Shane West: biography
Shane West is a famous American actor and musician, better known for the movie A Walk to Remember and the TV series ER, Salem, and Nikita.
Shannon Bruce Snaith (also known as Shane West) was born on June 10, 1978, in the town of Baton Rouge, in the sunny state of Louisiana, the Southeastern United States. The boy grew up in an average family. His mother, Leah Catherine (née Launey), worked as a lawyer, and the father, Don Snaith, was born in Jamaica and owned a drugstore.
It is known that Shane West is of French, English, Portuguese and Jewish descent. When the boy was very young, Leah and Don decided to live separately and filed for divorce. Therefore, the future actor with his sister was raised by his mother, who often moved in search of better work. Thus, the family went to California, where they first settled in Compton, then in Norwalk.
As a child, West believed that he would undoubtedly become a singer or guitarist, but as fate would have it, he also became a successful and in-demand actor who received offers from famous directors almost every year. It is unknown when Shane began to think about acting. But, at the age of 15 or 16, the young man moved to the center of the world film industry in Los Angeles to attend numerous auditions. Fortune did not smile on the young actor immediately. For two years, West had to live in the apartment of his manager and went from casting to casting to get at least a minor role.
Movies
In 1995, Shane managed to appear in David E. Kelley's American series Picket Fences (season 4, episode 6), which was broadcast during prime time on CBS. The novice actor was lucky to work with famous movie stars: Tom Skerritt, Kathy Baker, Zelda Rubinstein, Holly Marie Combs, and many others. Shane also took part in the series California Dreams (1995), Boy Meets World (1996) and Buffy the Vampire Slayer (1997–2003).
West got the bit part of Sean in the cult teen series about the blonde (Sarah Michelle Gellar), who hunted bloodthirsty creatures. In 1999, the actor appeared in a full-length movie. It was Barry Levinson’s comedy Liberty Heights, which revolved around the Kurtzmans, a Jewish family, who faced changes in Baltimore when segregation in American schools was abolished thanks to Martin Luther King Jr.
At the beginning of the new century, the actor appeared in David Raynr’s drama Whatever It Takes (2000), in which Shane West, alongside James Franco, got the leading role. In this film, the actor portrayed Ryan Woodman, a young man who fell in love with beautiful Ashley (Jodi Lyn O'Keefe), but she did not love him back. However, the boy does not give up, and the graduation party is the only way to win the heart of the obstinate young lady. The same year, Shane played in the chilling thriller Dracula 2000, which showed the atrocities of Dracula and Van Helsing.
It is worth saying that West has played diverse roles. If earlier he appeared in a bloody action movie, then in 2001 he played in the romantic comedy Get Over It!, based on the relationship between young people. In this film, Shane appeared as Striker, a member of the boy band and a lady's man. In the story, Allison (Melissa Sagemiller) left her boyfriend Berke (Ben Foster) for Shane’s hero. But the young man meets new friends and participates in the school rock musical A Midsummer Night's Dream by Shakespeare not to be in despair. Kirsten Dunst, Mila Kunis, Carmen Electra, and Colin Hanks also joined the cast.
Later, Shane West starred in Steven Soderbergh’s cult crime comedy Ocean's Eleven, which also featured George Clooney, Brad Pitt, Julia Roberts, Andy García and other movie stars.
The tall actor (Shane West's height is 5.97 ft. (182 cm)) also took part in Adam Shankman's melodrama A Walk to Remember (2002), where he portrayed the most handsome guy in school, Landon Carter. Landon is a class leader, a strong and independent guy who cannot stand black sheep and communicates only with the most beautiful girls. Therefore, it is not surprising that he does not pay attention to modest Jamie Sullivan (Mandy Moore), the daughter of a priest and a diligent student. But, as you know, opposites attract.
In 2003, West appeared in the steampunk action film The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, in which he worked with Sean Connery, Peta Wilson, and Jason Flemyng. In this adventure film, Shane appeared as a grown-up fictional literary hero, an American special agent, Tom Sawyer. This project was followed by roles in the movie The Elder Son (2006), What We Do Is Secret (2007), Red Sands (2007) and in other notable films. It should be said that the series Nikita (2010) is one of the most significant works in West’s filmography. The actor played the leading role of Michael Bishop in this multipart action movie.
The series also starred Maggie Q, Lyndsy Fonseca, Aaron Stanford, and other actors. But the ratings of the exciting action film about the female killer began to decline, so on May 9, 2013, the CW channel renewed the series for the final shortened season. Although Nikita was closed, fortune smiled on Shane again. This time, he appeared in the supernatural drama Salem, which was broadcast on WGN America until the winter of 2017. The fantasy series tells about the troubled Puritan times when they went hunting for sorcerers and witches. West got the leading role of fearless captain John Alden.
Music
Despite his acting career, Shane has devoted to time to his favorite hobby - music. Thanks to the influence of the parents, the young man dreamed of connecting his life with music. Few people know that young Leah and Don Snaith were members of punk bands, so they often listened to the songs of The Clash, The Jam, Blondie, Elvis Costello, and The Kinks.
For a long time (7 or 8 years), Shane West was a lead singer in the band Jonny Was (the original title is Average Joe), then became a member of the group The Germs, touring with it for five years. Shane admitted that the experience of performing in front of a live audience was fascinating. The actor and his bandmates gave concerts in America and also traveled across Europe. Shane had to leave the band and plunge into the world of cinema due to the busy filming schedule.
Personal life
Shane West's personal life is a closed book. The actor’s fans were confident that there was a spark between Shane and Mandy Moore when they were shooting in A Walk to Remember. However, on-screen love did not turn into real relationships. Besides, journalists wrote that West had love affairs with many stars: Rachael Leigh Cook, Evan Rachel Wood, and other actresses.
There were rumors that the charming blue-eyed actor appeared with Jenna Dewan, the wife of Channing Tatum, and also dated Sherrie Rose, who was 12 years older than West. However, all speculations of the media were not confirmed. Shane West is an avid social media user, and he regularly pleases fans with new photos on his Instagram page.
Shane West now
In 2016, Rod Blackhurst’s fantasy thriller Here Alone with Shane West in the lead role was released.
In 2017, the actor took part in the thriller Awakening the Zodiac, which told about a resourceful killer who kept all America in fear. There are also rumors that West will play in the film Things You Missed While You Were Gone.
Filmography
- 1995 - California Dreams
- 1998 - Buffy the Vampire Slayer
- 2000 - Dracula 2000
- 2001 - Get Over It!
- 2002 - A Walk to Remember
- 2003 - The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen
- 2004–2009 – ER
- 2007 - What We Do Is Secret
- 2008 - The Lodger
- 2009 - Red Sands
- 2010-2013 – Nikita
- 2014 - Red Sky
- 2014-2017 - Salem
- 2016 - Here Alone
- 2017 - Awakening the Zodiac
