently.
Writing for wales.com, Matthew penned: "I've set up my life in New York, but I only say I’m going home when I’m going back to Wales. I miss it enormously on a daily basis."
© Getty ImagesHe continued: "I always thought I'd return to Wales, but when I moved from Los Angeles I only made it as far east as New York. It still amazes me that my son was born in Brooklyn. One day he'll look at the Manhattan skyline and think, this is my home - whereas I still think I'm in a Robert De Niro film."
When the star played the spirit of Richard Burton in a show, he reflected on the similarities between himself and the character to Buzz magazine: "Burton wrestled with leaving Wales. He carried that tension between his roots and his escape. I feel that too – I haven’t done a play at home in 22 years. When someone said that to me, it floored me. I felt shame! But it also felt like a calling. It’s time to come home," he said.
© Getty ImagesMatthew is keen to instil his Welsh roots into his son, and has previously revealed that he predominantly speaks to him in the Welsh language. "I speak to him solely in Welsh," he told the Radio Times, when Sam was two. "He can answer and understand at the moment." He then joked: "He'll probably resent me for the amount of Welsh I'm going to force upon him."
As well as his partner Keri and their 10-year-old son, Matthew has two teenagers in his life: Keri's son and daughter, which she shares with her ex-husband Shane Deary.
Matthew Rhys' record-breaking wins
© Kevin Mazur/Getty ImagesAt the 2026 Emmy Awards, the actor made history by scooping two lead acting trophies at the same ceremony, a feat no one has achieved in the past 31 years. He captured Outstanding Lead Actor in a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie for playing Nile Jarvis in Netflix's The Beast in Me alongside Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series for starring as Mayor Tom Loftis in Apple TV+'s Widow's Bay.
Combined with his 2018 victory for The Americans, these wins established him as the first male performer in Emmy history to sweep the lead acting category across all three main genres - drama, comedy, and limited series.
