Who is Chris Klein? Everything You Need to Know

Quick Facts

Also Known As: Frederick Christopher Klein

Age: 45 Years, 45 Year Old Males

Family:

Spouse/Ex-: Laina Rose Thyfault (m. 2015)

father: Fred Klein

mother: Terese (née Bergen)

siblings: Debbie, Timothy

children: Frederick Easton Klein

Born Country: United States

Actors American Men

Height: 6'2" (188 cm), 6'2" Males

Ancestry: German American, British American, Irish American

U.S. State: Illinois

Notable Alumni: Texas Christian University

More Facts

education: Texas Christian University

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Childhood & Early Life

Chris Klein was born Frederick Christopher Klein, on March 14, 1979, in Hinsdale, Illinois, US, to Fred Klein and Terese (née Bergen). His father is an engineer and mother is a kindergarten teacher. Klein has English, German and Irish ancestry. He was raised in Brookfield, Illinois, along with his elder sister, Debbie, and younger brother, Timothy.

His first stage performance happened when he was a kid. He sang ‘This Little Light of Mine’ in a Sheraton Convention Center community theatre in Chicago. Klein resided with his family in Chicago for thirteen years before relocating to Omaha, Nebraska, where he attended Millard West High School. While studying there, he acted in the school’s production of the musical ‘West Side Story.’ He also played in the school’s football team as cornerback and linebacker and remained part of the Millard West Swim Team.

He later studied at the Texas Christian University (TCU) in Fort Worth, Texas where he remained a Lambda Chi Alpha fraternity member.

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Career

Klein garnered his first professional acting offer from director Alexander Payne when the latter spotted him while Klein was attending his senior year in Millard West High School. This happened when Payne was searching a location in Omaha for filming the American dark comedy movie ‘Election.’ Klein played Paul Metzler in the April 23, 1999 released film which although became a box office flop but gained critical acclaim and received an Academy Award nomination.

After ‘Election,’ there was no looking back for Klein who went on to receive other on-screen works while studying theatre at TCU for a brief period. He landed up with one of the most memorable roles of his career, Chris "Oz" Ostreicher, in the American teen sex comedy film ‘American Pie.’ The film that released on July 9, 1999, became a blockbuster hit gaining Klein widespread recognition apart from fetching him nomination for a CFCA Award and two Teen Choice Awards in 2000.

Klein later furthered his fame starring as Chris "Oz" Ostreicher in two of the three direct sequels of ‘American Pie’ namely ‘American Pie 2’ (2001) and ‘American Reunion’ (2012).

Meanwhile he played lead role of Kelvin 'Kelley' Morse starring with Leelee Sobieski and Josh Hartnett in the March 24, 2000 released American romantic drama film ‘Here on Earth.’ The film was however both a critical and commercial failure. The following year he starred in the American screwball sex comedy film ‘Say It Isn't So’ which also met with same fate.

Next notable film featuring Klein was the Randall Wallace directed American war flick ‘We Were Soldiers’ starring Mel Gibson. The March 1, 2002 released film emerged a blockbuster hit and received mostly positive reviews. Same year Klein starred in the critically and commercially unsuccessful remake of the 1975 science-fiction film ‘Rollerball’ bearing same title.

In the ensuing years, Klein starred in several other films including in ‘Just Friends’ (2005), ‘American Dreamz’ (2006), ‘Authors Anonymous’ (2014) and ‘The Competition’ (2018).

Meanwhile he forayed into television. He starred as Marty Tanner in the CBS aired American sitcom ‘Welcome to The Captain’ in 2008. He essayed recurring role of Drew in the Australian-American comedy television series ‘Wilfred’ between 2011 and 2014.

Klein proved his acting versatility after bagging the role of a meta-human serial killer Cicada in the ongoing American superhero television series ‘The Flash’ during its fifth season in 2018. It is the character of main villain of the fifth season of the series that aired from October 9, 2018 to May 14, 2019. Klein featured in the role in 16 of the 22 episodes of that season.

Family & Personal Life

Klein started dating American actress, producer, and director Katie Holmes in January 2000, and got engaged with her around Christmas, in 2003. The two, however, broke their engagement and parted ways in March 2005. Earlier that year on February 5, Klein fell on the wrong side of law for drunken driving and was arrested in San Diego County. Years later he faced arrest, again for drunken driving, on June 16, 2010, in Los Angeles.

Meanwhile he remained romantically involved with American actress Ginnifer Goodwin for two years, before splitting in December 2008.

In 2011, he was introduced to Laina Rose Thyfault during the wedding of a common friend. Klein got engaged to Laina in December 2014 and tied the knot on August 9, 2015, in Montana. In March 2016, he announced that his wife was pregnant with their first child. Their son, Frederick Easton Klein, was born on July 23, 2016. They welcomed their daughter in 2018.

Klein has struggled with his alcoholism for years. In June 2010, he reportedly went to a drug addiction treatment facility ‘Cirque Lodge,’ in Orem, Utah, for a thirty-day alcohol de-addiction program.

Chris Klein Biography