Marc Blucas

Born: January 11 1972
Where: Butler, Pennsylvania, USA

The basketball star-turned-actor played a season for Britain's Manchester Giants before embarking on a serious film career.

He had his big break in the film Eddie when the film-makers needed a baby-faced kid that could play basketball.

Subsequent appearances included Pleasantville, We Were Soliders, I Capture The Castle and the role of Riley Finn in Buffy and the Vampire Slayer.

After graduating from Girard High School in 1990, Blucas landed a full scholarship to Wake Forest University in Winston-Salem North Carolina.

After college, he played basketball for one year in England for the Manchester Giants.

He made his TV debut in Inflammable before landing the role of Bench Knicks in Eddie in 1996.

He played a SWAT team member in Dilemma and was cast as "the basketball hero" by director Gary Ross in Pleasantville.

In 1997, he landed a recurring role as Riley Finn in TV's Buffy The Vampire Slayer and went on to land big screen roles in Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back and Mel Gibson's We Were Soldiers.

Director John Sayles cast him in Sunshine State and he played the American love interest in the romantic drama I Capture The Castle.

In 2004, he starred in the all-star remake of The Alamo with Billy Bob Thornton and in Forest Whitaker's First Daughter.