Paul was born in London, the first of three brothers, to an Italian mother and a British father. Paul first became a model, then a dancer and choreographer. As a teenager, he was a capable football player and made several appearances for Cray Wanderers in the London Spartan League between 1976 and 1978. In 1985, Paul moved to the United States to pursue a dance and modelling career. Paul has spent time in the theatre with numerous plays, the most notable of which was a guest appearance in Beauty and the Beast, which he has stated helped shape his acting ability.
Career
Paul's first role was on the ABC television series The Colbys in 1986, as ballet dancerNikolai "Kolya" Rostov. This was followed by guest appearances on the television shows Beauty and the Beast, two episodes of Tarzán, Murder, She Wrote, Relic Hunter, and as himself in WWE SmackDown. He also appeared in a January 2003 episode of Charmed and in the Off-Broadway play Bouncers, as well as in the television films Shooter and The Cover Girl Murders, the latter of which starred Lee Majors. Paul's first film appearance was in the 1988 film Last Rites, which starred Tom Berenger. He starred in the remake Masque of the Red Death, a re-telling of the Edgar Allan Poe tale. He also appeared in Sheena Easton's "Days Like This" music video as her love interest and Duran Duran's "My Own Way" music video as a dancer. In 1989, he appeared in a regular role in the second season of the television series War of the Worlds as John Kincaid, three episodes of the 1991 Dark Shadows remake as Jeremiah Collins, and made a pilot for CBS Television for a series called The Owl. In 2001, he starred in Tracker. Paul was cast in 1992 in the role that he would portray for several years, that of Duncan MacLeod in the syndicated television series ', which aired in October 1992. He also starred in the spin-off film, ', and the fifth Highlander film: ', released as a television film on the Sci-Fi Channel on 15 September 2007. Other films in which he has starred or co-starred are Dance to Win, Love Potion No. 9, Dead Men Can't Dance, Susan's Plan, ' as Lancelot, Convergence, The Void, The Breed, Storm Watch, Nemesis GameThrottle, and Phantom Below. In 2006, he co-starred in the horror filmSéance and in Little Chicago. A year later, Paul appeared as Ananias Dare in the Sci-Fi Channel original film Wraiths of Roanoke. In 2008, Paul began voice acting the character of Patrick O'Brien in the animated War of the Worlds television show. He starred as Sir Francis Drake in the Sci-Fi Channel original film The Immortal Voyage of Captain Drake, the futuristic thriller Eyeborgs, and the thriller-drama The Heavy. In 2012, Paul did a character voice-over in the Malaysian animated science fiction film'. Paul starred in the 2013 science fiction film', a post-apocalyptic action-adventure film. In 2015, he made a guest appearance as Commandant Leitner in Strike Back. In March 2019, he joined the CW series Arrow in a recurring role, playing a villainous character named Dante.
Personal life
Paul married actress Meilani Figalan in 1990. The couple divorced in 1997. Paul married long-time girlfriend Alexandra Tonelli in 2009. They have three children, a daughter born in 2009, and two sons born in 2012 and 2020. He has studied a range of martial arts and has been featured on the covers of Impact, Inside Kung Fu, Karate International and Martial Arts Insider.
Filmblips
Paul is also involved in the development and production side of the entertainment industry. In 2008, he joined with Zoltan Furedi and founded Filmblips, an independent film and television media production company.
Radio Show
Adrian Paul is the co-host of Peace Fund Radio with Ethan Dettenmaier on Brigade-Radio-One
