Niall Matter Biography

Niall Matter (pronounced May-ter), born October 20, 1980, is a Canadian actor, known for his roles as Zane Donovan in the Syfy original series Eureka and Evan Cross in the Space series Primeval: New World. In 2015 he joined the cast of Global's medical drama Remedy in the role of ER Resident Dr. Peter Cutler.

Early life

Born in Edmonton, Alberta, of Irish and Russian descent, Matter grew up on his parents farm. He is a third-generation oil rigger, having worked on the oil rigs in Northern Alberta for eight years. After getting himself in trouble at age 17, his parents sent him for a three-month stint on the oil rigs to work with his grandfather. It was this experience that helped him to focus, and pass his High School exams. He continued to work on the oil rigs until the age of 25, whilst simultaneously moving to Vancouver and attending Vancouver Film School to pursue his long-term goal of pursuing a career in film.

At the age of 25 he had a serious accident whilst working on the oil rigs, where he was nearly crushed inside the cab of a 17-ton drilling rig . His quad muscle had been detached from his femur, and he nearly lost his right leg. It took him six months to be fully rehabilitated. On returning to the oil rigs, he witnessed another accident in which another man lost his legs. This convinced him that it was time to move on, so he quit, returning to Vancouver, where he lied his way into a bartending job, before landing his first acting role.

Career

Matter landed his first lead role in the Syfy original film Beyond Loch Ness. While filming Loch Ness he sent an audition to the producers of The Best Years and ended up being hired for the role of Trent Hamilton.

This role led to a guest role Syfy television series: Stargate Atlantis. He then had an audition for Eureka, in what he believed was a one episode guest star role. He was cast in the role of Zane Donovan, first appearing in the season two episode "E=MC...?" His role was recurring in seasons two and three. In season 4 he joined the main cast, in an expanded role, through to the final season.

During this time, he also had television roles in Warehouse 13 and NBC's Fear Itself. After testing for the comedy film My Best Friends Girl, Matter appeared as a recurring guest star on the CW shows Melrose Place and 90210.

In 2009, Matter appeared in Zack Snyder's Watchmen film, filling the role of one of the Minute Men, Mothman.

From 2012 to 2013, Matter portrayed the lead character of Evan Cross in Space's science fiction series Primeval: New World, a spin-off of the British series Primeval. In 2013, this role earned him a Constellation Award in the Best Male Performance in a Science Fiction Television Episode category, for his performance in the episode "Truth". He was also nominated for a Leo Award in the Best Lead Performance by a Male in a Dramatic Series category, for the same episode.

In 2014 he landed the role of Lieutenant Graden Hales in the TNT commissioned pilot of Marcia Clark's 'Guilt by Association' alongside Julia Stiles, which TNT ultimately declined to pick up.

He has since had guest roles in various American and Canadian shows, including Motive, Arctic Air, Constantine and Rizzoli and Isles. He joined the cast of Global's medical drama Remedy for filming of the second series in September 2014, which premiered in March 2015. He joined the main cast in the role of ER Resident Dr Peter Cutler.

In November 2014 he was announced as one of the Whistler Film Festival's Rising Stars, a program designed to promote the next generation of Western Canadian actors poised for international careers.

He will guest star in a season 2 episode of Bravo's Girlfriends' Guide to Divorce in November 2015.

Personal life

Matter has previously dated Graceland star Serinda Swan.

He is a longtime fan of NHL team the Edmonton Oilers.

Filmography

Film

Year	Title	Role	Notes
2008	Beyond Loch Ness	Josh Riley	Television film
2008	Dr. Dolittle: Tail to the Chief	Cole Fletcher	Direct-to-video
2008	Secrets of the Summer House	Peter Hughes	Television film
2009	Watchmen	Byron Lewis/Mothman
2010	Dawna	Pimp	Short film
2011	Exley	George Wilson
2014	Honor Student	Nicholas Howarth	Television film
2014	Ally Was Screaming	Andrew
2016	Chokeslam	Tab	Television film

Television

Year	Title	Role	Notes
2007	'	Trent Hamilton	Main cast (season 1); 13 episodes
2007-2012	Eureka	Zane Donovan	Recurring (season 2); main cast (seasons 3-5); 49 episodes
2007-2008	Stargate Atlantis	Lt. Kemp	2 episodes
2008	Fear Itself	Eddie	Episode: "New Year's Day"
2009	Warehouse 13	Gary Whitman	Episode: "Duped"
2009-2010	Melrose Place	Rick Paxton	3 episodes
2011-2012	90210	Greg	5 episodes
2012-2013	Primeval: New World	Evan Cross	Main cast: 13 episodes
2014	Arctic Air	Tag Cummins	7 episodes
2014	Motive	Damian Cutter	Episode: "Overboard"
2014	Constantine	Darrell	Episode: "The Rage of Caliban"
2015	Remedy	Dr. Peter Cutler	Main cast (season 2); 10 episodes
2015	Rizzoli & Isles	Detective Mike Guthrie	Episode: "In Plain View"
2015	Girlfriends' Guide to Divorce	Joaquin	Episode: "Rule#14: Family First....Mostly"