Ian Nelson | |
---|---|
Born | Ian Michael Nelson April 10, 1995 [1] North Carolina, U.S. |
Occupation | Actor |
Years active | 2011–present |
Ian Michael Nelson (born April 10, 1995) is an American actor. He played the teen version of werewolf Derek Hale in the television series Teen Wolf , Eric Palmer in the drama film The Judge , and Andy in the Hulu series There's...Johnny! .
Nelson is the son of Mark and Janie Nelson, and the youngest of four children. [2] Nelson attended Forsyth Country Day School in Lewisville, North Carolina. [1] He studied screenwriting at the University of Southern California. [3] Nelson is Jewish. [4]
Nelson first became interested in the performing arts by auditioning for a school musical to impress a girl. [2] He performed in several local shows, including Piedmont Opera's Amahl and the Night Visitors . [2] In addition to acting and singing, he is a dancer, and featured in the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade on three occasions. [2] [5] To further hone his craft, Nelson studied at the University of North Carolina School of the Arts and the Stagedoor Manor performing arts school. [2] He also trained under Burgess Jenkins at Jenkins' Actors Group school. [6] [1]
His first film role was a non-speaking part as the unnamed tribute from District 3 in The Hunger Games in 2012. [2] [3] That was followed by Alone yet Not Alone the following year. The movie, filmed in Virginia and Tennessee, was filmed prior to The Hunger Games. [2] Throughout 2013 and 2014, Nelson appeared in Medeas , The Judge , and The Best of Me . [3] In 2015, he starred in The Boy Next Door as Kevin, the son of Jennifer Lopez and John Corbett. [3] Nelson described the experience as a "great role", stating he really enjoyed the collaboration with director Rob Cohen. [3]
Nelson's first foray into television was in the role of a teen were-wolf Derek Hale in Teen Wolf . He appeared as the teenaged version of Tyler Hoechlin's character in three episodes throughout the third and fourth seasons. He went on to appear in Criminal Minds and Comedy Bang! Bang! , before earning a recurring role as Parker in The Deleted , which aired in 2016. [3] [7] Nelson stars as Andy on There's...Johnny! , a show depicting the backstage workings of The Tonight Show during Johnny Carson's tenure in the 1970s. The series was released on Hulu in November 2017. [8] He starred in the 2020 drama film Paper Spiders opposite Stefania LaVie Owen and Lili Taylor. [9]
Year | Title | Role | Notes | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|---|
2012 | The Hunger Games | District 3 Male Tribute | [10] | |
2013 | Alone yet Not Alone | Young Owen Gibson | [2] | |
Medeas | Micah | [11] | ||
2014 | The Judge | Eric Palmer | [6] | |
The Best of Me | Jared Reynolds | [3] | ||
2015 | The Boy Next Door | Kevin Peterson | [6] | |
2017 | Freak Show | Mark "Flip" Kelly | [6] | |
Like Me | Burt Walden | [1] | ||
2019 | Summer Night | Seth | [1] | |
2020 | Paper Spiders | Daniel | [9] |
Year | Title | Role | Notes | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|---|
2013–2014 | Teen Wolf | Teen Derek Hale | 3 episodes | [10] |
2014 | Criminal Minds | William Pratt | Episode: "Hashtag" | [6] |
2015 | Comedy Bang! Bang! | Craig Wilson | Episode: "Simon Helberg Wears a Sky Blue Button Down and Jeans" | [3] |
Legends | Teen Curtis Ballard | Episode: "The Legend of Curtis Ballard" | ||
2016 | The Deleted | Parker | 7 episodes | [7] |
2017 | Law and Order: Special Victims Unit | Eric Hendricks | Episode: "Decline and Fall" | [6] |
There's...Johnny! | Andy Klavin | Series lead (7 episodes) | [12] |
Year | Title | Role | Notes | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|---|
2022 | Need for Speed Unbound | Speedie | Voice role, male version | |