Dylan Neal

Tall (6'2") and handsome brown-haired Canadian import Dylan Neal has worked steadily on American television since the late 1980s. Raised in a suburb of Toronto, the actor attended an academically-focused prep school for most of his education, but found his calling when he transferred to public school halfway through his high school years and found himself in an active drama department, encouraged to pursue a career utilizing his newfound talents. Neal made his professional acting debut soon after with a role in the Toronto-filmed TV-movie "After Midnight" (ABC, 1988) and was next featured with a two-episode recurring role as the younger incarnation of the titular hero in the syndicated, animation/live action hybrid series "Captain Power and the Soldiers of the Future" that same year.

Neal took his first feature film role in the forgettable horror sequel "Prom Night III: The Last Kiss" in 1990 and kept busy with roles in series and TV-movies located in Canada. He went to Hollywood for the 1992 and 1993 pilot seasons, but was unable to support himself in the States between castings as his visa permitted him to take acting jobs only.

In 1994, Neal hit a big break when he was cast on the CBS daytime drama "The Bold and the Beautiful" where he portrayed Dylan Shaw until 1997. The steady work soaps offered won over the INS, who granted Neal the required permits for honing his skills in the United States. While appearing on "The Bold and the Beautiful," he was featured in the Disney Channel TV-movie "Golden Will: The Silken Laumann Story" (1996), a biopic of the eponymous Canadian Olympian.

In 1997, Neal landed a regular role as a plastic surgeon on the short-lived Fox serial "Pacific Palisades." More guest work on series including NBC's "Working" and "Profiler" followed, before the actor got his next regular role as the co-star of "Hyperion Bay" (1998-99), a drama series on The WB. His skilled portrayal of a former golden boy who feels ousted by his prodigal younger brother (Mark-Paul Gosselaar) couldn't keep the show afloat, but he resurfaced in the part of Pacey's responsible and long-suffering older brother Deputy Doug on the network's "Dawson's Creek" (1998-2001).

The versatile performer additionally had a recurring role on the CBS courtroom drama "JAG" (1999) and acted in that network's TV-movie "The President's Man" the following year. Neal's minimal 2001 credits included a guest shot on the short-lived ABC action series "Thieves," but the actor seemed to regain his stride in 2002 with a starring role in the Sci-Fi Channel TV-movie/pilot "Babylon 5: The Legend of the Rangers," playing team head Captain David Martel in this space adventure. Though early buzz for the project pointed in the direction of a spin-off series and fan reaction was overwhelmingly positive, Sci-Fi Channel didn't follow up with an immediate series contract.

That spring, Neal returned to the big screen with a role in the romantic comedy "40 Days and 40 Nights."