Reza Rahadian Matulessy (born on 5 March, 1987) is an Indonesian actor, model, singer and director of Persian and Ambonese descent. He is the Chair of the Indonesian Film Festival for the period 2021 to 2023.
He was born to an Iranian father and a Moluccan Indonesian mother whose love for film influenced him as a youth.
In 2004, Rahadian was crowned Top Guest, an award for models, by the Indonesian variety magazine Aneka,[1] despite never having been a professional model. He considered modelling as a way to help him become an actor. Later, [2] through the coverage he received from his modelling career, Rahadian was cast in several sinetron (Indonesian soap operas), including Culunnya Pacarku and Idola. He made his film debut in 2007, with the horror-comedy Film Horor; and acted in another horror film, Ghost Island 2, in the following year.[2]
Reza Rahadian made his first critically acclaimed film in 2009, when he acted in Hanung Bramantyo's Woman with a Turban; since then, he had become weary of acting in horror films. Although he had initially auditioned for a minor character, Bramantyo chose Rahadian for a larger role of Samsuddin, the main character Anissa (Revalina S. Temat)'s abusive, polygamous husband.[2] He acted in another four films that year,[3] including three comedies.[2]
The following year, Reza Rahadian acted in four films,[3] including 3 Hati Dua Dunia, Satu Cinta and How Funny (This Country Is).[2] The former film, which dealt with interfaith romance, won a Citra Award for Best Film at the 2010 Indonesian Film Festival,[4] while the latter was Indonesia's nomination to the 83rd Academy Awards.[5]
In 2011, Reza Rahadian acted in four films.[3] This included the role of Tudo, a dolphin expert, in Kamila Andini's directorial debut The Mirror Never Lies; for the role he had to study about dolphins at Ancol in North Jakarta.[2] Aside from acting he directed a short film, entitled Sebelah (A Side).[6]
Reza Rahadian played in six films in 2012.[3] For BrokenHearts, in which he played as an anorexic, he lost 10 kg (22 lb) to prepare for his role.[6] Later he acted in Perahu Kertas and its sequel, adapted from the novel of the same name by Dewi Lestari, Reza Rahadian played Remi, a businessman who becomes romantic foil for the leading character. Writing for The Jakarta Post, Niken Prathivi found that Reza Rahadian had performed well "as expected", showing a mental struggle between love and business.[7]
At the end of 2012, Reza Rahadian played former president B.J. Habibie in Faozan Rizal's biopic Habibie & Ainun, which followed the romance between Habibie and his future wife Ainun (played by Bunga Citra Lestari). In a review, Prathivi wrote that Rahadian had given a "flawless" representation of the former president and his mannerisms.[8] In 2016, Reza Rahadian continued in prequel Rudy Habibie.
In 2017, Reza Rahadian reunited as a couple with Adinia Wirasti in Critical Eleven.