AllMovie

A large, blond, classically handsome actor of stage and screen, Andrew Jackson gained a steady fan base and wide exposure early on in his career with his role as Dr. Stephen Hamill on ABC's All My Children. Jackson's impressive range has found him subsequently cast in a large number of film and television productions; even off-camera, his talent seems to shine through with vocal work in such popular animated series as Beast Wars: Transformers. And with feature roles leaning increasingly to such high-profile films as Scooby Doo 2 and Edison -- not to mention such critically acclaimed television productions as Taken -- it seemed as though the hardworking actor might finally be getting some well-earned exposure outside of the soap opera circuit. Jackson was born to a military clergyman and a high-school music teacher in Newmarket, Ontario, Canada, in 1963. After spending four years at his home country's prestigious Stratford Festival as the 1980s drew to a close, he set his sights on New York City and got his first big break when cast on All My Children. This was not Jackson's first screen role -- he had previously appeared in such features as State Park (1987) and Red Blooded American Girl (1990) -- but it did give him the exposure needed to jump-start a screen career. As the decade progressed, Jackson could frequently be seen in such small-screen series as Family Passions and Sirens, in addition to a number of made-for-television features including Breach of Faith: Family of Cops II. Still keeping fresh on his stage work with high-profile roles in Citadel Theater's production of Cyrano de Bergerac, Jackson continued gaining momentum onscreen with roles in The Last Don II and John Woo's Blackjack. A fateful trip to Los Angeles to essay a guest role on the popular series Charmed was followed by a return to Canada to play the lead in the popular series Wind at My Back, and in 2002, Jackson appeared in no less than nine film and television productions including Steven Spielberg's acclaimed sci-fi miniseries Taken. The new millennium seemed to be treating Jackson very well indeed, with a role in the 2005 thriller Edison finding him acting alongside such screen greats as Kevin Spacey and Morgan Freeman.