• Shane West is an American actor and singer-songwriter
• He is best known for playing main character Landon Carter in the 2002 romantic movie “A Walk to Remember”
• He has appeared in over 50 movies and TV series, including "Once and Again" (1999-2002), "ER" (2004-2009), and "Nikita" (2010-2013)
• He has won four of his 10 award nominations, and his net worth is estimated at over $3 million
• He is passionate about music and was the frontman of the punk band Jonny Was; he has brown eyes and hair, is 6ft (1.83m) tall and weighs about 180lbs (81kgs)
Contents
Who is Shane West?
American actor and singer-songwriter Shannon Bruce Snaith, known better professionally as Shane West, was born in Baton Rouge, Louisiana USA, on 10 June 1978, so his zodiac sign is Gemini. He’s appeared in over 50 movies and TV series, but is probably still known best for playing the main character Landon Carter in the 2002 romantic movie “A Walk to Remember”, directed by Adam Shankman, and based on the eponymous novel by Nicholas Sparks. The movie also starred Mandy Moore and Peter Coyote, and follows problematic teenager Landon, who’s fallen in love with a girl suffering from leukemia; the film won four of its six award nominations.
Education and early life
Shane was raised in Baton Rouge alongside his sister Simone and half-sister Marli Ann, by their father Don Snaith who was a drugstore owner, and mother Leah Catherine (nee Launey) who was an attorney; both Don and Leah were also leading their own punk bands – they divorced when Shane was four.
He grew up surrounded by music, and was mostly into listening to Blondie, the Jam and the Clash. Shane and Simone moved with their mother to Compton, California when he was 10, as she wanted to look for a job there, and to Norwalk, California several years later; he was attending a local high school when he changed his name to Shane, believing that his former name was too feminine.
Shane matriculated in 1996, and then focused on pursuing a career in the film industry.
Roles in TV series
Shane’s debut TV series role was playing Dave Lattimore in the 1995 episode “Heart of Saturday Night” of the family crime drama “Picket Fences”, and he could then have been seen appearing in an episode of the musical family comedies “California Dreams” and “Boy Meets World”, and the comedy “The Crew”.
From 1999 through 2002, Shane starred as Eli Sammler in the romantic family drama “Once and Again”, created by Marshall Herskovitz and Edward Zwick, and which also starred Sela Ward and Billy Campbell. It follows a divorced man who’s fallen for an about-to-be divorced woman, but their children are making their dating hard; the series won 13 of its 62 award nominations.
Shane’s also known for portraying Ray Barnett in 70 episodes (2004-2009) of the romantic drama “ER”; it aired its 331 episodes from 1994 through 2009 and won 179 of its 549 award nominations.
From 2010 through 2013, he starred as Michael in the popular crime action “Nikita”, which Craig Silverstein created, and which also starred Lyndsy Foneca and Maggie Q. It follows an assassin who’s turned against her secret organization; the series won two of its 29 award nominations.
Shane’s since had only two TV series roles: he played John Alden in 36 episodes of the horror fantasy “Salem” from 2014 through 2017, and Eduardo Dorrance aka Bane, in four episodes of the 2019 crime action “Gotham”.
Roles in movies
Shane’s debut film role was playing Chris Theodorakis in the 1997 family mystery horror “The Westing Game”, and the remainder of the decade saw him appear in the 1998 crime horror comedy “Hollyweird”, the 1998 comedy “Clips’ Place”, and the 1999 musical comedy “Liberty Heights”.
He played a supporting character in the 2001 crime thriller “Ocean’s Eleven”, directed by Steven Soderbergh, and which starred George Clooney, Brad Pitt and Julia Roberts. It follows a group of conmen as they’re trying to rob three Las Vegas casinos, and the movie won four of its 24 award nominations. Shane was then cast to appear in several hit movies, such as the 2003 action adventure fantasy “The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen”, the 2007 biographical musical “What We Do Is Secret”, and the 2009 action crime thriller “Echelon Conspiracy”.
The year 2014 saw him play one of the main characters – Tom ‘Rodeo’ Craig – in the action thriller “Red Sky”, written and directed by Mario Van Peebles, and which also starred Cam Gigandet and Rachael Leigh Cook. It follows the life of disgraced Top Gun pilot Butch Masters, and the movie was nominated for two awards.
Some of Shane’s most recent film roles have been in the science fiction “Chariot”, and the horror thrillers “Escape the Field” and “Mid-Century”, all released in 2022; he’s currently shooting for five upcoming movies, including “The Dirty South”, “Walden”, and “Memento Mori”.
shane west as tom levin in the “mid-century” trailer 🎥 pic.twitter.com/oULTZIZOmI
— shane doing things ✨ (@shanethings_) May 31, 2022
Other credits
Shane received special thanks for the 2007 musical documentary movie “Punk’s Not Dead”.
He produced the movies “What We Do Is Secret” (2007), “Red Sands” (2009) and “Mid-Century” (2022).
Some of Shane’s recent talk-show appearances have been in “Today”, “Last Call with Carson Daly”, and “The Kelly Clarkson Show”.
Awards and nominations
Shane’s won four of his 10 award nominations. He won a 2002 Young Hollywood Award for Superstar of Tomorrow – Male, and two Teen Choice Awards in 2002 and 2011, for his performance in “A Walk to Remember” and “Nikita”, respectively; he also won a Rising Star Award for his performance in “What We Do Is Secret” at the 2008 Philadelphia Film Festival.
Love life and relationships
There are many girls whom Shane’s dated, that the public knows about. From 1997 through 1999, he was in a relationship with American actress and model Rachael Leigh Cook, then in 2001 he was romantically linked to American actresses Monica Keena and Dina Meyer.
From 2003 through 2005, Shane was in a relationship with American actress and dancer Jenna Dewan, known for portraying Nora Clark in the 2006 romantic movie “Step Up”, and in 2006 and 2007, he dated American singer-songwriter C. C. Sheffield. In 2008 and ‘09, Shane dated American actress Sherrie Rose, and the year 2014 saw him date American actress Jessica Ahlberg.
Most recently, in 2018 and 2019, Shane dated popular American model Jessica Lee Buchanan.
He seems to be unattached as of January 2023, hasn’t married and doesn’t have children.
Interesting facts and hobbies
Shane’s passionate about music, and was for seven years the frontman of the punk band Jonny Was. From 2005 through 2009, he toured with the band the Germs, and later revealed that it was more interesting than acting, however, Shane still chose an acting career over music. In 2015, he and his former bandmates from Jonny Was founded new band Twilight Creeps; their debut album was released in October 2016, and their second album followed on 1 February 2019.
He bought the 1968 Camaro which his character drove in the movie “A Walk to Remember”.
Shane honed his acting skills at the Center for Enriched Studies (Los Angeles, California).
American actress Maggie Q has been his best friend since they met on the set of the 2010 series “Nikita”.
Shane’s favorite actors are Morgan Freeman and Russell Crowe, and some of his favorite movies include “Bruce Almighty”, “Wanted” and “The Shawshank Redemption”.
Height, eyes and wealth
Shane’s age is 44. He has brown eyes and hair, is 6ft (1.83m) tall and weighs about 180lbs (81kgs).
Shane’s net worth’s been estimated at over $3 million, as of January 2023.
