Rufus Sewell is hoping it’s third time lucky after he got married to Vivian Benitez last week in the grounds of Manorbier Castle in West Wales.
The 56-year-old actor tied the knot with American actress Vivian Benitez just months after they announced their engagement during a romantic getaway to Rome.
While the bride, 27, wore a beautiful white gown, Rufus, who plays Prince Andrew in Netflix show The Scoop, opted for a cream suit paired with black shoes and tie.
Vivian’s family seem unconcerned with the 29-year age gap, with her Cuban grandmother Mirna, they aged 83, previously saying: ‘Age is just a number and we all think Rufus is a wonderful man. We’re teaching him salsa.’
But who is Rufus’ new wife Vivian?
Rufus Sewell is hoping it’s third time lucky after he got married to Vivian Benitez last week in the grounds of Manorbier Castle in West Wales
The 56-year-old actor tied the knot with American actress Vivian Benitez just months after they announced their engagement during a romantic getaway to Rome, but who is his new wife?
Career
Vivian is an actress, who has had roles in various projects across television and film.
Her acting credits include Arsenal, Criminal Minds and the short films Sky Dancers Grow Up and Don’t Worry, It’s Gonna Be OK.
After moving to Los Angeles in her 20s Vivian became a Wilhelmina model scout.
The beauty became L.A.’s youngest model scout and a key player in expanding the top agency’s scouting perimeters into the digital space.
In 2018, Snapchat launched a series titled, Vivian. The now-defunct show gave viewers an inside look into her life as she chased her model scout dreams across New York and L.A.
Vivian is an actress, who has had roles in various projects across television and film. She first moved Los Angeles in her 20s and became a Wilhelmina model scout
Public appearances
Despite keeping their romance quite private, Rufus and Vivian have made a number of public appearance together at star-studded events.
In July, 2021, the loved-up couple walked the red carpet together at the premiere of Old.
The pair have also stepped out at the premiere of Benitez’s Netflix series The Diplomat in May 2023.
Vivian has also shared an insight into her relationship with Rufus on social media and announced their engagement with a picture on Instagram on December 6.
It appears Rufus popped the question during a romantic getaway in Rome as Vivian shared a snap of herself in the city a day prior to their exciting announcement.
She wrote in the caption: ‘Til death, (or him continuing to walk on bathmats with his outside shoes) do us part.’
While it’s unclear when and how the newly-engaged couple met, Benitez has been posting glimpses of her relationship since February 2020.
She implied that they had been dating since 2019 as she wrote in one post: ‘1 year of being in love has really taken my personality hostage. pray for its safe return’.
Despite keeping their romance quite private, Rufus and Vivian have made a number of public appearance together at star-studded events
Vivian has also shared an insight into her relationship with Rufus on social media and announced their engagement with a picture on Instagram on December 6
Vivian wore a beautiful white gown for the ceremony in Wales while Rufus, who plays Prince Andrew in Netflix show The Scoop, opted for a cream suit paired with black shoes and tie
Family
Vivian was born in New York and has a sister called Emma.
Her mother works at an immigration law firm, and is divorced from her father, Eduardo – who is her grandmother Mirna’s son.
Despite the separation, Vivian remained close to her father and previously revealed on Instagram he had some serious health issues.
She wrote: ‘A couple of months, out of nowhere, my dad collapsed and was admitted into the ICU where he suffered multiple seizures, a stroke, a heart attack, a burst bowel – but still, he woke up and asked the nurse if she was taken lol.
‘Worst of all, they found a brain tumour. He was diagnosed with a grade 4 glioblastoma.
‘He’s the funniest, most lovingly offensive, sensitive, beautiful man you’ll ever meet. Keep him in your thoughts and prayers for me as I hope I’ll be apologising for his off-colour jokes for a long, long time.’
Her grandmother Mirna confirmed that Vivian’s father had chemotherapy and revealed the first time she met Rufus was when her granddaughter brought him to the hospital to meet her father after his diagnosis.
‘It’s good for Vivian to have Rufus beside her,’ Mirna said. ‘My son is happy about the engagement, very enthusiastic. He’s looking forward to the wedding.’
Vivian recently revealed last week that she was left heartbroken as her father had tragically died.
She wrote: ‘To everyone who loved him, and prayed for him: my father took his last breath yesterday. nothing poetic about it. his fight was cruel and without mercy. I cant understand why, and I never will.
‘I don’t know how people carry on. It feels like my world has turned grey and the joy has been stolen. I loved him so much, and will miss him forever’.
Vivian was born in New York and has a sister called Emma. Her mother works at an immigration law firm, and is divorced from her father, Eduardo – who is her grandmother Mirna’s son
Despite the separation, Vivian remained close to her father and previously revealed on Instagram he had some serious health issues
Vivian recently revealed last week that she was left heartbroken as her father had tragically died
Rufus’ previous relationships
Rufus’ first wife was his long-term girlfriend, Australian fashion journalist Yasmin Abdallah, 47.
Yasmin met Rufus in Australia aged 19, and the couple married when Yasmin was 23 in 1999. They divorced in 2000.
Yasmin previously spoke about their short-lived marriage in an interview with Elle.
She met Rufus in a bar in Australia and after several months of dating, they relocated to the UK and mixed with the Primrose Hill set.
‘I don’t know if I was accepted to be honest… some weird, shaved-head Aussie-Lebanese girl who wasn’t quite part of the mix,’ she said.
‘I ended up making some wrong decisions, wrong business decisions, and I ended up losing the store, which was devastating for me. Rufus and I were no longer together, and that was quite traumatic. I was broke. It was a time of big loss. But it was also a time of great healing, when I went on – dare I say it – a spiritual journey.’
The actor married his second wife, scriptwriter and producer Amy Gardner, in 2004. They sadly divorced in 2006.
They are parents to a son, William Douglas. Amy went on to marry film producer Will Ricker.
Rufus’ first wife was his long-term girlfriend, Australian fashion journalist Yasmin Abdallah. They were married in 1999 and divorced in 2000 (pictured in 1997)
Rufus married second wife, scriptwriter and producer Amy Gardner, in 2004 and they sadly divorced in 2006 (pictured with Amy in 2001)
Rufus previously said both Amy and his son William would visit him on set. He told The Telegraph: ‘They would come and have lunch with me every day, and I would go home to them at night. I guess it was a bit like having a regular job in that it felt very stable.’
Rufus also has a daughter called Lola, 10, from his relationship with Ami Komai.
Rufus previously said of his love life in an interview with the Mail: ‘It’s always been important to be in a relationship when I’m in one, but I don’t actively look for one.
‘I’ve gone through long times without being with someone, but that’s not happened for a while.’