Riley Griffiths (born May 14, 1997) is an American football player and former actor, best known for his role as Charles Kaznyk in the 2011 film, '' Super 8''.

Early life and education

Griffiths was born on May 14, 1997, in

Cedar City, Utah Cedar City is the largest city in Iron County, Utah, United States. It is located south of Salt Lake City, and north of Las Vegas on Interstate 15. It is the home of Southern Utah University, the Utah Shakespeare Festival, the Utah Summer Gam ...

. His first acting role came when he was 6 years old, when he participated in a version of

William Shakespeare William Shakespeare ( 26 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's nation ...

's ''

A Midsummer Night's Dream ''A Midsummer Night's Dream'' is a comedy written by William Shakespeare 1595 or 1596. The play is set in Athens, and consists of several subplots that revolve around the marriage of Theseus and Hippolyta. One subplot involves a conflict amon ...

''. Griffiths' family later moved to the

Issaquah Issaquah ( ) is a city in King County, Washington, United States. The population was 40,051 at the 2020 census. Located in a valley and bisected by Interstate 90, the city is bordered by the Sammamish Plateau to the north and the "Issaquah Alp ...

Sammamish Sammamish ( ) is a city in King County, Washington, United States. The population was 67,455 at the 2020 census. Located on a plateau, the city is bordered by Lake Sammamish to the west and the Snoqualmie Valley to the east. Sammamish is a resid ...

area. While attending Skyline High School, Griffiths played as a defensive lineman for the varsity football team. He also played

defensive line In gridiron football, a lineman is a player who specializes in play at the line of scrimmage. The linemen of the team currently in possession of the ball are the offensive line, while linemen on the opposing team are the defensive line. A numbe ...

while attending

Montana State University Montana State University (MSU) is a Public university, public land-grant university, land-grant research university in Bozeman, Montana. It is the state's largest university. MSU offers baccalaureate degrees in 60 fields, master's degrees in 6 ...

Career

In 2010, Griffiths got his first major role, when he was selected to play the role of Charles Kaznyk, in '' Super 8'', directed by

J. J. Abrams Jeffrey Jacob Abrams (born June 27, 1966) is an American filmmaker and composer. He is best known for his works in the genres of action, drama, and science fiction. Abrams wrote and produced such films as '' Regarding Henry'' (1991), '' F ...

and produced by

Steven Spielberg Steven Allan Spielberg (; born December 18, 1946) is an American director, writer, and producer. A major figure of the New Hollywood era and pioneer of the modern blockbuster, he is the most commercially successful director of all time. Spie ...

. While attending

, Griffiths was a defensive linemen for the Bobcats’ football team. He has expressed interest in working behind the scenes on film.

Filmography

Film

Television

Awards and nominations

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Griffiths, Riley 1997 births American male child actors American male film actors American people of Welsh descent Living people Male actors from Utah