Ryan Merriman

Ryan Earl Merriman (born April 10, 1983) is an American actor. He began his career as a child actor during the mid 1990s, appearing a number of television and films roles, including several Disney Channel Original Movies. He has also starred in several Hollywood films, most notably Final Destination 3 (2006) and The Deep End of the Ocean (1999).

Biography

Early life

Merriman was born in Choctaw, Oklahoma to Earl and Nona Merriman; he has a sister, Monika. His father's family is originally from Germany, while his mother is of English and Scottish descent. At a young age, he began acting in commercials, print work, vocal performances and local theater in Oklahoma.

Career

Merriman's first major role was on the television series, The Mommies, which ran from 1993 to 1995. During the mid and late 1990s, he appeared in most episodes of The Pretender as a younger version of the title character. Merriman also starred in several made-for-television films, including Smart House, The Luck of the Irish, and as a young Meyer Lansky in Lansky. In 1999, he appeared in the feature film The Deep End of the Ocean, playing the lost son of Michelle Pfeiffer's character, and subsequently starred as the main character, a Jewish boy from the Bronx, in the film Just Looking, which received a limited theatrical release in 2000. In 2002, he played the Madeleine L'Engle character Adam Eddington in yet another Disney Channel Original Movie, A Ring of Endless Light. In the years following, Merriman again returned to television roles, and appeared in Dangerous Child, co-starring Delta Burke, the mini-series Taken (2003-2004), and a guest role on Smallville in 2004.

During this time period, Merriman's roles also included the horror films Halloween: Resurrection (2002), The Ring Two (2005), Final Destination 3 (2006) and Home of the Giants, a high school drama co-starring Haley Joel Osment and Danielle Panabaker which has yet to be released. Merriman will appear in the CBS mini-series Comanche Moon, currently scheduled to air in November 2007.

Personal life

Merriman married on June 25, 2004, to Micol. His hobbies include golf, four-wheel and dirt bikes, team sports, water sports, horseback riding, martial arts,basketball, skiing, and snowboarding.

Merriman supports the Neonatal Parents Network of Oklahoma, an independent, non-profit support network for families with critically ill or premature infants. He is also involved with Eagle Mount, an organization that offers riding, skiing, camp programs, and other special activities for disabled children in Bozeman, Montana.

Some of his best friends, co-stars and fans who meet him describe him as a very shy and quiet man.

Selected filmography

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