We study theoretically and demonstrate experimentally light-controllable terahertz reflectivity of high-resistivity semiconductor wafers. Photocarriers created by interband light absorption form a thin conducting layer at the semiconductor surface, which allows the terahertz reflectivity of the element to be tuned between antireflective (R <3%) and highly reflective (R >85%) limits by means of the intensity and wavelength of the optical illumination.