Thomas Ian Griffith

Thomas Ian Griffith

CountryUnited States United States
GenderMale
BirthdayMar 18, 1962
BiographyThomas Ian Griffith (born March 18, 1962) is an American actor, screenwriter, producer, musician, and martial artist. His best-known roles include Terry Silver in John G. Avildsen's 1989 martial arts film The Karate Kid Part III, which he later reprised in the fourth through sixth and final season of the Netflix television series Cobra Kai (2021–2025), as well as voicing his character in the video game Cobra Kai 2: Dojos Rising (2022); head vampire Jan Valek in John Carpenter's 1998 neo-Western action horror film Vampires; warrior Taligaro in Raffaella De Laurentiis' 1997 sword and sorcery picture Kull the Conqueror; recurring character Larry Sawyer in the first season of The WB's teen drama series One Tree Hill (2004); and Catlin Ewing in NBC's soap opera Another World from 1984–1987. He also portrayed screen legend Rock Hudson in ABC's 1990 television biopic Rock Hudson, and serial killer Doug Clark in CBS's 2000 television biopic A Vision of Murder: The Story of Donielle.

Griffith wrote, story edited, co-produced, or supervised produced over sixty episodes of NBC's fantasy police procedural drama horror program Grimm from its second through sixth and final season (2012–2017), and has written, supervised producer, or co-executive produced over thirty episodes of Netflix's romantic drama series Virgin River during its fifth through seventh seasons (2023–2025). He and his wife, Mary Page Keller, formed the independent film production company Ian Page Productions in the late 1980s, through which they produced a handful of films, including Night of the Warrior (1991), Ulterior Motives (1991), Excessive Force (1992), and Avalanche (1999).

During the early 1990s, he was positioned to be one of Hollywood's next big action stars. From critics and journalists, he received frequent comparisons to actors like Jean Claude van Damme, Steven Seagal, Chuck Norris, Jeff Speakman, Sylvester Stallone, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Dolph Lundgren, and even Clint Eastwood, Harrison Ford, and Mickey Rourke. Writing for the New York Daily News in 1992, Nancy Stedman offered, "He's being touted as a better-looking version of Arnold Schwarzenegger or Jean-Claude Van Damme. But with a difference: Muscles are a sideline with Griffith; he has spent years acting in theater." At the eighth annual ShowEast film industry conference held in Atlantic City, New Jersey, in October 1992, Griffith received the Star of Tomorrow Award.

Biography from the Wikipedia article Thomas Ian Griffith. Licensed under CC-BY-SA. Full list of contributors on Wikipedia.

Known For

Part of Crew

Recently Updated Shows

Recently updated shows that might be of your interest.
Law & Order: Special Victims Unit
Running

Law & Order: Special Victims Unit

In the criminal justice system, sexually-based offenses are considered especially heinous. In New York City, the dedicated detectives who investigate these vicious felonies are members of an elite squad known as the Special Victims Unit. These are their stories.

FBI
Running

FBI

FBI is a fast-paced drama about the inner workings of the New York Field Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation. These first-class agents, including Special Agent Maggie Bell and her partner, Special Agent Omar Adom 'OA' Zidan, bring all their talents, intellect and technical expertise on major cases in order to keep New York and the country safe.

GenreDrama, Crime
Tracker
Running

Tracker

Tracker features lone-wolf survivalist Colter Shaw, who roams the country as a "reward seeker," using his expert tracking skills to help private citizens and law enforcement to solve all manner of mysteries while contending with his own fractured family.

Landman
Running

Landman

Set in the proverbial boomtowns of West Texas, Landman is a modern day tale of fortune seeking in the world of oil rigs. The series is an upstairs/downstairs story of roughnecks and wildcat billionaires fueling a boom so big, it's reshaping our climate, our economy and our geopolitics.

GenreDrama
America's Got Talent
Running

America's Got Talent

With the talent search open to acts of all ages, America's Got Talent has brought the variety format back to the forefront of American culture by showcasing performers from across the country. The series is a true celebration of the American spirit, featuring a colorful array of singers, dancers, comedians, contortionists, impressionists, jugglers, magicians, ventriloquists and hopeful stars, all vying for their chance to win America's hearts and the $1 million prize.

GenreMusic