From Movies to Television: Jared Padalecki

Most actors find themselves struggling to get out of TV series and onto the silver screen, but for actor Jared Padalecki of Supernatural, the move was pretty much the opposite. This talented 24 year old actor has several movies under his belt as well as a number of hit series.

Born on July 19, 1982, Jared quickly began to show an interest in acting. He started taking classes in the art at the tender age of 12 and was cast in several school plays. Not satisfied with simply acting at school, he moved on to drama competitions in high school and proceeded to win them, regional, state and even the nationals. All his training and hard work paid off when he won the Claim to Fame contest in 1999 and was given the opportunity to present a trophy at the Teen Choice Awards.

The towering young actor caught the eye of a talent agent at the Teen Choice Awards and began his acting career in 2000, after graduation. It required a move to Los Angeles, but was well worth his while since he quickly got a part as Dean on Gilmore Girls. This role lasted for nearly five years and brought the young man quite a bit of fame.

Movies were a natural second for Jared Padalecki. He made House of Wax with Paris Hilton as well as several other movies, including Ring of Endless Light. Then he was back to television again with the horror series Supernatural. While his fame on Gilmore Girls helped him greatly, no one anticipated the incredible success of Supernatural where he plays Sam Winchester, one of a pair of brothers who spend their time hunting evil creatures.

The series opened with Jared's character, Sam, getting ready for law school, with a nice girlfriend. Then his brother, Dean, played by Jensen Ackers, appears to tell him that their father has disappeared and Sam is dragged from his cozy college life into the dark world of hunting. The brothers find themselves up against everything from wendigos to vampires and ghosts and discover along the way that Sam has been chosen by demonic forces for a special task.

With Supernatural, Jared has skyrocketed to stardom and proved that it was a good move to go back to television after having made it to the big screen! His choice in taking the role of Sam Winchester on a horror show when very few horror series have made it past the first season was daring, but it certainly has paid off as Supernatural speeds toward a third season.