Fool Me Once, starring acclaimed actor Richard Armitage, dropped on Netflix this week and quickly earned a spot in the Top 10 on the streaming platform.
The thriller series released on 1 January, follows the story of Maya Stern (Michelle Keegan) who is adjusting to life after her husband Joe Burkett (Richard Armitage) was murdered. But things take an unexpected twist when Maya installs a nanny cam to keep an eye on her young daughter and spots her husband in their home.
This leads to a series of events unfolding about her husband's death as Maya seeks to find out the truth. But what else do we know about Richard who plays the role of the murdered husband and what else has he been in?
Who is Richard Armitage?
The 52 year old who hails from Leicestershire is an English actor and author. He graduated from the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art and initially worked in the theatre.
Richard made several appearances on TV before shooting to fame when he landed his first leading role as John Thornton in the drama North & South in 2004. He went on to secure a huge role in The Hobbit film trilogy as Thorin - the leader of the Company of Dwarves.
Speaking to Screenrush in 2010, Richard described himself as a method actor. He said: "Yeah, I suppose I am. In a way it's slightly lazy because it means you don't have to pretend – you just have to believe.
"As much as it's possible to be like that I suppose I kind of do step in and out, I'm not one of these people that can't talk to other people because I'm in my character, but I kind of do stay with the character, yeah.
"He's always there. It's like marinating something – you're sitting in a marinade the whole time."
What else has the actor starred in?
Richard has become one of Netflix's leading actors having fronted a number of their hit series. One of which includes the 2020 series The Stranger playing the role of Adam Price and Stay Close as Ray Levine the following year.
He turned heads last year when he stripped off for the role of William Farrow in the steamy series Obsession and is now starring in another major role for the new Netflix series, Fool Me Once. Other big roles from the actor include Francis Dolarhyde in the US TV series Hannibal and Lucas North in Spooks.
He also starred in Strike Back as John Porter and in BBC's Robin Hood as Guy of Gisborne. On Netflix, he is also the voice of Trevor Belmont in the adaptation of Castlevania.
Is Richard Armitage married?
Off screen Richard tends to keep his private life out of the spotlight. He often uses his Instagram account (@richardcarmitage) to provide work updates, promote his books or share the occasional snap when travelling.
The TV star isn't married and it is unclear if he is currently dating anyone. Last year, Richard spoke publicly about his sexuality for the first time and revealed that he came out "to anybody who mattered" when he was 19 years old.
Speaking to the Radio Times, he shared: "I was always waiting for that question to punch me in the face, and it never did. I thought, 'Are people being polite, or is it that they don’t want to know?'"
Richard opted to keep his sexuality out of the spotlight until last year and said: "I just thought, 'Let the work speak for itself'". In another interview with the Evening Standard, the actor revealed that he was dating someone.
When talking about the steamy sex scenes in Netflix's Obsession, he said about his partner: "I reassured him that it was all going to be fine, and we were being well looked after." Other than that not much else is known about his love life or if he is still with his partner previously mentioned.
