Dan Byrd, who was born on November 20, 1985 in Marietta, Georgia, was first inspired to be an actor when he went to see a live performance of Andrew Lloyd Webber's The Phantom of the Opera on Broadway. In 1988, after numerous local productions and commercials, he was cast for a role on
Life time Network's series, Any Day Now, which became his breakthrough appearance. His first film role was in A Cinderella Story, where he played Carter and later on starred in three other films,
The Hills Have Eyes, Mortuary and Lonely Hearts. Byrd's television credits include Judging Amy,
ER ,
CSI , Boomtown, Touched By An
Angel , Joan of Arcadia,
Ghost Whisperer and
Boston Legal .
Justin Tolchuk is played by Dan Byrd in the series Aliens in America. Justin is a sensitive, lanky sixteen year old going through high school in Medora Wisconsin. He is part of an eclectic family composed of his mother, Franny, who supports him a lot and would like him to socially level up his status, his pretty and popular sister Claire and his father Gary, who is an aspiring entrepreneur. Things get even crazier when his mother signs up for the school's international exchange student program in the hopes that the newcomer would instill some class into Justin. The best surprise is yet to come because instead of getting an athlete or a genius, they get a sixteen year old Pakistani Muslim. Aliens in America follows two culturally diverse kids as they try find the place where they can truly be respected and recognized as just the average high school teen.
(Phoyo courtesyt of CW)