Inside Rivals star Alex Hassell's marriage as he opens up on nudity chat with wife

Alex Hassell is playing the role of Rupert Campbell-Black in the new Disney+ show Rivals and has opened up about stripping off for the role and his wife's warning about it

Rivals, now in the limelight following its release on Disney+, features Alex Hassell as the fictional character Rupert Campbell-Black from Jilly Cooper's romance novels. The 44 year old actor hails from Southend in Essex and is recognised for his work both on stage and screen.

The star of His Dark Materials and Henry V, who is the youngest of four siblings, honed his acting skills at the Central School of Speech and Drama. Despite being seen as a heartthrob now, he confessed to having been bullied during his school years.

Nevertheless, he went on to achieve remarkable success and met his wife, actress Emma King, in the glitzy world of showbiz. Alex revealed that he had a knack for stripping off in shows, including The Boys, leading his wife to caution him to stop "before I get a name for myself".

In a chat with inews, he further stated that he is "not particularly body shy" and chose to "be blase when it came to this [Rivals] role while reading the script", after previously discussing how he breaks the ice on set. His wife Emma King has appeared in The Cry, The Vanishing and Dagr.

Both Emma and Alex featured in the series Cowboy Bebop, where Emma portrayed Godard and Alex took on the role of Vicious, reports the Express.

The pair first crossed paths at drama school and have been happily married for 13 years since tying the knot in January 2011.

While they frequently share snapshots of each other on social media, they tend to keep their personal life under wraps.

In a heartfelt nod to his other half in 2021, Alex unveiled some candid snaps from the Cowboy Bebop set, gushing: "What an unbelievable joy it is to share the screen with my amazingly talented wife as Dr Godard."

Continuing with enthusiasm, he added: "We had the best time and think a spin-off show would go down a treat. We aren't like that at home I promise! ".

Nostalgically reflecting on a day out back in 2020 at Echo Park, he was all praise for his partner: "Just had the most wonderful day with this most wonderful of women," and admiringly affirmed, "Everything is just so much brighter when she's around."

Rivals is available to watch on Disney+