Is Sam Nivola related to Alessandro Nivola? All about the White Lotus star’s parents

Sam Nivola has all the makings of a young star on the rise. With his recent appearance in season 3 of White Lotus making news, the 21-year-old star already has strong acting credentials and a Hollywood pedigree.

Actor Alessandro Nivola is related to Sam Nivola, who is his son with British actress Emily Mortimer. The young Nivola’s first prominent role was in director Noah Baumbach’s White Noise. Nivola played Adam Driver and Greta Gerwig’s son alongside his real sister, May, who played his on-screen sister.

Nivola's next two roles were Netflix releases. In Maestro, he played the son of Leonard Bernstein and Felicia Montealegre, played respectively by Bradley Cooper and Carey Mulligan. Nivola played the son of Nicole Kidman and Liev Schreiber’s characters in the thriller, The Perfect Couple.

Who are Sam Nivola’s parents?

Sam Nivola was born to British actress Emily Mortimer, and her husband, the American actor, Alessandro Nivola in 2003. Alessandro Nivola met Emily Mortimer in 2000 while working together in an adaptation of William Shakespeare’s play, Love’s Labour’s Lost.

In an interview with Inquirer.net, Alessandro Nivola recounted how chance played a huge factor in his and Mortimer’s love story. Nivola was given Mortimer’s phone number by his neighbor in L.A. before leaving to shoot for a project in London. His co-star for the project turned out to be Mortimer herself, and the two fell in love. Nivola said,

“Two weeks later, I asked her out. We spent the night and, we’ve been together ever since.”

Nivola and Mortimer settled down with their son in Notting Hill, London. They gave birth to another child in 2010, a daughter, whom they named May. Later, the couple moved to Brooklyn, New York, and have been living there since.

Alessandro Nivola is best known for his roles in American Hustle, Disobedience, and Selma. His most recent credit includes Rhino in Kraven the Hunter. Emily Mortimer is known for Match Point, Lars and the Real Girl, and HBO’s The Newsroom. She also appeared in the just-released Paddington in Peru.

About the Nivolas’ family life

Alessandro Nivola shared an interesting tidbit about his children’s role in White Noise with People Magazine in 2021, saying,

“Not only are they doing this project that's made me and my wife green with envy, but they've upgraded their parents to Adam Driver and Greta Gerwig!”

Sam Nivola spoke to Vogue Magazine in anticipation of the release of season 3 of White Lotus. According to Nivola, while the arts are a prominent point of discussion during dinner time with the family,

“My parents aren’t, like, total celebrities. They don’t get recognised in the street.”

Nivola, who is in a relationship with actress Iris Apatow (from Netflix's Unstable), was seen attending the Museum Of Modern Art’s 16th Annual Film Benefit in October 2024. Alessandro Nivola and Mortimer were seen attending the same benefit as their son and his girlfriend.

It seems that despite being in the same industry, Sam Nivola’s path in Hollywood is independent of his parents’ careers. Alessandro Nivola told People Magazine that his kids weren’t interested in asking their parents for acting-related advice. Sam, though, was not too confident that he would get the part in White Lotus.

All uncertainties aside, Sam Nivola’s career in Hollywood is definitely taking off. We are excited to see what he gets up to after White Lotus!