Simon Merrells

Simon Merrells was a British character actor who brought an old-school gravitas and wiry experimentation to every role he played, be it in films, TV, or theater. Born in Essex, England, Merrells briefly attended drama school, but dropped out in order to be a minicab driver, which funded a move to Mexico. Whilst abroad, Merrells dabbled in painting, but eventually returned to the UK, getting involved in fringe theatre in Brighton. Merrells made his screen debut on a 1997 episode of "The New Adventures of Robin Hood" (TNT, 1997-99), and before long he had landed his first series regular gig, playing Griggs on the firefighting drama "London's Burning" (ITV, 1988-2002). After that series ended, Merrells soon found regular work on shows such as "Merseybeat" (BBC One, 2001-2004), and "Family Affairs" (Channel 5, 1997-2005). Merrells landed his first film role in 2009, with a lead role in the drama "Invisible Eyes" (2009), before playing Ben Talbot, the brother to Benicio Del Toro's "The Wolfman" (2010). In 2013, he scored his most high-profile role yet, playing Roman commander Marcus Crassus in the swords-and-sandals melodrama series "Spartacus: War of the Damned" (Starz, 2013). That same year he also appeared in the horror film "Judas Ghost" (2013), as well as the reboot of "The Tomorrow People" (The CW, 2013-14). Merrells then began a run of starring roles in films, including "Index Zero" (2014), "Billionaire Ransom" (2015), and "Victrix" (2015). Merrells was next seen in the historical drama "Knightfall" (History Channel, 2017-).