Zachary Andrew Knighton (born October 25, 1978) is an American actor, best known for starring as Dave Rose on the

ABC ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script. ABC or abc may also refer to: Arts, entertainment and media Broadcasting * Aliw Broadcasting Corporation, Philippine broadcast company * American Broadcasting Company, a commercial American ...

comedy series ''

Happy Endings A happy ending is a type of plot conclusion. Happy Ending or Happy Endings may also refer to: Film and television * Happy Ending (Schitt's Creek), "Happy Ending" (Schitt's Creek), the 2020 series finale of ''Schitt's Creek'' * Happy Ending (20 ...

'' from 2011 to 2013 and as Orville "Rick" Wright in the rebooted version of '' Magnum P.I.'' from 2018 to 2024. Other notable roles on television include starring roles on

's science fiction series ''

FlashForward A flashforward (also spelled flash-forward, and more formally known as prolepsis) is a scene that temporarily takes the narrative forward in time from the current point of the story in literature, film, television and other media. Flashforwards a ...

'' and in the

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 ("brush"). Twelve species ...

sitcoms '' Life on a Stick'' and '' Weird Loners''.

Life and career

Knighton was born in

Alexandria, Virginia Alexandria is an independent city (United States), independent city in Northern Virginia, United States. It lies on the western bank of the Potomac River approximately south of Washington, D.C., D.C. The city's population of 159,467 at the 2020 ...

. He graduated from Frank W. Cox High School in

Virginia Beach, Virginia Virginia Beach (colloquially VB) is the most populous city in the U.S. commonwealth of Virginia. The city is located on the Atlantic Ocean at the mouth of the Chesapeake Bay in southeastern Virginia. It is the sixth-most populous city in the ...

and the Governor's School for the Arts in 1996. Later, he attended

Virginia Commonwealth University Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) is a Public university, public research university in Richmond, Virginia, United States. VCU was founded in 1838 as the medical department of Hampden–Sydney College, becoming the Medical College of Virgin ...

. In 2007, he starred in the horror film remake '' The Hitcher'', with

Sophia Bush Sophia Anna Bush (born July 8, 1982) is an American actress. She starred as List of One Tree Hill characters#Brooke Davis, Brooke Davis in The WB/The CW, CW drama series ''One Tree Hill (TV series), One Tree Hill'' (2003–2012), and as Erin Li ...

, playing the role originally performed by

C. Thomas Howell Christopher Thomas Howell (born December 7, 1966) is an American actor and director. After making his film debut with a supporting role in ''E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial'' (1982), Howell had his breakout with a lead role as Ponyboy Curtis in the c ...

. Previously, Knighton played Laz Lackerson on the short-lived

television program A television show, TV program (), or simply a TV show, is the general reference to any content produced for viewing on a television set that is broadcast via Terrestrial television, over-the-air, Satellite television, satellite, and cable te ...

, '' Life on a Stick''. He starred as Gary on the series '' Related''. In 2009, he was cast as Bryce Varley in the science fiction series ''

'', based on the

novel A novel is an extended work of narrative fiction usually written in prose and published as a book. The word derives from the for 'new', 'news', or 'short story (of something new)', itself from the , a singular noun use of the neuter plural of ...

by Robert J. Sawyer. Knighton had originally auditioned for the role of Demetri Noh but lost out to

John Cho John Cho (born Cho Yo-Han; June 16, 1972) is an American actor known for his roles as Harold Lee in the '' Harold & Kumar'' films, and Hikaru Sulu in the ''Star Trek'' rebooted film series as well as '' Better Luck Tomorrow'', '' Columbus'', a ...

. The show's co-creator

David S. Goyer David Samuel Goyer (born December 22, 1965) is an American filmmaker, novelist, and comic book writer. He is best known for writing the screenplays and stories for several superhero films, including '' Nick Fury: Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D.'' (1998), t ...

then rewrote the role of Bryce Varley for Knighton. The show was cancelled after one season. From April 2011 to May 2013, Knighton starred as Dave Rose on the

comedy series ''

'', alongside

Eliza Coupe Eliza Coupe () is an American actress, comedian and model, known for playing Jane Kerkovich-Williams in the ABC comedy series '' Happy Endings'', Denise "Jo" Mahoney in the final two seasons of the medical comedy-drama '' Scrubs'', her starring ...

Elisha Cuthbert Elisha Ann Cuthbert (; born November 30, 1982) is a Canadian actress. As a child actress, she made her first televised appearance as an extra on ''Are You Afraid of the Dark?'' and co-hosted '' Popular Mechanics for Kids''. She made her feature- ...

Adam Pally Adam Saul Pally (born March 18, 1982) is an American comedian and actor. He first earned recognition for starring as Max Blum in '' Happy Endings'', as Dr. Peter Prentice in ''The Mindy Project'', as Wade Whipple in ''Sonic the Hedgehog'' (202 ...

, Damon Wayans Jr. and

Casey Wilson Cathryn Rose "Casey" Wilson (born October 24, 1980) is an American actress, comedian, and screenwriter. Originally known for her performances with the Upright Citizens Brigade comedy troupe in New York City, Wilson's first major television appe ...

. Despite critical acclaim and a cult following, the show was cancelled by ABC after concluding its third season on May 3, 2013.

BuddyTV BuddyTV is an entertainment-based website, which generates content about television programs and sporting events. The website publishes information about celebrity and related entertainment news through a series of articles, entertainment profile ...

ranked him #94 on its list of "TV's Sexiest Men of 2011" and #100 in "TV's Sexiest Men of 2012". In 2014, Knighton appeared in a recurring guest arc in the 5th season of the

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a subsidiary of Comcast. It is one of NBCUniversal's ...

series '' Parenthood''. He also starred on the

sitcom '' Weird Loners''. In 2018, Knighton was cast in the recurring role of Paul on the second season of the

Netflix Netflix is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service. The service primarily distributes original and acquired films and television shows from various genres, and it is available internationally in multiple lang ...

horror-comedy series '' Santa Clarita Diet''. In 2018, Knighton was cast in the main role of Rick Wright on the

CBS CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS (an abbreviation of its original name, Columbia Broadcasting System), is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainme ...

drama series '' Magnum P.I.''. The series was canceled after four seasons on CBS, but was picked up by

in 2022 with a 20-episode order that debuted in 2023.

Filmography

Film

Television

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Knighton, Zachary 1978 births 20th-century American male actors 21st-century American male actors American male film actors American male television actors Living people Male actors from Alexandria, Virginia People from Virginia Beach, Virginia Virginia Commonwealth University alumni