Debut and career struggles (2002–2008) In 2001, Prithviraj underwent a screen-test by director Fazil for one of his projects. Even though that project never materialised, Fazil recommended him to director Ranjith, who was planning his second directorial,
Nandanam (2002), Prithviraj underwent screen-test for the role and got selected. Though
Nandanam was the first film that Prithviraj acted in, it was released after
Nakshathrakkannulla Rajakumaran Avanundoru Rajakumari and
Stop Violence. Prithviraj then appeared in films directed by
Lohithadas,
Vinayan,
Kamal and
Bhadran.
Shyamaprasad, who cast him as the lead in his film
Akale, said that Prithviraj's advantages are his talent and intelligence irrespective of his box office successes. In 2005, Prithviraj Sukumaran debuted in
Tamil cinema through
Kana Kandaen. He starred in Director Santosh Sivan’s
Anandabhadram in which he portrayed a character called Anandan who is a young NRI who likes his mother’s native village, a place known for powerful wizards and go through several human emotions. In 2006, Prithviraj co-starred with actor
Bhagyaraj's daughter
Saranya Bhagyaraj in
Parijatham. It became an acclaimed film. In 2006, he played the role of Sub Inspector Solomon Joseph in
Vargam, and then appeared in the film
Vaasthavam, for which he received the
Kerala State Film Award for Best Actor. He was the youngest actor to win the award. The same year he starred in
Lal Jose's
Classmates. The coming-of-age romantic comedy-drama was one of the biggest hits of his career. In 2007, Prithviraj co-starred Jyothika in
Mozhi. He also starred in
Satham Podathey and
Kannamoochi Yenada in the same year. In 2008, he starred in
Thalappavu, (directed by
Madhupal) and
Thirakkatha (directed by Ranjith), playing pivotal characters in both. One of the reviews of
Thalappavu describes it as the coming-of-age film for prithviraj describing the "spartan dignity" he brought to his portrayal of the Naxalite Joseph. The Sify review of
Thirakkatha describes it as a "genuine attempt that keeps the viewer engaged until the end". Both
Thalappavu and
Thirakkatha shared the award for the best film in the Film Critics Award for 2008. In 2008, Prithviraj starred in
Vellithirai, the Tamil remake of
Udayananu Tharam.
Rediff described, "Prithviraj ... makes the best of his assets – his expressive eyes, which glint in fury, soften with love, or brim over with frustrated tears."
Established actor (2009–2012) In 2009, the success of Prithviraj Sukumaran's
Puthiya Mugham (directed by
Diphan) was a major turning point in the actor's career and led to him being branded as a superstar. His other releases in 2009 were
Robin Hood (directed by Joshy) and the
anthology film Kerala Cafe. In 2010, Sukumaran's notable films were
Pokkiri Raja and
Anwar, directed by
Amal Neerad. He played the antagonist in
Mani Ratnam's
Raavanan in 2010 alongside actor
Vikram who played the main protagonist. His performance was critically acclaimed. In the same year, Prithviraj debuted in
Telugu cinema in the film
Police Police. In 2011, Prithviraj produced his first film, the multilingual
Urumi. His other releases included
City of God,
Manikyakallu,
Veettilekkulla Vazhi and
Indian Rupee. Critics praised Prithviraj for his performance in
Indian Rupee, a critic at
Nowrunning.com, called it his "careers best performance". In 2012, his releases included
Hero,
Molly Aunty Rocks! and
Ayalum Njanum Thammil, along with cameo roles in
Aakashathinte Niram. He also made a special appearance in
Anjali Menon's
Manjadikuru. In that same year, Prithviraj debuted in
Hindi cinema through
Aiyyaa, starring alongside
Rani Mukerji.
Critical acclaim and further success (2013–2018) In 2013, Prithviraj had three releases
Celluloid,
Mumbai Police and
Memories, all of which were critical and commercial successes. He portrayed
J.C. Daniel in
Celluloid, for which he won his second
Kerala State Film Award for Best Actor. In 2014, Prithviraj's first major release was
London Bridge, which was a box office failure; followed by
7th Day, which emerged as a commercial success. He also featured in a cameo role in
Munnariyippu. His third release of the year,
Sapthamashree Thaskaraha was praised by critics. Prithviraj also starred in director
Vasanthabalan's period film
Kaaviya Thalaivan, co-starring
Siddharth. His first release of 2015 was
Picket 43, followed by other releases such as Shyamaprasad's
Ivide. Prithviraj was widely praised for his performance in the film. He next appeared in
Lijo Jose Pellissery's
Double Barrel. His most successful film of that year was
Ennu Ninte Moideen co starring
Parvathy which narrated the tragic love tale of Kanchanamala and Moideen that happened in the 1960s in
Mukkam, a riverside village in Kerala. The film opened to critical acclaim, with several critics regarding it as one of the greatest romance films made in Malayalam cinema. His role as Moideen is regarded as one of the best in his career. His next releases
Amar Akbar Anthony and
Anarkali were major commercial success. and niece
Prarthana Indrajith at an event in 2009Prithviraj had four releases in 2016, beginning with
Paavada, a family drama in which he played a drunkard. It met with a positive response and was a commercial success and ran for 100 days in theatres. His other releases
Darvinte Parinamam and
James & Alice were met with mixed reviews, the former told the story of an ordinary man dealing with a local goon and the latter was a family drama that discussed the matter of life and death. His last release,
Oozham, an action thriller directed by Jeethu Joseph was a commercial success. He played a demolition expert. In 2017, he starred in the horror film
Ezra, which became one of the highest-grossing Malayalam films of the year, grossing 50 crore worldwide. His other releases that year included
Tiyaan,
Adam Joan and
Vimaanam. Both
Tiyaan and
Vimaanam were moderate box office hits. He starred in his third
Hindi film,
Naam Shabana. His first release of 2018 was Roshini Dinakar's romantic drama
My Story, a commercial failure at the box office. His next two releases were
Anjali Menon's drama
Koode and
Nirmal Sahadev's crime drama
Ranam.
Koode received critical acclaim and was a commercial success
Lucifer and beyond (2019–present) Prithviraj made his directorial debut in 2019 with the film
Lucifer, starring
Mohanlal. The film became one of the
highest-grossing Malayalam film. In the following years, he would go onto star in the comedy-drama
Driving License (2019),
Ayyappanum Koshiyum (2020),
Jana Gana Mana (2022),
Kaduva (2022) and
Salaar: Part 1 – Ceasefire (2023), all of which emerged as box office successes. However, ''
Brother's Day, Kaapa,
and Gold failed at the box office. In 2024, he acted in the survival drama, Aadujeevitham
, directed by Blessy. Prithviraj had been cast for the project 16 years prior in 2008. Aadujeevitham
was critically and commercially successful with Prithviraj earning critical acclaim for his performance. His second release, Bade Miyan Chote Miyan, marking his fourth film in Hindi cinema, received negative reviews from critics and was a box-office bomb. His third release, the comedy-drama Guruvayoor Ambalanadayil was also a commercial success. Both films ranks among the list of List of highest-grossing Malayalam films of all time. He won the Kerala State Film Award for Best Actor for Aadujeevitham
that year. In 2025, he directed and starred in L2: Empuraan, a sequel to Lucifer''. The film received mixed reviews from critics but still emerged as a commercial success. Prithviraj next appeared in the Hindi film
Sarzameen (2025), directed by
Kayoze Irani, the son of
Boman Irani, and produced by
Karan Johar,
Apoorva Mehta, and
Adar Poonawalla under
Dharma Productions. It released directly onto
JioHotstar to mixed-to-negative reviews. His another release in the year 2025 was
Vilayath Buddha, which turned to be an underperformer. In 2026, he will appear in the highly anticipated sequel to
Salaar: Part 1 - Ceasefire,
Salaar: Part 2 - Shouryanga Parvam. He has also signed on to appear in malayalam films
Nobody, and
Santhosh Trophy.
Varanasi, directed by
S. S. Rajamouli and co-starring
Mahesh Babu and
Priyanka Chopra is one of his most anticipated films. == Personal life ==