Riley Smith

2.1. Childhood and equestrian career

Born on April 12, 1978, in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, Riley Smith was raised in Marion, Iowa, on his parents' horse ranch. His parents are Russ and Roxanne Smith. From a young age, Smith became an accomplished rider, first competing in a horse show at the age of nine. By the time he was 15, he achieved fourth place in the 3-Year-Old Mares division at the American Quarter Horse Youth World Championship. The following year, at 16, he won the American Quarter Horse Youth World Championship. His leadership skills were further recognized when, at 17, he became the youngest person to serve as president of the 50,000-member American Quarter Horse Youth Association.

2.2. Education and early activities

Smith graduated from Alburnett Junior-Senior High School in 1997. His initial career intention was to pursue a college degree to complement his interests in equine studies. However, his path shifted when he was "discovered" by a local talent scout at the Westdale Mall in Cedar Rapids. This led him to New York City, where he competed at the International Modeling and Talent Association (IMTA) Convention. Following this, he was signed to a Tommy Hilfiger modeling campaign. He utilized the earnings from his modeling work to fund acting classes, marking his entry into the entertainment industry.

3.1. Television career

Smith's television career began shortly after his modeling stint. Three months after his Tommy Hilfiger campaign, he went to Los Angeles for a screen test for The WB's 1998 pilot Minor Threat, though the pilot was not picked up. He subsequently auditioned for eight prime-time network pilots and secured more than a dozen guest-starring roles. He also played recurring characters in several television series, including the Judd Apatow NBC series Freaks and Geeks as Todd Schellinger, the CBS series Joan of Arcadia as Andy Baker, and the Fox series 24 during its third season as Kyle Singer. He also appeared in the short-lived WB series Summerland.

In 2001, Smith starred as Dean Talon in the Disney Channel Original Movie Motocrossed, portraying a love interest and mentor to Andrea "Andy" Carson on the race track. He was a main cast member in the short-lived Fox show Drive, playing Rob Laird. In 2008, Smith collaborated with The Academy of Cinema and Television to develop an online educational series aimed at children and teenagers interested in the entertainment industry. The following year, in 2009, he appeared in an episode of Ghost Whisperer, a paranormal television series starring Jennifer Love Hewitt. From 2012 to 2013, he had a recurring role in seven episodes of the fifth season of 90210 as Riley Wallace.

In 2014, Smith joined the cast of the HBO series True Blood in a recurring role as Keith. The next year, in 2015, he played Markus Keen in the ABC musical drama series Nashville. In 2016, he took on a starring role as Frank Sullivan in the CW drama series Frequency. His later television credits include recurring roles as Dr. Will Grant in Life Sentence (2018), and main roles as Levi Scott in Proven Innocent (2019) and Ryan Hudson in Nancy Drew (2019-2023). He also appeared as CAPT Harris in an episode of Station 19 in 2023 and Keith Walker in CSI: Cyber in 2016.

3.2. Film career

Smith's filmography includes appearances in various productions, ranging from teen comedies to dramas. He appeared in Bring It On (2000), Not Another Teen Movie (2001), Eight Legged Freaks (2002), National Lampoon's Barely Legal (2003), Radio (2003), and New York Minute (2004). He also featured in the Sundance Film Festival Grand Jury nominee Weapons (2007).

For the film New York Minute, Smith and co-star Jared Padalecki were personally selected for their roles by the film's stars, Mary-Kate Olsen and Ashley Olsen. Smith, who played Jim, the love interest for Ashley Olsen's character Jane, humorously admitted that he found it difficult to distinguish between the Olsen sisters. In Radio, Smith portrayed Johnny Clay, the team star and ringleader of a group that played cruel pranks on Cuba Gooding, Jr.'s character, Radio. For their contributions to Radio, key production members and actors, including Smith, were honored with a 2005 CAMIE Award. He also played Russ, the love interest of Mary Elizabeth Winstead's character, in the dancing film Make It Happen (2008).

3.3. Music career

Smith developed an interest in music during his downtime on film sets, learning to play the guitar. In 2006, he co-founded the band "The Life of Riley" with Henri O'Connor. Smith serves as the band's guitarist and lead singer. His initial motivation for creating music was to compose songs that could be featured in his films. However, after writing 16 songs with his band, they selected 11 and produced an album. As of August 2010, the Los Angeles-based group had released three CDs: The Life of Riley (2007), Long Way Home EP (2009), and Live in Hollywood at the Hotel Cafe (2010). The band has also performed at various music festivals, including the New Bohemia Music Festival.

4.1. Extended plays

6.1. Film

6.2. Television