Rider Strong facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Rider Strong
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Strong at GalaxyCon Raleigh in 2023
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| Born |
Rider King Strong
December 11, 1979 |
| Alma mater | Occidental College Columbia University (BA) Bennington College (MFA) |
| Occupation |
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| Years active | 1990–present |
| Spouse(s) |
Alexandra Barreto
(m. 2013) |
| Children | 1 |
| Relatives | Shiloh Strong (brother) |
Rider King Strong (born December 11, 1979) is an American actor, producer, director, and screenwriter. He is best known for playing Shawn Hunter on the ABC TV show Boy Meets World (1993–2000). He also played this role again in the sequel series Girl Meets World (2014–2017). Rider Strong also starred in the popular movie Cabin Fever (2002). He helped write and direct the movie Irish Twins (2008) with his brother Shiloh. He lent his voice to characters like Brick Flagg in Kim Possible (2002–2004) and Tom Lucitor in Star vs. the Forces of Evil (2015–2019). In 2015, Strong received a special award called the Young Artist Former Child Star Lifetime Achievement Award.
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Early Life and Education
Rider Strong was born in San Francisco, California. He is the second of two boys. His mother, Lin, was a teacher and nutritionist. His father, King Arthur Strong, was a firefighter. Both of his parents were from Pennsylvania. Rider has English and Irish family roots. He finished high school at Nonesuch School in Sebastopol, California in 1998. His older brother, Shiloh Strong, is also an actor and a photographer.
While still filming Boy Meets World, Rider Strong took morning classes at Occidental College. He earned enough credits for a full year of college before the show ended. In 2004, Strong graduated with honors from Columbia University. He studied English there. He later earned a Master of Fine Arts degree in writing in June 2009 from Bennington College.
Acting Career Highlights
Rider Strong started acting when he was nine years old. His first big role was playing Gavroche in a San Francisco play called Les Misérables. After performing on stage, he got small roles on television.
In 1992, Strong got his first regular TV show role as Adam MacGuire on Julie. After that show ended, Strong made his first movie appearance in Benefit of the Doubt. He became widely known when he was chosen to play Shawn Hunter in the ABC series Boy Meets World.
During the seven years Boy Meets World was on air, Rider was nominated for the Young Artist Award twice. He was also nominated once for The Hollywood Reporter YoungStar Award. He found it a bit hard to deal with being famous at first.
Strong moved to Los Angeles permanently when he was 16. After Boy Meets World finished in 2000, he moved to New York to go to Columbia University. Other actors like Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Julia Stiles, and Anna Paquin were also students there. Strong took a break from college to star as Paul in the horror film Cabin Fever (2002). He took another break to act in a Broadway play called The Graduate.
In 2006, Strong returned to TV for a regular role in Pepper Dennis. This show was short-lived. That same year, Strong recorded the audiobook for the biography Scar Tissue. He also had a small appearance in Cabin Fever 2: Spring Fever in 2009.
Directing and Other Projects
Along with his brother Shiloh, Rider Strong wrote and directed a short film called Irish Twins. It was shown for the first time at the 2008 Tribeca Film Festival. The film won awards at other festivals too, including the Jury Award and Audience Award at the Woods Hole Film Festival. It also won a Special Jury Prize and Best First-Time Director at DC Shorts. In 2010, he shared that he wanted to do more writing and directing.
In 2010, Strong starred in the science fiction movie Darkening Sky. He also appeared in Your Lucky Day, which premiered at the Seattle International Film Festival that year.
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In late 2012, Strong was asked to play Shawn Hunter again in the new show Girl Meets World. At first, he said no. But during the filming of the first episode in March 2013, Strong and other original cast members were seen on set. This made people wonder if they would return. The show's creator, Michael Jacobs, said there was a "strong chance" they would come back. In June 2013, a Boy Meets World reunion was held, and Strong attended. On March 19, 2014, it was confirmed that Strong would return as Shawn Hunter. He made a deal that he and his brother could direct some episodes of the new show.
In March 2012, Strong, Julia Pistell, and Tod Goldberg started Literary Disco. This is a podcast where they talk about books and writing. In September 2019, Strong's play Never Ever Land was shown in Los Angeles.
Since 2022, Strong has been hosting the Boy Meets World rewatch podcast called Pod Meets World. He hosts it with his former co-stars Danielle Fishel and Will Friedle.
Personal Life and Advocacy
Rider Strong started dating actress Alexandra Barreto after they met while filming the TV series Pepper Dennis in 2006. They got engaged in December 2012 and married on October 20, 2013, in Oregon. They have one son, Indigo "Indy" Barreto Strong, who was born in December 2014.
In April 2008, Strong, along with Barreto and his brother Shiloh, created a short TV ad to support the Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama. The ad was called "It Could Happen to You." It was chosen as one of the best ads from over 1,100 entries. In August, money was raised to show the ad on MTV and Comedy Central. It was the first political commercial to ever appear on Comedy Central. In early 2009, Strong read the audiobook for The Obama Revolution. In 2018 and 2019, he attended events like the Women's March, the March for Public Education in Los Angeles, and the March for Our Lives.
Notable Roles and Awards
Rider Strong has had many roles in movies and TV shows. Some of his most famous TV roles include:
- Boy Meets World (1993–2000) as Shawn Hunter
- Kim Possible (2002–2004) as the voice of Brick Flagg
- Pepper Dennis (2006) as Chick Dirka
- Girl Meets World (2014–2017) as Shawn Hunter
- Star vs. the Forces of Evil (2015–2019) as the voice of Tom Lucitor
He has also appeared in films such as:
- Benefit of the Doubt (1993)
- Cabin Fever (2002)
- Irish Twins (2008)
Strong has received several awards and nominations for his work:
- In 2000, he won the Nickelodeon Kids' Choice Award for Favorite Television Friends for Boy Meets World.
- In 2011, his short film The Dungeon Master won Best Short Film at the Tribeca Film Festival.
- In 2015, he received the Young Artist Former Child Star Lifetime Achievement Award.
See also
In Spanish: Rider Strong para niños
