RILEY SMITH
Ryan Hudson in “Nancy Drew”

Riley Smith stars as Ryan Hudson, a charming and wealthy man who may be hiding some dark secrets, in The CW’s highly anticipated fall drama “Nancy Drew.”

Smith was born and raised on his family’s Quarter House Ranch outside of Cedar Rapids, Iowa. He remains involved with his hometown supporting the Eastern Iowa Arts Academy, a non-profit after school arts organization created for K-12 grade students, offering classes in art, music, drama, dance, cultural arts and creative writing.

Most recently, Smith was seen in series regular roles on “Proven Innocent” with Rachelle Lafevre and “Frequency” starring alongside Mekhi Phifer and Peyton List, and recurring roles on “Life Sentence,” alongside Lucy Hale, and “Nashville” where he played Markus Keen, an artist signed to Rayna’s Highway 65 label. Smith merged his love for music and acting, recording singles such as “In the Name of Your Love” and “I Want To (Do Everything For You)” for the “Nashville” soundtrack. He also scored a recurring role alongside Rachel McAdams playing her boyfriend, Sheriff’s deputy Steve Mercier, on “True Detective.” This role followed his previous stint as a vampire on the seventh and final season of “True Blood,” where he played Keith, a rugged, rock ‘n’ roll vampire with a romantic side and storyline opposite Arlene, played by Carrie Preston.

Other television credits include recurring roles in the Emmy-nominated series “Joan of Arcadia,” the highly acclaimed series “24,” “Summerland,” and Judd Apatow’s master creation “Freaks and Geeks.” He had the starring role in “Drive,” and appeared in seven episodes of The CW’s “90210,” as Riley Wallace, a paraplegic, opposite Shenae Grimes and Tristan Wilds. He also appeared in television movies including “Motocrossed” and “Deliverance Creek.”

Smith’s feature credits include films as diverse as “Radio,” with Ed Harris and Cuba Gooding Jr., “Eight-Legged Freaks,” “Not Another Teen Movie,” “New York Minute,” as well as “Gallowwalkers,” alongside Wesley Snipes, the Sundance Grand Jury Nominee “Weapons,” and “Christmas in Conway,” with Andy Garcia and Mary-Louise Parker.

In his free time, Smith fronts the band “The Life of Riley,” as the lead singer and guitarist. The Los Angeles based group has released three albums to date.

Smith currently splits his time between Vancouver and Los Angeles.

August 2019