Chris Klein Biography

Frederick Christopher "Chris" Klein (born March 14, 1979) is an American actor who is best known for playing Chris 'Oz' Ostreicher in the American Pie comedy teen films.

Early life

Klein was raised in Brookfield, Illinois. He is of German, Irish, and English descent. His mother, Terese (ne Bergen), is a kindergarten teacher, and his father, Fred Klein, is an engineer. Klein was the second of three children. His older sister Debbie was born in 1978, and his younger brother was born in 1982. As a child, Klein had his first on stage experience by singing This Little Light of Mine in a community theater at the Sheraton Convention Center in Chicago. He lived in the town for thirteen years before his family moved to Omaha, Nebraska. At Millard West High School in Omaha, Klein acted in his high school's performance of West Side Story, played cornerback and linebacker for the football team, and swam on the Millard West Swim Team. In his senior year, Klein was offered his first professional acting job by director Alexander Payne, who was scouting Omaha, his hometown, as a potential filming location for the film Election. He attended Texas Christian University (TCU) in Fort Worth, Texas.

Career

After auditioning for Election, Payne chose Klein and they began filming. The film was released in April 1999 to positive reviews. Soon after, Klein found a steady amount of work in the film industry while briefly attending TCU, where he studied theater and was a member of the Lambda Chi Alpha fraternity. He was next seen in American Pie, acting as Christopher Russell Ostreicher, which opened on July 9, 1999, and was a box office success. The following year Klein starred in Here on Earth alongside LeeLee Sobieski and Josh Hartnett (2000). Klein reprised his American Pie role in American Pie 2 (2001) and American Reunion (2012), but was not in the third installment, American Wedding, reportedly due to scheduling conflicts. In 2002, Klein had a role in the Mel Gibson Vietnam War film We Were Soldiers. Klein starred in the 2002 remake of the film Rollerball, but the film was a massive critical and financial failure. Klein has also appeared in several teen movies, including Just Friends (2005), American Dreamz (2006).

In 2014, Klein was cast as an American pilot in the Damien Lay film The Uberkanone. He co-starred in the 2014 comedy indie film Authors Anonymous with Kaley Cuoco.

Personal life

In January 2000, Klein and actress Katie Holmes began dating. The couple became engaged around Christmas of 2003. The couple called off the engagement and ended their relationship in March 2005. He dated actress Ginnifer Goodwin for two years until their breakup in 2008. On August 9, 2015, Klein married Laina Rose Thyfault, a travel agent, in Montana. In March 2016, Klein announced in a tweet that he and his wife Thyfault were expecting their first child together.

Klein was arrested for drunk driving on February 5, 2005 in San Diego County. and again in Los Angeles, California on June 16, 2010. On June 21, 2010, it was announced that Klein had checked into the Cirque Lodge to begin a 30-day alcohol addiction program. Klein's publicist explained that "after recent events, Chris was forced to take a clear look at a problem he has been trying to deal with himself for years. He understands now that he cannot beat this disease alone."

Filmography

Film

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1999	Election	Paul Metzler
1999	American Pie	Chris 'Oz' Ostreicher
2000	Here on Earth	Kelvin 'Kelley' Morse
2001	Say It Isn't So	Gilbert Noble
2001	American Pie 2	Chris 'Oz' Ostreicher
2002	Rollerball	Jonathan Cross
2002	We Were Soldiers	2nd Lt. Jack Geoghegan
2003	The United States of Leland	Allen Harris
2005	Tilt-A-Whirl	Customer #2	Short film
2005	Just Friends	Dusty Dinkleman
2005	The Long Weekend	Cooper Waxman
2006	American Dreamz	William Williams
2006	Lenexa, 1 Mile	Andy Lausier
2007	The Good Life	Tad Tokas
2007	Day Zero	George Rifkin
2007	New York City Serenade	Ray
2007	The Valley of Light	Noah Lark	TV film
2008	Hank and Mike	Conrad Hubriss
2009	Street Fighter: The Legend of Chun-Li	Charlie Nash
2009	The Six Wives of Henry Lefay	Stevie
2009	Play Dead	Ronnie Reno	Direct-to-video
2010	Caught in the Crossfire	Briggs
2012	The Wild Bunch	John (Mary's Dad)	Voice role, In production
2012	American Reunion	Chris 'Oz' Ostreicher
2014	Authors Anonymous	Henry Obert

Television

Year	Title	Role	Notes
2002	The Electric Playground		Episode: "Episode #8.5"
2006	American Dad!	Gary/Rick (voice)	Episode: With Friends Like Steve's
2007	The Valley of Light	Noah	Television movie
2008	Welcome to The Captain	Marty Tanner	5 episodes
2010	The Good Guys	Dep. Chief George Jenkins	Episode: "Partners"
2011–2014	Wilfred	Drew	Recurring role, 15 episodes
2012	Franklin & Bash	Tommy Dale	Episode: "650 to SLC"
2012	Raising Hope	Brad	Episode: "What Up, Bro?"
2015	Motive	Brad Calgrove	Episode: "Pilot Error"
2015	Damaged	Sam Luck	Lifetime television movie
2016	Idiotsitter	Himself/DJ Doghead	Episode: "Fumigation"
2016	The Grinder	Benji	Episode: "Genesis"

Awards and nominations

Chicago Film Critics Association

• 2000: Nominated, "Most Promising Actor" - American Pie

Teen Choice Awards

• 2000: Nominated, "Choice Breakout Performance" - American Pie
• 2000: Nominated, "Choice Liar" - American Pie

Young Hollywood Awards

• 2001: Won, "Male Superstar of Tomorrow"