Christopher "Christoph" Sanders (born April 21, 1988) is an American

actor An actor or actress is a person who portrays a character in a performance. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of the theatre or in modern media such as film, radio, and television. The analogous Greek term is (), l ...

who is best known for his role as Ned Banks in the television series ''

Ghost Whisperer ''Ghost Whisperer'' is an American supernatural television series, which ran on CBS from September 23, 2005, to May 21, 2010. The series follows the life of Melinda Gordon (Jennifer Love Hewitt), who has the ability to see and communicate wit ...

'' and Kyle Anderson in the sitcom '' Last Man Standing'' on

ABC ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script known as the alphabet. ABC or abc may also refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Broadcasting * American Broadcasting Company, a commercial U.S. TV broadcaster ** Disney–ABC Television ...

(2011-2017) and

FOX Foxes are small to medium-sized, omnivorous mammals belonging to several genera of the family Canidae. They have a flattened skull, upright, triangular ears, a pointed, slightly upturned snout, and a long bushy tail (or ''brush''). Twelv ...

(2018-2021).

Early life

Sanders was born in Arden, North Carolina and grew up in nearby

Hendersonville, North Carolina Hendersonville is a city in Henderson County, North Carolina, United States. It is south of Asheville and is the county seat of Henderson County. Like the county, the city is named for 19th-century North Carolina Supreme Court Chief Justice Leon ...

. He was home-schooled and participated in such extra curricular activities as soccer and the

Boy Scouts of America The Boy Scouts of America (BSA, colloquially the Boy Scouts) is one of the largest scouting organizations and one of the largest List of youth organizations, youth organizations in the United States, with about 1.2 million youth partici ...

. He went on to attain scouting's highest rank of

Eagle Scout Eagle Scout is the highest achievement or rank attainable in the Scouts BSA program of the Boy Scouts of America (BSA). Since its inception in 1911, only four percent of Scouts have earned this rank after a lengthy review process. The Eagle Sc ...

. Concerning the difference Scouting made in his life, Sanders says, "when you spend that much time working on something, it becomes a part of you. Being an Eagle Scout affects your outlook on your fellow man." While growing up, he considered engineering as a possible career. He took drafting classes a
Blue Ridge Community College
for two years and had been accepted at UNC Wilmington, but decided that acting was what he wanted to do instead.

Career

Sanders first became interested in acting at the age of 9 when he began taking classes at the

Flat Rock Playhouse Flat Rock Playhouse is a professional, non-profit theatre located in the village of Flat Rock, NC known for quality productions of popular musicals, comedies, and dramas. In 1937, under the direction of Robroy Farquhar, a group of actors organized ...

, the state theater of North Carolina. He began with basic drama classes before moving on to an intermediate level and finally being invited to join their YouTheater company and gaining membership in its elite conservatory. He graduated from the conservatory program at the age of 18.Kim Moses and Ian Sander, ''Ghost Whisperer Spirit Guide'', Titan Books, 2008 While there he appeared in more than 16 productions including ''A Christmas Carol''; ''The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe''; and ''Bye, Bye Birdie''. He got his first agent when he was 12 and at the age of 16 did a series of television commercials in

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States Georgia may also refer to: Places Historical states and entities * Related to t ...

for

General Mills General Mills, Inc., is an American multinational manufacturer and marketer of branded processed consumer foods sold through retail stores. Founded on the banks of the Mississippi River at Saint Anthony Falls in Minneapolis, the company ori ...

. He made his film debut in 2006 with a small role in '' Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby'' which was filmed primarily in and around

Charlotte, North Carolina Charlotte ( ) is the List of municipalities in North Carolina, most populous city in the U.S. state of North Carolina. Located in the Piedmont (United States), Piedmont region, it is the county seat of Mecklenburg County, North Carolina, Meckl ...

. That was soon followed by a role in the somewhat controversial movie '' Hounddog'' which was shot on a plantation near

Wilmington, North Carolina Wilmington is a port city in and the county seat of New Hanover County in coastal southeastern North Carolina, United States. With a population of 115,451 at the 2020 census, it is the eighth most populous city in the state. Wilmington is t ...

. Much of the film's controversy stemmed from a pivotal scene in which a young girl, played by then 12-year-old actress

Dakota Fanning Hannah Dakota Fanning (born February 23, 1994) is an American actress. She rose to prominence at the age of seven for her performance as Lucy Dawson in the drama film '' I Am Sam'' (2001), for which she received a Screen Actors Guild Award nomin ...

, was raped by Sanders' character. It was a role he found to be challenging, but one that gave him a chance to prove the range of his acting ability. When asked about the controversial scene, Sanders responded, "That's just one part of the film. Tragedies like that happen every day in real life, and I think that if this film opens a few more eyes, then it is definitely worth it. Movies can have that power." In January 2007, he moved to Los Angeles where there would be more opportunities to pursue acting full-time. He got a part in a TV pilot within three months of being in Hollywood, but the show wasn't picked up by the network. He spent the next several months auditioning before landing a part in the movie ''

Legally Blondes ''Legally Blondes'' is a 2009 American direct-to-DVD comedy film. It is a spin-off of the ''Legally Blonde'' film series. It was directed by Savage Steve Holland and co-produced by Reese Witherspoon, who played Elle Woods in the first two '' ...

'' and the role of Ned Banks on ''Ghost Whisperer''. He took over the role of Ned, which was previously held by

Tyler Patrick Jones Tyler may refer to: People and fictional characters * Tyler (name), an English name; with lists of people with the surname or given name * Tyler, the Creator (born 1991), American rap artist and producer * John Tyler, 10th president of the United ...

, when producers decided to age the character by few years in order to explore more mature storylines. This was only a recurring guest role in season three, but due to the character's popularity, Sanders became a part of the regular cast at the beginning of season four. He was cast as Kyle Anderson in the '' Last Man Standing'' tv show starring Tim Allen. His character was initially the boyfriend of the eldest daughter of Tim Allen's character, but after Season 1 the producers aged the eldest daughter to play a more motherly role. Sanders' character eventually became the boyfriend, and later husband, to the middle daughter.

Personal life

An avid outdoorsman, Sanders enjoys such activities as hiking, camping, and surfing. He also describes himself as "a pretty great cook."

Filmography

Film

Television

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Sanders, Christoph 1988 births Male actors from North Carolina American male child actors American male film actors American male television actors Living people People from Hendersonville, North Carolina 21st-century American male actors People from Arden, North Carolina