Dark Lord

A work by Alberto Morillas released in 2018, Dark Lord “Ex Tenebris Lux” is Kilian’s gentleman of the night: an opening of bergamot and pepper, a jasmine drenched in rum, accords of leather and vetiver, between the shadow and light named by its Latin subtitle, in the house’s family of The Smokes.

Brand: By Kilian
Launch year: 2018
Perfumer: Alberto Morillas
Gender: Unisex
Olfactory family: Woody
Concentration: Eau de Parfum

Published November 11, 2026

Where to buy

My collection

Now Smell This announced Dark Lord on 11 July 2018, first at Saks Fifth Avenue, as a 50 ml eau de parfum. Alberto Morillas composed it; Chemist in the Bottle compares it with his Gucci Guilty Absolute pour Homme, released the previous year.

A gentleman of the night

The house opens its presentation with a line from Oscar Wilde: a gentleman is one who never hurts anyone’s feelings unintentionally. It imagines a nocturnal seducer, entirely himself, whose mystery unfolds little by little, from shadow into light, as its Latin subtitle says.

The skull coffret

Now Smell This describes a bottle carved with the shield of Achilles, a symbol of protection, with monogram-engraved gunmetal details, under lock and key; a smiling skull rises atop a black lacquered wooden coffret. The house places it among The Smokes.

Olfactory pyramid

Top notesThe first minutes
- Pepper
Heart notesThe heart of the perfume
- Jasmine
Base notesWhat lingers
- Vetiver

Composition

Read the full composition

What critics say

Chemist in the Bottle finds no originality in it and judges it hardly dark for its name; Jade, for The Fandomentals, turns it into a satire with a generic leather.

Read what critics say