Aaron Ashmore

Aaron Richard Ashmore (born October 7, 1979) is a Canadian actor. He is the identical twin brother of actor Shawn Ashmore.

He is known for portraying Jimmy Olsen on ''Smallville'' (2006–2011), Steve Jinks on '' Warehouse 13'' (2011–2014), and Johnny Jaqobis on '' Killjoys'' (2015–2019), the latter of which earned him a Canadian Screen Award nomination. He also portrayed Duncan Locke in '' Locke & Key'' (2020–2022) and has appeared in ''Veronica Mars'', '' In Plain Sight'', '' Ginny & Georgia'' (2023), and '' SkyMed'' (2022–present). In film, he starred in the thriller '' The Thaw'' (2009), earning a Leo Award nomination for Best Lead Performance.

Early life

Aaron Richard Ashmore was born in Richmond, British Columbia, to Linda (née Davis), a homemaker, and Rick Ashmore, a manufacturing engineer. He was raised in Brampton, Ontario, where he attended Earnscliffe Senior Public School and Turner Fenton Secondary School.

Aaron and his identical twin brother, Shawn Ashmore, began appearing in television commercials while still in elementary school. Ashmore has said he is often cast as "the tough guy, the bully," a dynamic he enjoys because he finds those roles more complex than playing "the happy hero."

Career

Early work

Aaron Ashmore made his first notable screen appearance in 2004, starring as Canadian teenager Marc Hall in the TV movie '' Prom Queen: The Marc Hall Story''. Around the same time, he appeared in Canadian TV films such as ''Safe'' and ''A Bear Named Winnie'', and had guest spots on series like '' The Eleventh Hour'', ''The West Wing'', and '' 1-800-Missing''. From 2004 to 2005, he had a recurring role on ''Veronica Mars'', portraying Troy Vandegraff. These early roles established Ashmore in Canadian TV and genre dramas.

Breakthrough and television roles (2007–2014)

Ashmore broke through in the U.S. with a major role on ''Smallville''. He was cast as photographer Jimmy Olsen beginning in the sixth season and continued to play him into its eighth season. He returned, portraying the younger brother of Jimmy Olsen, in the 2011 series finale, following his first character's earlier departure. In 2009, Ashmore headlined the eco-horror thriller '' The Thaw''. His performance earned him a Leo Award nomination for Best Lead Performance by a Male in a Feature Length Drama the following year.

From 2010 to 2012, Ashmore had a six-episode recurring arc on series '' In Plain Sight'' as Scott Griffin, Mary Shannon's newly discovered half-brother. In 2011, Ashmore joined Syfy's '' Warehouse 13'' as ATF agent Steve Jinks, a recurring character with the ability to detect lies introduced in the third season who appeared through the show's fifth and final season in 2014. He also made guest appearances on series like '' Lost Girl'' and '' Private Practice'' during this period.

Recent work (2014–present)

From 2015 to 2019, Ashmore co-starred as John Jaqobis on Syfy's space drama '' Killjoys''. He was one of the three leads in the series, portraying a bounty hunter. Killjoys ran for five seasons, ending in 2019. That same year, Ashmore received a Canadian Screen Award nomination for Best Lead Actor in a Drama Series for his work on the show.

In film, Ashmore had a supporting role in '' Regression'' (2015) and appeared in TV movies such as Lifetime's ''Swept Under'' (2015) and ''Wish Upon a Christmas'' (2015). He later starred as Sean, a morally ambiguous tow-truck driver, in the Toronto-set crime thriller '' 22 Chaser'' (2018).

In 2020, Ashmore appeared as Duncan Locke in the fantasy television series '' Locke & Key'', first in a recurring role during the first season and later as part of the main cast in the second season. He went on to appear in the second season of '' Ginny & Georgia'' (2023) as Gil Timmins, Georgia's ex-boyfriend and the father of her son, Austin. Since 2022, Ashmore has co-starred as Captain William "Wheezer" Heaseman in the Canadian medical drama series '' SkyMed'', which follows the lives of air ambulance crews in remote Northern Canada. The series was renewed for a third season in 2024, when he was promoted to series regular.

Ashmore also co-stars in the Great American Media's mystery franchise ''The Ainsley McGregor Mysteries''. He plays Jake Trenton, the love interest of Ainsley McGregor, in ''A Case for the Winemaker'' (2024) and ''A Case for the Yarn Maker'' (2025).

Personal life

Ashmore and his twin brother Shawn have matching tattoos on their wrists reading "GMA," which stands for "Good Man Ashmore." Aaron has said the tattoo is a tribute to their step-grandfather Gangu Jagtiani, who married their grandmother before the twins were born and was always regarded as their grandfather.

On June 20, 2014, Ashmore married Zoë Kate. The couple's first daughter was born in 2016. Their second daughter was born in 2019.

In March 2025, Ashmore revealed on the ''Inside of You'' podcast that he and Kate had quietly separated and finalized their divorce during the COVID‑19 pandemic.

A longtime science fiction fan, Ashmore has cited '' Star Trek: The Next Generation'', '' Star Trek: Deep Space Nine'' and ''The X-Files'' among his favorite shows.

Filmography

Film

Television

Awards and nominations

References

External links

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Ashmore, Aaron
1979 births
Canadian male child actors
Canadian male film actors
Canadian male television actors
Identical twin male actors
Living people
People from Richmond, British Columbia
Canadian twins
20th-century Canadian male actors
21st-century Canadian male actors