Acting

Eric Johnson

Born 7 August 1979 · Edmonton, Alberta, Canada · 47

Eric Johnson (Eric Johann Johnson, born August 7, 1979, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada) is a Canadian actor who began performing at age nine in Stage Polaris, a theater company in Edmonton, and made his first film appearance at fifteen as the young Tristan in Legends of the Fall (1994). His breakout role came in 2001 as Whitney Fordman, Clark Kent's rival, on Smallville, where he met his wife, writer-producer Adria Budd, on set; they married on his 25th birthday in 2004 and have one child born in 2007. He has also directed and produced, and is known for playing Flash Gordon on the 2007–2008 series of the same name, Detective Luke Callaghan on Rookie Blue, and Jack Hyde in the Fifty Shades films. His notable film credits include Legends of the Fall (1994) (Brad Pitt, Anthony Hopkins), Stealing Sinatra (2003) (Michael Caine, John Cusack), Ginger Snaps 2: Unleashed (2004) (Katharine Isabelle, Melissa George), Honeymoon With Mom (2006) (Diane Keaton, Billy Crystal), Fifty Shades Darker (2017) (Dakota Johnson, Jamie Dornan), Fifty Shades Freed (2018) (Dakota Johnson, Jamie Dornan), A Simple Favor (2018) (Anne Hathaway, Blake Lively), A Million Miles Away (2023) (Karen Pittman, Michael Peña), Fight Another Day (2024) (Michael Jai White, Adrien Brody), and The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare (2024) (Henry Cavill, Aaron Taylor-Johnson). On television he is best known for Smallville (2001–2004), Flash Gordon (2007–2008), Rookie Blue (2010–2013), The Knick (2014–2015), Vikings (2020), American Gods (2021), and Pretty Little Liars: Original Sin (2022).