Sam Nivola
British and American actor (born 2003)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Samuel John Nivola[1] (born September 26, 2003)[2] is a British and American actor. He is the son of actors Emily Mortimer and Alessandro Nivola. His credits include the films White Noise (2022) and Eileen (2023),[3] as well as the Netflix series The Perfect Couple (2024) and season three of the HBO anthology series The White Lotus (2025).
September 26, 2003
- United Kingdom
- United States
Sam Nivola | |
|---|---|
| Born | Samuel John Nivola September 26, 2003 London, England |
| Citizenship |
|
| Education | Columbia University |
| Occupation | Actor |
| Partner | Iris Apatow (2024–present) |
| Parents |
|
| Relatives | John Mortimer (maternal grandfather) Costantino Nivola (paternal great-grandfather) |
Early life and education
Nivola was born at the Portland Hospital in central London to British actress Emily Mortimer and American actor Alessandro Nivola.[1][2] He has Italian and German-Jewish ancestry on his father's side.[4][5] His maternal grandfather is the dramatist Sir John Mortimer. His paternal great-grandfather is the sculptor Costantino Nivola.
He has a younger sister, May, who also acts.[1][6] Nivola spent his early childhood in the Echo Park neighborhood of Los Angeles, Notting Hill[7] and then grew up in the New York City neighborhood of Boerum Hill. He attended Saint Ann's School and then Columbia University.[8]
Career
Nivola made his acting debut in the Sky Atlantic comedy series Doll & Em (2013), starring his mother.[9] In 2021, he and his sister played siblings on an episode of The Pursuit of Love, a British miniseries based on Nancy Mitford's novel of the same title adapted by their mother for BBC One.[8][10] Nivola wrote and directed a short film, Neighborhood Watch, for the anthology With/In (2021), which consisted of films shot on smartphones about life in quarantine during the COVID-19 pandemic.[9][11]
Nivola and his sister played two of the central family's children in Noah Baumbach's film White Noise (2022).[12] At the callback audition for White Noise, Baumbach asked Nivola whether his sister wanted to audition for the role she plays in the film.[8] The next year, Nivola played Leonard Bernstein's son in Bradley Cooper's Maestro.[13] Also in 2023, Nivola walked the runway at Paris Fashion Week for Miu Miu alongside the likes of Emma Corrin.[14]
In 2024, Nivola starred in The Perfect Couple. In 2025, he starred in season three of The White Lotus.[15] In March 2025, he began filming the Bobby Farrelly comedy film Driver's Ed.[16] Later that year, a pilot Phony he filmed with Connie Britton received a series order from Hulu.[17]
Personal life
Nivola has been in a relationship with Iris Apatow since 2024. She visited him on the set of The White Lotus. They live together in an apartment in New York.[18]
Filmography
Film
| Year(s) | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2014 | River of Fundament | Kidsroom Ensemble | |
| 2021 | Neighborhood Watch (in With/In) | Short film; also writer and director | |
| 2022 | White Noise | Heinrich | |
| 2023 | Eileen | Lee Polk | |
| 2023 | Maestro | Alexander Bernstein | |
| 2025 | Driver's Ed † | Jeremy | Completed[19] |
Television
| Year(s) | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2013 | Doll & Em | Ariel | Episode: "Six" |
| 2021 | The Pursuit of Love | Matt | Episode: "Episode Two" |
| 2024 | The Perfect Couple | Will Winbury | Main role; season 1[20] |
| 2025 | The White Lotus | Lochlan Ratliff | Main role; season 3[21] |
Awards and nominations
| Organizations | Year[a] | Category | Work | Result | Ref(s) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Actor Awards | 2026 | Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series | The White Lotus | Nominated[b] | [22] |