François Landriault-Barbeau (born July 5, 1985), known professionally as François Arnaud (), is a Canadian actor. His accolades include a Vancouver Film Critics Circle Award, in addition to nominations for two Canadian Screen Awards.

Arnaud's film career began with a role in Xavier Dolan's award-winning I Killed My Mother (2009). He has since appeared in films such as Jean of the Joneses (2016), Origami (2017), Marlowe (2022), Twinless (2025), and Fucktoys (2025). His first television role was on the French Canadian comedy series Taxi 0-22 in 2008, after which Arnaud starred as Cesare Borgia in the Showtime period drama series The Borgias (2011–2013) and Manfred Bernardo in the NBC supernatural drama series Midnight, Texas (2017–2018). He gained wider recognition for portraying Scott Hunter in the Crave sports romance series Heated Rivalry (2025–present).

Early life and education Arnaud was born on July 5, 1985, in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. He is French Canadian. He has a younger sister, a lawyer. The first play he saw was Cyrano de Bergerac at age nine; inspired by the performance, he went home and tried to learn the monologues. Arnaud graduated from Collège Jean-de-Brébeuf with an arts degree. He later trained at the Conservatoire d'art dramatique de Montréal. Career Arnaud started his career in Quebec by landing a role in French Canadian comedy series Taxi 0-22 in 2008. The following year, he starred as Antonin Rimbaud in the Xavier Dolan's award-winning film I Killed My Mother (J'ai tué ma mère), an Oedipal coming-of-age drama that premiered in the Director's Fortnight section of the 2009 Cannes Film Festival. Arnaud received a VFCC Award for Best Supporting Actor in a Canadian Film for his work in I Killed My Mother, and credits this with getting him an agent in Hollywood who helped him get auditions for larger roles.

Arnaud became known for his performance as Cesare Borgia in the Showtime series The Borgias. He portrayed Oscar in the NBC drama series Blindspot. He also starred in Midnight, Texas portraying the troubled psychic Manfred Bernardo from 2017 to 2018. The show filmed in Albuquerque and Arnaud enjoyed exploring the mountains and waterfalls nearby during his five months there.

In 2016, Arnaud filmed Permission in New York City. Later, Arnaud filmed sci-fi thriller Origami, a French-Canadian movie that was shot in his home town of Montreal. The film was so physically and psychologically exhausting for Arnaud that he could not work for a month afterwards so he retreated to a cabin in the woods. In 2017, Arnaud filmed the indie film, She's in Portland with Tommy Dewey, which was released in 2020.

Arnaud featured in an episode of Schitt's Creek as Sebastien Raine, David's ex-boyfriend and photographer. In 2019, the film Rapid Eye Movement was released which saw Arnaud playing a radio DJ. Arnaud shot this in Times Square in a glass booth where he interacted with passersby. Also in 2019, Arnaud started shooting a psychological thriller called Mom. He plays opposite Emily Hampshire, whom he met while working on Schitt's Creek. He was cast because Emily would only accept her role if Arnaud played her husband. Arnaud portrayed Dan Moody in The Moodys over two seasons until its cancellation in 2021.

In 2024, Arnaud starred in the music video for "How Far Will We Take It?" by Orville Peck and Noah Cyrus.

In 2025, Arnaud starred as ice hockey player Scott Hunter in the Canadian sports romance series Heated Rivalry. His performance was met with critical praise, particularly his work in the season's third episode, "Hunter". The series is based on Canadian writer Rachel Reid's Game Changers book series. That year, Arnaud also appeared in Annapurna Sriram's Fucktoys, which premiered at South by Southwest; James Sweeney's Twinless, which premiered at Sundance; and Wiebke von Carolsfeld's forthcoming drama film Someone's Daughter.

In June 2026, Arnaud was cast in the upcoming Hulu limited series Count My Lies in a recurring role as Danny, appearing opposite Lindsay Lohan. The same month, it was announced that Arnaud had joined David Corenswet and Yvonne Strahovski in the Broadway revival of Three Days of Rain, portraying Pip and Theo.

In July 2026 he was named global brand ambassador of American sportswear company Under Armour.

Personal life Arnaud dated actress Evelyne Brochu from 2012 to 2014. He came out as bisexual in September 2020. In May 2023, he announced that he and actor Marc Bendavid had been dating for a year.

Arnaud is fluent in French and English. He learned Spanish in high school and later traveled to Latin America, where a Chilean girlfriend helped improve his proficiency in the language. However, he did not use Spanish for a decade before his role in Amapola, which was set in Argentina.

Acting credits Film

+ Year Title Role Notes 2009 I Killed My Mother Antonin Rimbaud Heat Wave Yannick Ménard 2013 Copperhead Warner Pitts Moroccan Gigolos Nicholas 2014 Amapola Luke Big Sky Clete 2015 Caesar Mark Antony The Girl King Karl Gustav Kasimir Rabid Dogs Vincent 2016 The Man Who Was Thursday Gabriel Syme Jean of the Joneses Jeremiah Rosen The People Garden Jamie 2017 Permission Dane Origami David 2018 Rapid Eye Movement Rick Weider 2020 She's in Portland Luke Paint Conner Fontaine Esther's Choice Michael Short film 2021 Goodbye Happiness Nicolas The Winter House Jesse 2022 Norbourg Vincent Lacroix Marlowe Nico Peterson The Switch Leblanc Two Days Before Christmas Alex 2024MomJaredCanadian, SniperSniper 2025 Twinless Sammy In Transit Tom Fucktoys The Mechanic 2026 Abril GabrielSomeone's DaughterPaul Sky Blue TBA

Television

+ Year Title Role Notes 2007 C.A. Serveur resto Maude Episode: "Réseau rencontre" 2008 Taxi 0-22 Marc-André 5 episodes The Double Life of Eleanor Kendall Stefan Television film 2009–2010 Yamaska Théo Carpentier 27 episodes 2011–2013 The Borgias Cesare Borgia 29 episodes 2014 Apocalypse: World War I Narrator 5 episodes 2015–2016 X Company Rene Villiers 4 episodes 2015–2016, 2020 Blindspot Oscar 18 episodes 2017 Schitt's Creek Sebastien Raine Episode: "Sebastien Raine" High School Lover Christian Booth Television film 2017–2018 Midnight, Texas Manfred Bernardo 2018 UnREAL Tommy Castelli 8 episodes 2019–2021 The Moodys Dan Moody 2022 Surface Harrison 2023 Plan B Patrick Landry Yellowjackets Paul 4 episodes Quantum Leap Curtis Bailey Episode: "This Took Too Long!" 2025Mr. BigJean-François "Jeff" Sauvageau10 episodes 2025–present Heated Rivalry Scott Hunter 5 episodes2026 Mitchell 5 episodes, Post-production Danny Shepherd Recurring role

Theatre Key

† Denotes theatre productions that have not yet premiered + Year Title Role Venue 2008 Réveillez-vous et chantez Ralph Théâtre de l'Opsis2008 L'impressario de Smyrne Théâtre Prospero2009 L'oeil du lynxLe garçon Théâtre du Nouveau Monde2025 Une fête d'enfants David Théâtre du Nouveau Monde2027Three Days of Rain †Pip/Theo Shubert Theatre

Awards and nominations + List of awards and nominations for François Arnaud Year Award Category Work Result Vancouver Film Critics Circle Best Supporting Actor in a Canadian FilmI Killed My Mother Prix Gémeaux Best Lead Actor in a Television Drama Yamaska Canadian Screen Awards Best Actor in a Continuing Leading Dramatic RoleThe Borgias Alpe d'Huez International Comedy Film Festival Best Actor () Goodbye Happiness Northern Ontario Music and Film Awards Outstanding Performance by an Actor The Switch Vienna Independent Film Festival Best Actor Canadian, Sniper Queerty Awards Best TV Performance Heated Rivalry Canadian Screen Awards Best Leading Performance in a Drama Series ACTRA Award Members' Choice Series Ensemble ACTRA Award in Montreal Outstanding Performance in TV Dorian Awards Best Supporting TV Performance – Drama Gold Derby TV Awards Drama Supporting Actor Ensemble of the Year

References

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