American actor David Anders was born on March 11, 1981 in Grants Pass, Oregon. He began acting in school plays when he was young, but he initially pursued sports such as basketball and tennis. He then obtained in major roles in plays with his school and the community during his high school years. One of his most notable was a regional production of Jesus Christ Superstar when he was just 17. He later moved to Los Angeles, where he adopted the screen name of David Anders—he was born David Anders Holt, and there already was an actor named David Holt.
Anders made his screen debut in 2001, when he played a guest role in the television series So Little Time, which starred the Olsen twins. The following year, he took on a guest role in Alias, where he played Julian Sark, the co-leader of the North American branch of The Covenant. He was turned into a series regular, and his run on the show lasted until 2006. During the time, he made guest appearances on shows such as CSI, CSI: Miami and Charmed, and appeared in the film Circadian Rhythm. After his stint on Alias, he played guest roles in Deadwood and Grey’s Anatomy.
During the time, Anders continued performing for stage. He starred in productions such as Rockne: The Musical, Beautiful, and The Diary of Anne Frank, where his performance earned him an award for Best Ensemble Performance at the Back Stage West Garland Awards. In 2007, Anders was cast in the NBC series Heroes, playing the role of Adam Monroe, the first Archenemy of Hiro Nakamura (Masi Oka). With his power of rapid cellular regeneration, he has halted his aging, and was known among the Japanese of the 17th century as a hero. However, he’s merely an Englishman who came to Japan to become rich. Hiro meets him when he travels back in time during the show’s second season.
Anders has also played the title role in the 2007 film ELI, and has continued his work on film. He has been slated to appear alongside Kandyse McClure on the TV-movie remake of Stephen King’s Children of the Corn. He is also part of Band from TV, a charity cover band with his Heroes and formerly Alias co-star Greg Grunberg. Working with them are House’s Hugh Laurie and Desperate Housewives’ James Denton.
-Interviewer: You were saying that it was extremely hot in your Heroes costume.
-David: Oh, hotter than Saigon in '62. It was very, very hot. ... It's like forty pounds of metal in like a 100 degree weather, running through a burning village to boot. It's become a second home…if home was some sort of special torture device.
-Ten years from now I want to be a successful working character actor who still loves what he does.
(about working with Lena Olin)
-It was amazing! I’d been a fan for so long – I’d seen her in The Importance of Being Ernest. She was an absolute delight.