Biography

Early life
Merriman was born in Choctaw, Oklahoma to Earl and Nona Merriman; he has a sister, Monika. His father's family is originally from Germany, while his mother is of English and Scottish descent. At a young age, he began acting in commercials, print work, vocal performances and local theater in Oklahoma.

Career
Merriman's first major role was on the television series, The Mommies, which ran from 1993 to 1995. During the mid and late 1990s, he appeared in episodes of The Pretender, as well as in several made-for-television films, including roles in Smart House, The Luck of the Irish, and as a young Meyer Lansky in Lansky. In 1999, he appeared in the feature film The Deep End of the Ocean, playing the lost son of Michelle Pfeiffer's character. He starred as the main character, a Jewish boy from the Bronx, in the film Just Looking, where received a limited theatrical release in 2000. In 2001, he again returned to TV movies with a leading role in Dangerous Child, co-starring Delta Burke, and landed a guest-spot on Smallville in 2004.
In the 2000s, Merriman's roles included the horror films Halloween: Resurrection, The Ring Two and Final Destination 3. His next film will be Home of the Giants, a high school drama co-starring Haley Joel Osment and Danielle Panabaker.

Private life
Merriman married on June 25, 2004, to Micol. He is good friends with actor Kyle Gibson and Jared Padalecki and has three dogs. His hobbies include in-line skating, four-wheel and dirt bikes, team sports, water sports, horseback riding, martial arts, tournament-level paint ball, skiing, and snowboarding.
Merriman supports the Neonatal Parents Network of Oklahoma, an independent, non-profit support network for families with critically ill or premature infants. He is also involved with Eagle Mount, an organization that offers riding, skiing, camp programs, and other special activities for disabled children in Bozeman, Montana.

Movies he's been in...
Comanche Moon
*Home of the Giants
*Final Destination 3-D
*The Ring 2
The Colt
*Spin
Taken
* Halloween: Resurrection
A Ring of Endless Light
Dangerous Child
The Luck of the Irish
Rocket's Red Glare
* Just Looking (Cherry Pink)
Smart House
Lansky
Night Ride Home
* Deep End of the Ocean
Everything That Rises

tv shows he's appeared on/starred on
Smallville
Veritas
Touched By An Angel
The Pretender
The Mommies

for more info check out www.ryanmerrimanweb.com