Brandon Jay McLaren (born October 15, 1982) is a Canadian actor. He made his first screen appearance in the television series ''Just Cause'' (2002). He has been known for his main and supporting roles in shows such as ''

Graceland Graceland is a mansion on a estate in Memphis, Tennessee, United States, which was once owned by rock and roll icon Elvis Presley. His daughter, Lisa Marie Presley, inherited Graceland after his death in 1977. Graceland is located at 3764 Elv ...

'', ''

Power Rangers S.P.D. ''Power Rangers S.P.D.'' is the thirteenth season of the television series, ''Power Rangers'', and is based on the 28th Super Sentai series ''Tokusou Sentai Dekaranger''. The season shares its title with the Korean dub of ''Dekaranger'' in South ...

'', ''Ransom'', ''

Harper's Island ''Harper's Island'' is an American horror mystery limited series created by Ari Schlossberg for CBS. Schlossberg, Jeffrey Jackson Bell and Jon Turteltaub served as executive producers. The series features an ensemble cast led by Elaine Cassidy ...

'', and ''Slasher''. He has also had roles in the feature films ''

She's the Man ''She's the Man'' is a 2006 American romantic comedy teen sports film directed by Andy Fickman and starring Amanda Bynes, Channing Tatum, Laura Ramsey, Vinnie Jones, and David Cross. Inspired by William Shakespeare's play ''Twelfth Night,'' the f ...

'', '' Tucker & Dale vs. Evil'', and ''

Dead Before Dawn ''Dead Before Dawn'' (also known as ''Dead Before Dawn 3D'') is a 2012 Canadian adventure film, adventure-horror comedy directed by April Mullen, written by Tim Doiron, and starring Devon Bostick, Martha MacIsaac, and Christopher Lloyd. It introd ...

''. In 2005, he gained prominence with the main role of

Jack Landors '' Power Rangers S.P.D.'' is the 2005 season of ''Power Rangers'' that tells the story of the fight between the Power Rangers of the Space Patrol Delta police force and the Troobian Empire in the year 2025. S.P.D. Rangers The S.P.D. (or SPD) P ...

a.k.a. Red SPD Ranger in ''

''. Since then, he has had a variety of roles in several films and television series.

Early life

McLaren was born in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada to Ira and Denise McLaren. He graduated from Johnston Heights Secondary School in Surrey, British Columbia, Canada, and received a bachelor's degree in Human Biology from the

University at Albany, SUNY The State University of New York at Albany, commonly referred to as the University at Albany, UAlbany or SUNY Albany, is a public research university with campuses in Albany, Rensselaer, and Guilderland, New York. Founded in 1844, it is one ...

Career

McLaren was a guest star in the episode " Bloodlines" of '' Blade: The Series'' and was featured throughout the first season of

The N The N (standing for Noggin) was a nighttime programming block on the Noggin television channel, aimed at preteens and teenagers. It was launched on April 1, 2002, by Viacom and Sesame Workshop. Before the block's introduction, Noggin's daytim ...

original television series ''

The Best Years ''The Best Years'' is a Canadian drama television series about a group of college students at Charles University, a fictional Ivy League school in Boston, Massachusetts. It stars Charity Shea as Samantha Best, an orphan who lived in the foster ...

'' as Devon Sylver, the love interest of lead character

Samantha Best ''The Best Years'' is a Canadian Drama (film and television), drama television series about a group of college students at Charles University, a fictional Ivy League school in Boston, Massachusetts. It stars Charity Shea as Samantha Best, an orp ...

. He is also well known to Canadian audiences for his role of Lenin, Sam's love interest, in the popular show ''

Being Erica ''Being Erica'' is a Canadian comedy-drama television series that aired on CBC from January 5, 2009, to December 12, 2011. Created by Jana Sinyor, the series was originally announced by the CBC as ''The Session'', but was later retitled ''Bei ...

'', and he portrayed Jamil Dexter as a recurring role on

TNT Trinitrotoluene (), more commonly known as TNT, more specifically 2,4,6-trinitrotoluene, and by its preferred IUPAC name 2-methyl-1,3,5-trinitrobenzene, is a chemical compound with the formula C6H2(NO2)3CH3. TNT is occasionally used as a reagen ...

's ''

Falling Skies ''Falling Skies'' is an American science fiction television series set in a Apocalyptic and post-apocalyptic fiction, post-apocalyptic era, created by Robert Rodat and Executive producer#Motion pictures and television, executive produced by Steve ...

''. He also starred as

U.S. Customs The United States Customs Service was the very first federal law enforcement agency of the U.S. federal government. Established on July 31, 1789, it collected import tariffs, performed other selected border security duties, as well as conducted ...

agent Dale Jakes on ''

'', Marco on ''

Girlfriends' Guide to Divorce ''Girlfriends' Guide to Divorce'' (also known as ''Girlfriends' Guide to Freedom'' in season 3, ''Girlfriends' Guide to Bossing Up'' in season 4, and ''Girlfriends' Guide to Ever After'' in season 5) is an American comedy-drama television series ...

'', Danny Booker on '' Chicago Fire'' and Bennet Ahmed on '' The Killing''. He is also a main role in the

Disney+ The Walt Disney Company, commonly known as Disney (), is an American multinational mass media and entertainment Entertainment is a form of activity that holds the attention and interest of an audience or gives pleasure and deligh ...

series, ''

Turner & Hooch ''Turner & Hooch'' is a 1989 American buddy cop comedy film starring Tom Hanks and Beasley the Dog as the eponymous characters respectively. The film also co-stars Mare Winningham, Craig T. Nelson and Reginald VelJohnson. It was directed by ...

''.

Personal life

McLaren was previously married to Miekka Tennent. They divorced in 2014.

Awards

McLaren was awarded the

Golden Maple Award The Golden Maple Awards are annual awards presented by the Academy of Canadians in Sports and Entertainment – Los Angeles (ACISE-LA) to Canadian actors performing in television shows broadcast in the United States. The ACISE-LA is non-profit or ...

for Best Actor in a TV series broadcast in the U.S. in 2015, for his role on ''

''.

Filmography

Films

Television

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:McLaren, Brandon Jay 1980 births Black Canadian male actors Canadian male film actors Canadian people of Grenadian descent Canadian people of Trinidad and Tobago descent Canadian male television actors Living people Male actors from Vancouver University at Albany, SUNY alumni