Ryan Eggold Biography

Date of Birth

10 December 1984, Los Angeles County, California, USA

Birth Name

Ryan James Eggold

Height

6' (1.83 m)

Mini Biography

Ryan Eggold was born on August 10, 1984 in Lakewood, California. His father is of German descent and his mother is of half Croatian and half Austrian-Jewish ancestry. Ryan's maternal grandmother was born in Vienna.

Eggold attended Santa Margarita Catholic High School, where he participated in many school plays and graduated in 2002. He went on to study at USC's esteemed theatre department, graduating in 2006, then landed several recurring television roles on CBS, HBO, Cartoon Network, ABC, The CW, and FX right out of college. He made his professional television debut on "Related" and his professional film debut on "Con: The Corruption of Helm" in 2006.

Eggold's other television credits include the A&E miniseries "Sons of Liberty," FX's "Dirt" with Courteney Cox and HBO's "Entourage." Eggold also starred as Tom Keen in the spin-off series "The Blacklist: Redemption."

Eggold stepped behind the camera to write, direct, produce and compose the film "Literally Right Before Aaron," which premiered at Tribeca film festival and was originally based on Eggold's award-winning 2011 short of the same name. The film follows a young man who attends the wedding of his ex-girlfriend. Cobie Smulders, Justin Long, John Cho and Kristen Schaal star.

On the big screen, Eggold played a supporting role in Spike Lee's Academy Award winning "BlacKKKlansman." He can also be seen in Eliza Hittman's new drama "Never, Rarely, Sometimes, Always;" Other film credits include So Yong Kim's "Lovesong," opposite Riley Keough and Jena Malone; Gabriele Muccino's "Fathers and Daughters," opposite Amanda Seyfried and Aaron Paul; Tyler Perry's "The Single Moms Club;" Megan Griffiths' "Lucky Them," opposite Toni Collette and Thomas Hayden Church; "The Disappearance of Eleanor Rigby," with Jessica Chastain and James McAvoy; and Chris Lowell's directorial debut "Beside Still Waters."

On stage, Eggold starred in a revival of Arthur Miller's "All My Sons," opposite Alec Baldwin and Laurie Metcalf, at the John Drew Theater at Guild Hall in East Hampton, N.Y.

Born and raised in Southern California, Eggold is a graduate of USC's theater program. When he's not acting, he plays in his a band as a musician and singer. He's looking to turn his attention to writing and directing more content in the near future.

Trivia

Attended Santa Margarita Catholic High School, where he participated in many school plays and graduated in 2002.

His father is of German descent. His mother is of half Croatian (from her own father) and half Austrian Jewish (mother) ancestry. Ryan's maternal grandmother was born in Vienna.

Quotes

If I couldn't act, I'd really love to try music.

People really give you a hard time when you wear fake glasses out to a bar.

I'm just a guy who wears TOMS. It's the sad truth.

Never stop taking risks. Just keep reaching.

So many limits in Catholic high school! I'm not a bad Catholic, but everything was off-limits.

I think all of us could play the teacher because we all grew up with teachers. It's just kind of this peeking-over-the-shoulder presence that we've all grown up knowing.

You have to figure out 'who am I?' 'What do I want to do?' 'What do I want to say?'

I never got why actors don't like it when a fan comes up to them on the street. It is cool that someone recognizes what you do and makes you feel like you live in a community.

I love all my fam. I have quite possibly the best dad, mom, and sister in the world.

I have numerous clear glasses at home. I probably have thirty pairs. I think it started for acting. I have tons of clothes that just sit there. But if that one role comes up, I'm going to want that shirt. And I have glasses for that, too.

I play the guitar and the piano and have a group of guys who I play with. They're uber talented.

I wore glasses my whole life, but then I got Lasik eyeball surgery, and I fixed that.

I think I'll always prefer theater to working in front of the camera. It seems a more distilled form of the craft.