Santiago Cabrera

Santiago Cabrera (born May 5, 1978, in Caracas, Venezuela) is a Chilean screen actor whose career has largely unfolded across the UK and the United States. He is widely recognized for high-profile television roles including Isaac Mendez on NBC’s Heroes, Lancelot in the BBC fantasy drama Merlin, and Aramis in The Musketeers. He later fronted CBS’s thriller Salvation as tech visionary Darius Tanz, and reached a new global audience as Captain Cristóbal “Cris” Rios in Paramount+’s Star Trek: Picard.

Born while his Chilean diplomat father was posted abroad, Cabrera spent his early years moving between countries—growing up mainly in England, while also living in Romania, Toronto, and Madrid—before returning to Chile as a teenager. A keen athlete in school, he only explored acting after encouragement from teachers, a turning point that redirected his ambitions toward performance.

He refined his craft at London’s Drama Centre (2000–2003) and built a filmography that spans studio spectacle and international cinema. Notable credits include Che: Part One (as Camilo Cienfuegos), Transformers: The Last Knight (as Santos), What Happened to Monday, The Life of Fish, Haven, and Love and Other Disasters.