Childhood & Early Life
Eric Salter Balfour was born on April 24, 1977, in Los Angeles, California, US, into the Ashkenazi Jewish family of chiropractor David Balfour and his wife, Sharon (née Salter), a marriage and family counselor.
Balfour grew up with his younger sister, Tori. His family was described by him as “creative.” He recalled that his family often visited the American retreat center and intentional community in Big Sur, known as the ‘Esalen Institute.’ He attended a high school in Burbank, California, where he remained associated with theater.
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Career
Balfour kick-started his acting career in 1991, with the main role of ‘Eric’ in the seventh season of the popular American children's TV program ‘Kids Incorporated,’ which aired on ‘The Disney Channel.’ In the ensuing years, he appeared in minor juvenile roles in various TV series. He portrayed the recurring role of ‘Billy Ruskin Jr.’ in the American sitcom ‘Arresting Behavior’ (1992).
He appeared in the two-part pilot of the American supernatural drama series ‘Buffy the Vampire Slayer.’ His role of ‘Jesse McNally’ in two episodes of the series, namely ‘Welcome to the Hellmouth’ and ‘The Harvest,’ which aired on March 10, 1997, was that of a ‘Sunnydale High’ student and one of the first victims in the series.
The 1998-released thriller film ‘Shattered Image’ marked the feature-film debut of Balfour.
The 2000-released blockbuster romantic fantasy–comedy film ‘What Women Want,’ starring Mel Gibson and Helen Hunt, featured Balfour as ‘Cameron,’ a gameplayer and the much-older boyfriend of ‘Alexandra,’ played by Ashley Johnson.
Although Balfour starred in some of the biggest blockbusters of Hollywood and in several TV series, his real breakthrough came in 2001, first with the recurring role of ‘Gabe Dimas’ in the ‘HBO’ family-drama series ‘Six Feet Under’ and then with the recurring role of ‘Milo Pressman,’ a computer technician, in the American crime-thriller series ‘24.’ While he featured in 12 episodes of ‘Six Feet Under,’ from its first season to its fifth season, till 2003, he played the recurring role of ‘Pressman’ in eight episodes of the first season of ‘24.’ His role in ‘24’ was transformed into a main role in the sixth season of the series (2007), with Balfour appearing in 19 episodes.
Meanwhile, he essayed the main role of ‘Calvin Banks’ in the TV program ‘Veritas: The Quest,’ which aired on ‘ABC’ from January 27, 2003, to March 10, 2003. This was followed by the starring role of ‘Kemper’ in the American slasher film ‘The Texas Chainsaw Massacre.’ The film released in the US on October 17, 2003, and grossed over a whopping $107 million at the box office, against a budget of $9.5 million.
In 2004, he appeared in the minor role of ‘Eddie’ in three episodes of the American teen-drama series ‘The O.C.,’ titled ‘The Telenovela,’ ‘The Goodbye Girl,’ and ‘The Nana. The series emerged as one of the most popular new dramas of the 2003–2004 season.
He played the starring role of ‘David,’ opposite Canadian actor Lauren Lee Smith, in the Clément Virgo-directed Canadian erotic drama ‘Lie with Me.’ The film premiered at the ‘Toronto International Film Festival’ on September 10, 2005, and released theatrically in Canada on November 11 that year. The same year, he portrayed the main role of ‘Charlie Tibideaux’ in the short-lived American soap opera ‘Sex, Love & Secrets.’ It aired on ‘UPN from September 27 to October 18 that year.
His next main role was that of ‘A.D.A. Brian Peluso’ in the American TV drama ‘Conviction.’ The series premiered on ‘NBC’ on March 3, 2006, as a mid-season replacement, and ran for 13 episodes, till May 19 that year. The series also aired on ‘Five US’ and the ‘Hallmark Channel’ in the UK and on ‘Network Ten's ‘Ten HD’ in Australia. The re-runs of the series can currently be watched in the US on ‘Universal HD’ and ‘Hulu.’
Following this, he played starring roles in films of different genres, such as the comedy–drama film ‘The Elder Son’ (2006), the action/neo-outlaw biker film ‘Hell Ride’ (2008), the science-fiction disaster film ‘Skyline’ (2010), and the horror film ‘Cell 213’ (2011). Of these, ‘Skyline’ emerged as a huge box-office success, grossing $68 million worldwide, against a budget of around $10–20 million.
One of his most notable TV series was the American–Canadian supernatural drama ‘Haven.’ The series was loosely based on the 2005 novel of Stephen King titled ‘The Colorado Kid’ and featured Balfour in the leading role of ‘Duke Crocker.’ The series also starred Emily Rose, Nicholas Campbell, and Lucas Bryant. It ran for five seasons, from July 9, 2010, to December 17, 2015.
During the course of his career, Balfour has appeared in a number of notable TV films, such as ‘No One Would Tell’ (1996), ‘Rise of the Gargoyles’ (2009), and ‘Dinoshark’ (2010). He has also been featured in single episodes of several notable TV series, such as ‘Dawson’s Creek’ (1998), ‘Nash Bridges’ (1999), ‘The West Wing’ (1999), ‘NYPD Blue’ (2001), ‘Law & Order: Criminal Intent’ (2009), ‘Monk’ (2009), and ‘Chicago P.D.’ (2018).
He was the face of ‘Valentino V,’ a male fragrance of the fashion brand ‘Valentino.’
