Stephen Amell

Actor

Birth Date: May 8, 1981

Age: 43 years old

Birth Place: Toronto, Ontario, Canada

A handsome Canadian actor, Stephen Amell rose through the television ranks with roles on "Queer as Folk" (Showtime, 2000-05), "Dante's Cove" (here!, 2005-07) and "ReGenesis" (The Movie Network, 2004-08), winning a Gemini Award for his performance on the latter. He achieved Canadian stardom as a sexy athlete on the Canuck sitcom "Rent-a-Goalie" (Showcase, 2006-08) before boosting his American profile with a string of guest spots on such series as "NCIS: Los Angeles" (CBS, 2009- ) and "The Vampire Diaries" (The CW, 2009-17).

After playing accused murderer Joran Van Der Sloot in "Justice for Natalee Holloway" (Lifetime, 2011), he scored a memorable recurring role as a rival male prostitute to Thomas Jane's "Hung" (HBO, 2009-2011) hooker. Amell built on his American success with recurring roles on everything from "New Girl" (Fox, 2011- ) to "Private Practice" (ABC, 2007-13) and eventually landed his own star vehicle when he was cast as comic book superhero Green Arrow, a.k.a. Oliver Queen, on the highly anticipated "Arrow" (The CW, 2012- ).

Gifted with beauty and brawn, Stephen Amell proved an exciting talent whose rise was cheered by American as well as Canadian audiences.

Born May 8, 1981 in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, Stephen Amell was supporting himself as a spinning instructor while pursuing acting when, in a fun bit of serendipity, he made his screen debut with a recurring role as a spinning instructor on "Queer as Folk" (Showtime, 2000-05). After a bit part on "Degrassi: The Next Generation" (CTV, 2001-09; MuchMusic, 2010-15), he booked a guest spot on "1-800-Missing" (Lifetime, 2003-06) and a larger recurring role on "Beautiful People" (ABC Family, 2005-06).

He was cast on the supernatural gay soap opera "Dante's Cove" (here!, 2005-07) as the ostensibly straight, inevitably gay Adam, but left the show after one season amid a minor controversy; he claimed he had booked other roles that conflicted with the "Dante's" taping, while others said that he (or his girlfriend) balked at Amell enacting onscreen gay love scenes. In later interviews, Amell would avow that it was the former, and that he remained great friends with the show's other actors.

Nevertheless, he went on to win a Gemini Award for his recurring role on the science fiction thriller "ReGenesis" (The Movie Network, 2004-08) and booked a supporting turn as a young soldier in the World War II-themed romantic drama "Closing the Ring" (2007). Amell then notched two years on the Canadian sports sitcom "Rent-a-Goalie" (Showcase, 2006-08), which showcased his athleticism as well as his acting chops, and along with his co-stars, he shared two Best Ensemble Gemini nominations.

After recurring on "'Da Kink in My Hair" (Global, 2007-09), he made the leap to mainstream American projects when he booked guest spots on "Blue Mountain State" (Spike, 2010-11), "CSI: Miami" (CBS. 2002-2012), "NCIS: Los Angeles" (CBS, 2009- ) and "The Vampire Diaries" (The CW, 2009-17).

He landed the high-profile role of the real-life accused murderer Joran Van Der Sloot in the biopic "Justice for Natalee Holloway" (Lifetime, 2011) and recurred on "Hung" (HBO, 2009-2011) as the sexually charged Jason, a younger male prostitute vying to run the well-endowed Ray Drecker (Thomas Jane) out of business.

Continuing his ascent, Amell booked a string of recurring roles on such wildly popular American series as "90210" (The CW, 2008-13), "New Girl" (Fox, 2011- ) and "Private Practice" (ABC, 2007-14), as well as on the Canadian charmer "Heartland" (CBC, 2007- ), and made headlines when it was revealed he was in the running to replace the cancer-stricken Andy Whitfield as "Spartacus" (Starz, 2010- ). Although he did not step into those famous sandals, Amell did book another iconic heroic role - that of Oliver Queen, a.k.a. Green Arrow, on the highly anticipated "Arrow" (The CW, 2012- ).

Playing a ruthless vigilante who bears physical, mental and emotional scars, Amell again displayed his world class athleticism as well as his magnetic screen presence.

By Jonathan Riggs