Drew Ray Tanner is a Canadian actor best known for his role as

Fangs Fogarty '' Riverdale'' is an American teen drama television series based on the characters of Archie Comics, which made its debut on January 26, 2017. The series was adapted for The CW by Archie Comics' chief creative officer Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa. A ...

on '' Riverdale''.

Early life

Tanner was born in

Victoria, British Columbia Victoria is the capital city of the Canadian province of British Columbia, on the southern tip of Vancouver Island off Canada's Pacific coast. The city has a population of 91,867, and the Greater Victoria area has a population of 397,237. T ...

. When he was two years old, his father left, and his mother decided to move to Aldergrove, in

Fraser Valley The Fraser Valley is a geographical region in southwestern British Columbia, Canada and northwestern Washington State. It starts just west of Hope in a narrow valley encompassing the Fraser River and ends at the Pacific Ocean stretching from the ...

British Columbia British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. It has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that include ...

, where Tanner was raised. His mother is a teacher and he has an older brother. Tanner's grandfather would often do magic tricks and involve Tanner when he was child, which inspired him to join the entertainment industry. In eighth and ninth grade, Tanner participated in a local

improv Improv may refer to: *Improvisation, an act of spontaneous invention ** Improvisational theatre (includes improvisational comedy) **Musical improvisation Musical improvisation (also known as musical extemporization) is the creative activity of i ...

group. He attended

Aldergrove Community Secondary School Aldergrove Community Secondary School is a public high school in Aldergrove, British Columbia, Canada, and is part of School District 35 Langley. It is the second oldest high school in the Langley School District, first opening its doors as Alderg ...

and later transferred to

W. J. Mouat Secondary School W.J. Mouat Secondary is a public secondary school located in Abbotsford, British Columbia, Canada. The school was recognized in the August 23, 2004 edition of MacLean's magazine as one of the "Ten Most Innovative Schools in Canada."http://www.ex ...

. He also played football. Tanner received the role of John Proctor in a production of ''

The Crucible ''The Crucible'' is a 1953 play by American playwright Arthur Miller. It is a dramatized and partially fictionalized story of the Salem witch trials that took place in the Massachusetts Bay Colony during 1692–93. Miller wrote the play as an ...

'' at his school. During his teenage years, Tanner also formed a

rap Rapping (also rhyming, spitting, emceeing or MCing) is a musical form of vocal delivery that incorporates "rhyme, rhythmic speech, and street vernacular". It is performed or chanted, usually over a backing beat or musical accompaniment. The ...

group with a friend. Following his high school graduation, Tanner turned down football scholarships and began working at a local tire retread plant so that he could support himself and travel to

Vancouver Vancouver ( ) is a major city in western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the city, up from 631,486 in 2016. Th ...

for auditions.

Career

In 2015, Tanner auditioned for the roles of

Jughead Jones Forsythe Pendleton "Jughead" Jones III is one of the fictional characters created by Bob Montana and John L. Goldwater in Archie Comics who first appeared in the first Archie story, from ''Pep Comics'' #22 (December 1941). He is the drummer of th ...

and

Reggie Mantle Reginald "Reggie" Mantle is a fictional teenager in stories published by Archie Comics; he is introduced by writer-artist Bob Montana and John L. Goldwater in ''Jackpot Comics'' #5 (cover-dated Spring 1942). He also appears in CW's '' Riverda ...

in '' Riverdale'', but did not receive either role. In 2016, Tanner's friends invited him to visit

Rocko's Diner Rocko's Diner is a diner located in Mission, British Columbia, best known for its forty flavours of milkshakes and its use as a filming location for several televisions shows. The diner was the first drive-in and first 24-hour restaurant in Miss ...

Mission, British Columbia Mission is a city in the Lower Mainland of the province of British Columbia, Canada. It was originally incorporated as a district municipality in 1892, growing to include additional villages and rural areas over the years, adding the original T ...

, which is famous for its milkshakes and was used as the filming location for diner scenes in ''Riverdale''. When they arrived, there was a line of fans around the corner and Tanner made it his goal to have a role on ''Riverdale''. When season two of the show began casting, Tanner auditioned for the role of

Sweet Pea The sweet pea, ''Lathyrus odoratus'', is a flowering plant in the genus ''Lathyrus'' in the family Fabaceae (legumes), native to Sicily, southern Italy and the Aegean Islands. It is an annual climbing plant, growing to a height of , where suit ...

. While auditioning, he noted they were also casting for the role of

, so Tanner went in and auditioned for Fangs's character as well. Tanner joined the cast of ''Riverdale'' as

, the love interest of Kevin Keller, during season two, which began airing in 2017. Originally, Tanner was only supposed to appear in a couple episodes, but he was brought back several times until season four, when he his character had a role in a major story arc. After three years in a recurring role, Tanner was promoted to be a series regular for season five of the show, which aired in 2021. Tanner and his ''Riverdale'' co-star

Vanessa Morgan Vanessa Morgan Mziray (born March 23, 1992), known professionally as Vanessa Morgan, is a Canadian actress. She is known for her roles as Beatrix "Bird" Castro in the MTV teen drama series ''Finding Carter'', as Amanda Pierce in the Family teen ...

bonded on set over their love of music and formed a group, These Girls These Boys. They released their first single, ''Sleep When I'm Dead'', in May 2020. In 2019, Tanner appeared in the

Netflix Netflix, Inc. is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service and production company based in Los Gatos, California. Founded in 1997 by Reed Hastings and Marc Randolph in Scotts Valley, California, it offers a ...

film '' Work It'' as the romantic interest of one of the main characters. The role required Tanner to engage in improvisational acting. To prepare for the role, he lost nineteen pounds in twenty-one days through an intensive diet and training program.

Personal life

Tanner is biracial. Tanner lived with his co-star

Charles Melton Charles Michael Melton (born January 4, 1991) is an American actor. He is known for his role as Reggie Mantle in the CW series '' Riverdale'' (2017–2023) and Joe Yoo in ''May December'' (2023). His critically praised performance in the latte ...

during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Filmography

Film

Television

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Tanner, Drew Ray Living people Canadian male film actors Canadian male television actors Male actors from Victoria, British Columbia Year of birth missing (living people)