Reza Kianian (Persian: رضا کیانیان, born June 19, 1951, in Tehran) is an Iranian actor. He has received various accolades, including two Crystal Simorgh, a Hafez Award and two Iran Cinema Celebration Awards.
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Early life
Kianian is the second child of a family of 9; he has 4 brothers and 2 sisters. When he was 1 year old, his family moved to Mashhad. His first acting coach was his older brother, Davood. In 1965, Davood directed and coached Reza in his first role in a play titled Az Paa Nayoftadeha, written by Gholam-Hossein Sa'edi. He continued to work with Davood's theater troupe for the next 3 years, when he moved back to Tehran to study fine arts at the University of Tehran, where he graduated in 1976. Reza Kianian married his wife, Hayedeh, on March 21 (the Persian New Year) in 1983.
Career
Theater
Kianian starting his acting career in theater. He began acting in 1965, when he was only 15 years old. Later on in life, he took the stage in renditions of plays such as Antigone, Petty Bourgeois, Simon Masha Figures, Mississippi's Marriage, Souvenir of the Sand Years and many more. In April 2010, after a six-year hiatus from theater, Kianian returned to stage under the direction of Atila Pesyani in Professor Bvbvs.
Television
Reza Kianian has acted in some television series as well. Perhaps his most memorable role in television has been his character 'Jamshid' in Shellike Nahayi (The Final Shot) directed by Mohsen Shahmohammadi, where 'Jamshid-style' outfits and hairstyle became popular with the youth of Iran. In The English Bag and The Rebel Years he portrayed an old clergyman and a judge respectively, which are considered his most controversial roles to date.
Other ventures
Besides being an actor, Reza Kianian is also a painter, sculptor and set designer. His set design for the movie Niloofar-e Abi (The Lotus) won him an industry award at the 17th Fajr International Film Festival in 1998. Kianian's photo and paintings have been exhibited in two solo exhibits in 2008 and 2010, and in over five group exhibits. In 2007, he also held a solo sculptor exhibit. In 2012, Reza Kianian was the auctioneer for the first ever Christie's style auction in Tehran, Tehran Auction. The auction was a sold-out event, making over $1 million.
Personal life
On 2 February 2026, Kianian was not present for the screening of Escort at the Fajr Film Festival, a movie in which he acted in, leading to speculations that he had boycotted the festival in protest of the government's handling of the 2025–2026 Iranian protests.
Filmography
Television
Apartment, directed by Asghar Hashemi, 1994
Shellike Nahayi (The Final Shot), directed by Mohsen Shahmohammadi, 1996
The English Bag, directed by Ziaeddin Dorri, 2000
Doran-e Sarkeshi (The Rebel Years), directed by Kamal Tabrizi, 2002
Yek Mosht Par-e Oghab (A Fistful of Eagle Feathers), directed by Asghar Hashemi, 2007–2008
Roozegar-e Gharib (Strange Times), directed by Kianoush Ayyari, 2002–2008
Mokhtarnameh directed by Davoud Mirbagheri, 2004–2008
Ghalb-e Yakhi (Frozen Heart), directed by Saman Moghadam, 2012
Rahe Toolani (Long Way), directed by Reza Mir-Karimi, 2012
Kolah Pahlavi (Pahlavi Hat), directed by Ziaeddin Dorri, 2013
King of Ear, directed by Davood Mir Bagheri, 2013
Puzzle, directed by Ebrahim Sheibani, 2014
Shahrzad, directed by Hassan Fathi, 2018
Siavash, directed by Soroush Mohammadzadeh, 2021
Film
All of Earth's Temptations (Tamam-e vasvaseha-ye zamin), directed by Hamid Samandarian, 1989
Patal and Small Dreams (Patal va Arezoohaye Koochak), directed by Masoud Karamati, 1989
Ilya, the Young Painter (Ilya, Naghash-e Javan), directed by Abolhassan Davoodi, 1991
The Unfinished Man (Mard-e Natamam), directed by Moharram Zienalzadeh, 1992
Common Pain (Dard-e Moshtarek), directed by Yasaman Malek Nasr, 1994
Kimia, directed by Ahmad Reza Darvish, 1995
My Mother, Gisoo (Madaram, Gisoo), directed by Siamak Shayeghi, 1995
Sultan (Soltan), directed by Masoud Kimiai, 1996
Cinema is Cinema (Cinema, Cinemast), directed by Ziaeddin Dorri, 1996
The Red Ribbon (Rooban-e Ghermez), directed by Ebrahim Hatamikia, 1998
The Glass Agency (Ajans-e Shisheh-i), directed by Ebrahim Hatamikia, 1998
Smell of Camphor, Scent of Jasmine (Booye Kafoor, Atre Yas), directed by Bahman Farmanara, 2000
An Umbrella for Two (Chatri Baray-e Do Nafar), directed by Ahmad Amini, 2000
Killing Mad Dogs (Sag Koshi), directed by Bahram Beizai, 2001
Issa Will Come (Issa Miayad), directed by Ali Zhekan, 2001