Thiago dos Santos Martins (born 19 September 1988) is a Brazilian actor and singer-songwriter.
Career
Martins was born on 19 September 1988 in Vidigal, a neighborhood of Rio de Janeiro. He had a difficult childhood, living with her mother and a brother in conditions of extreme poverty after his father abandoned the family. Martins found a male role model in his older brother Carlos André, who nearly died after being shot in the favela they lived in in 2002. An avid fan of football, Martins trained with a team in Portugal and hoped to pursue a professional career in football when he was called for an important job as an actor: the 2004 telenovela Da Cor do Pecado.
While he had started an acting career in theater in 1998, Martins got his first role in television at a Christmas special by Xuxa in 1999. From that moment his career opportunities increased, appearing in the highly acclaimed Brazilian film City of God (2002) and television series like Cidade dos Homens (2002) and Da Cor do Pecado (2004). After the success of his initial career, Martins continued working in important productions, including Belíssima, Desejo Proibido, Insensato Coração, Avenida Brasil, Flor do Caribe, Império, Babilônia, Pega Pega, and Amor de Mãe. In the 2020s, Martins has taken part in the TV series City of God: The Fight Rages On and the telenovelas Família é Tudo and Vale Tudo.
In cinema, aside from City of God, others of Martins' credits include Xuxa Gêmeas (2006), Once Upon a Time in Rio (2008), Flordelis: Basta uma Palavra para Mudar (2009), The Silver Cliff (2011) and City of God – 10 Years Later (2013).
Personal life Martins has been in a relationship with several well-known Brazilian actresses, including Roberta Rodrigues, Fernanda Paes Leme, Paloma Bernardi, and model Talita Nogueira.
Selected roles Year Title Role Notes 1999 Planeta Xuxa Guest First TV appearance 2002 Cidade dos Homens TV show City of God Lampião Major Brazilian production, epic crime film 2003 María, Mãe do Filho de Deus John the Apostle 2004 Da Cor do Pecado Sal Major television production 2005–2006 Belíssima Tadeu Rocha 2006 Xuxa Gêmeas Tigre Romantic comedy children's film 2007 Toma Lá, Dá Cá Marcinho 2007–2008 Desejo Proibido Lídio 2008 Once Upon a Time in Rio Dé Romantic drama film 2009 Flordelis: Basta uma Palavra para Mudar Pedro Werneck Biographical drama film 2011 The Silver Cliff Nassir Drama film Insensato Coração Vinícius Amaral Telenovela 2012 Avenida Brasil Leandro Major television production Louco por Elas Dudu TV sitcom 2013 Flor do Caribe Rodrigo City of God – 10 Years Later – Documentary film 2014 Império Evaldo 2015 Babilônia Diogo Rocha 2016 A Lei do Amor Young Tião 2017–2018 Pega Pega Júlio 2019–2021 Amor de Mãe Ryan 2024 Família é Tudo Júpiter Mancini City of God: The Fight Rages On Bradock TV series 2025 Vale Tudo Vasco
References