Bryce Hodgson

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Bryce Hodgson (born February 22, 1989) is a Canadian actor, playwright and filmmaker, best known for portraying Ben Segal in the Diary of a Wimpy Kid film series and recurring role as Don E. in the television series iZombie . [1]

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Background

Born and raised in Vancouver, British Columbia, he began his career as a child actor, with various supporting roles in film and television including recurring supporting parts as Ben in the Diary of a Wimpy Kid film series and Artie Maddicks in X-Men . [2] After becoming disillusioned and burnt out, he went through a brief rebellious phase in the city's punk rock scene before getting involved in youth community theatre, studying under Kate Twa at the city's Lyric Theatre. [2]

Theatre career

In 2010 he was one of the founders of the Vancouver-based Little Bastards theatre company, where his colleagues included filmmaker Anthony Shim. [3]

In 2014 he performed in New York City in an Off-Broadway stage adaptation of Deliverance . [4] With Danny Blackburn, he also composed original music for the production, receiving a Drama Desk Award nomination for Outstanding Music in a Play in 2015. [5]

He was later one of the founders of Blood Pact Theatre. [6] The company debuted in September 2016 with Kill Your Parents in Viking, Alberta, a play co-written by Hodgson and Charlie Kerr. [7] The company followed up in 2018 with After Wrestling, another play co-written by Hodgson and Kerr, [8] and No Clowns Allowed, a play written by Hodgson's colleague Bri Proke. [9]

In 2019 the company acquired its own theatre venue, Grand Canyon, in The Junction neighbourhood of Toronto, Ontario, [6] launching the space with Hodgson's play Dock Mother God Society. [2]

Filmmaking

Blackbear, his first short film as a director, premiered at the 2022 Fantasia Film Festival, where it received an honorable mention from the international short film award jury. [10]

In fall 2023 he began production on his feature directorial debut, Thanks to the Hard Work of the Elephants. [11] The film will receive a private industry screening at the 78th Locarno Film Festival in August 2025, [12] with its public premiere forthcoming.

References

  1. Denise Petski, "‘iZombie’: Bryce Hodgson Upped To Series Regular For Season 5". Deadline Hollywood , September 27, 2018.
  2. 1 2 3 Graham Isador, "After burning out as a child actor, theatre turned Bryce Hodgson's life around. Now he's giving back". CBC Arts, October 15, 2019.
  3. Ashley Whillans, "Little Bastards look to shake up the Vancouver theatre scene". Vancouver Observer , July 9, 2010.
  4. Elisabeth Vincentelli, "Adapted ‘Deliverance’ proves the power of ingenious stagecraft". New York Post , October 22, 2014.
  5. Gordon Cox, "Drama Desk Nominations: ‘Hamilton’ Leads the Polls". Variety , April 23, 2015.
  6. 1 2 Graham Isador, "What I Wish I’d Known: Blood Pact Theatre". Intermission Magazine, April 5, 2019.
  7. Debbie Fein-Goldbach, "Two indie companies triumph with Kill Your Parents In Viking, Alberta". Now September 14, 2016.
  8. Martin Morrow, "Grim themes get lost in the noise". The Globe and Mail , March 5, 2018.
  9. Karen Fricker, "Generational culture clash keeps things light in short, dark comedy No Clowns Allowed". Toronto Star , December 9, 2018.
  10. "Le film d’horreur belge Megalomaniac remporte les grands honneurs à Fantasia". Ici Radio-Canada, July 25, 2022.
  11. Kelly Townsend, "Actor Bryce Hodgson rolls on feature directorial debut". Playback , October 18, 2023.
  12. Pat Mullen, "Two Docs Among Canadian First Look Spotlight at Locarno". Point of View , July 16, 2025.