Manuel Ríos Fernández (born 17 December 1998) is a Spanish actor and singer. He is best known for his role as Patrick Blanco in the Netflix teen drama series Elite.[1]

Manu Ríos
Ríos at the 37th Goya Awards
Born
Manuel Ríos Fernández

(1998-12-17) 17 December 1998 (age 25)
Occupations
  • Actor
  • singer
Years active2008–present

Early life and career edit

Manuel Ríos Fernández was born on 17 December 1998 in Calzada de Calatrava, a small town in the province of Ciudad Real.[2] With a great passion for singing, dancing and acting from a very young age, Ríos made his television debut at nine when he was cast in the reality show Cantando en familia after his mother received a phone call from a local television looking for young talents.[3] In the following year, he participated as a dancer in ¡Tu sí que vales!, a Spanish talent show.[4] At that age, he also began uploading covers of famous songs on YouTube, earning him the nickname "the Spanish Justin Bieber".[5] Ríos studied classical ballet and street dance and won the Spanish Championships in hip hop dance as a member of the dance crew Sweet Babies.[6] He was also a member of Parchís in its 2012 relaunch, a children's musical band with which he released an album and toured throughout Spain.[6][7] In addition, he portrayed Gavroche in the musical Les Misérables at the Lope de Vega Theatre in Madrid.[8]

In 2013, Ríos signed a 6-year contract with a Grammy Award-winning music producer Richy Peña, and moved with his parents and brother to the United States to work with an American team.[3] His work on his debut EP has been postponed due to his acting career, but he has confirmed he will release it in the future.[9] Ríos characterized the songs he had written as alternative pop with dark elements.[10] He can play the guitar and piano and has cited Lorde and Frank Ocean as some of his musical influences.[11][12]

Ríos began his acting career in 2014 as Mauricio Martínez in the Spanish TV series Chiringuito de Pepe[13] and made his international breakthrough in 2021, when he landed the role of Patrick Blanco in the Netflix series Elite, joining the cast for the fourth, fifth, and sixth season.[14] In February 2023, he received a nomination for Best TV Actor at the 2022 Fotogramas de Plata for his performance in Elite.[15]

Just days after attending the 2022 MET Gala in New York, Ríos began filming the Netflix psychological thriller series El Silencio (Muted).[16] He was also cast in the lead role in La edad de la ira, an adaptation of the bestselling eponymous novel by Nando Lopez.[17] He portrays Marcos, an introverted teenager growing up in a toxic family environment, who is accused of murdering his father.[18] In 2022, Ríos was cast as a balladeer in short film Strange Way of Life, directed by fellow Calzada de Calatrava native Pedro Almodóvar and which premiered at the 2023 Cannes Film Festival.[19][20]

Fashion edit

In October 2023, Ríos and stylist Marc Forné founded the genderless fashion brand CARRER, with Ríos serving as its creative director.[21][22]

Filmography edit

Film edit

Year Title Role Notes Ref.
2023 Strange Way of Life Singer Short film [23]

Television edit

Year Title Role Notes Ref.
2014 Chiringuito de Pepe Mauricio Martínez Recurring cast (season 1); 6 episodes [24]
2021–2022 Elite Patrick Blanco Commerford Main cast (seasons 4–6); 24 episodes [1]
2021 Elite Short Stories: Patrick Patrick Blanco Commerford Lead role; 3 episodes [1]
2022 La edad de la ira Marcos Lead role; 4 episodes [1]
2023 Muted Eneko Main cast; 8 episodes [1]
2024 Respira Biel Main cast; 8 episodes [1]

TV appearances edit

Year Title Channel Notes
2008 Cantando en familia CMM TV Contestant
2009 Tu sí que vales Telecinco Contestant
2010 Cántame cómo pasó La 1 Contestant

Theater edit

Year Title Role Notes Ref.
2010 Les Misérables Gavroche Thénardier Musical, Lope de Vega Theatre (Madrid) [25]
2012–2013 Don Pepito Don Pepito Musical, Lope de Vega Theatre (Madrid)

Awards and nominations edit

Year Award Category Nominated work Result
2022 Fotogramas de Plata Best TV Actor Elite Nominated

References edit

  1. ^ a b c d e f Mitchell, Molli (23 June 2021). "All you need to know about "Elite" star Manu Rios". Newsweek. Retrieved 13 July 2021.
  2. ^ "De Calzada a la serie 'Élite': Manu Ríos, el nuevo rey midas de los 'influencers' que arrasa en Instagram con más de 5 millones de seguidores". Lanza Digital (in Spanish). 25 July 2020. Retrieved 13 July 2021.
  3. ^ a b Real, La Tribuna de Ciudad (19 June 2013). "El sueño americano". La Tribuna de Ciudad Real (in Spanish). Retrieved 27 April 2023.
  4. ^ "De Calzada a la serie 'Élite': Manu Ríos, el nuevo rey midas de los 'influencers' que arrasa en Instagram con más de 5 millones de seguidores - Lanza Digital - Lanza Digital" (in Spanish). 25 July 2020. Retrieved 27 April 2023.
  5. ^ "Manu Rios the Spanish Justin Bieber by neo two". I-MAGAZINE Inc. Retrieved 27 April 2023.
  6. ^ a b Coruña, Luis P. Ferreiro - A. (14 March 2012). "Manu Ríos: "Hacemos los temas clásicos con un toque más moderno"". La Opinión de A Coruña (in Spanish). Retrieved 13 July 2021.
  7. ^ Dios, Marisa de (19 June 2021). "Manu Ríos, el niño de Parchís que ahora triunfa en 'Élite'". elperiodico (in Spanish). Retrieved 13 July 2021.
  8. ^ "Manu Ríos, entrevista con el Instagramer español más potente del mundo". Neo2 Magazine (in Spanish). 2 February 2019. Retrieved 13 July 2021.
  9. ^ admin (3 October 2018). "MMSCENE MAGAZINE: MANU RIOS EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW + SHOOT". Male Model Scene. Retrieved 16 August 2023.
  10. ^ "BBG Presents: Manu Rios. Photography by Amber McKee". Boys By Girls. Retrieved 27 April 2023.
  11. ^ "MMSCENE MAGAZINE: MANU RIOS EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW + SHOOT". Male Model Scene. 3 October 2018. Retrieved 27 April 2023.
  12. ^ ICON (14 April 2020). "Manu Ríos: "Cualquier foto en la que pueda romper un estereotipo me hace sentir útil"". El País (in Spanish). ISSN 1134-6582. Retrieved 27 April 2023.
  13. ^ Chiringuito de Pepe (Comedy), Santi Millán, Jesús Bonilla, Begoña Maestre, 100 Balas, Mediaset España, 9 June 2014, retrieved 15 August 2023{{citation}}: CS1 maint: others (link)
  14. ^ Mitchell, Molli (23 June 2021). "All You Need to About 'Elite' Season 4 Star Manu Rios". Newsweek. Retrieved 15 August 2023.
  15. ^ "Fotogramas de Plata 2022: lista completa de ganadores y toda la información de la gala". Fotogramas (in European Spanish). 21 March 2023. Retrieved 16 August 2023.
  16. ^ GrupoRPP. "'El silencio', la nueva película de Netflix protagonizada por Arón Piper y Manu Ríos". rpp.pe (in Spanish). Retrieved 27 April 2023.
  17. ^ "La verdadera moraleja de 'La edad de la ira'". ElHuffPost (in Spanish). 24 February 2022. Retrieved 27 April 2023.
  18. ^ Álvarez, Inés (11 March 2022). "'La edad de la ira', una historia de adolescentes que tienen que ver los adultos". elperiodico (in Spanish). Retrieved 5 May 2023.
  19. ^ "EXTRAÑA FORMA DE VIDA". Festival de Cannes. 17 May 2023. Retrieved 19 May 2023.
  20. ^ Silvestre, Juan; D'Ocon, Manuel (27 May 2023). "De nacer en el mismo pueblo a rodar juntos 'Extraña forma de vida': la increíble historia de Pedro Almodóvar y Manu Ríos". Fotogramas.
  21. ^ Campuzano, Luis (8 March 2024). "EXCLUSIVE: Marc Forné and Manu Rios Launch Second Capsule for Carrer". WWD. Retrieved 6 April 2024.
  22. ^ "Manu Ríos nous parle de sa nouvelle marque de mode Carrer". GQ France (in French). 20 October 2023. Retrieved 6 April 2024.
  23. ^ "'Strange Way of Life' Review: Ethan Hawke and Pedro Pascal Heat Up the Desert in Pedro Almodóvar's Intoxicating Queer Western". The Hollywood Reporter. 17 May 2023. Retrieved 19 May 2023.
  24. ^ "El calzadeño Manuel Ríos participó en la serie "El Chiringuito de Pepe"". CalzadaPlus. Retrieved 13 July 2021.
  25. ^ "Manu Rios' Quarantine Diary in Madrid". PAPER. 21 April 2020. Retrieved 13 July 2021.

External links edit