Ian Somerhalder Height, Age, Wife, Girlfriend, Children, Family, Biography & More

Some Lesser Known Facts About Ian Somerhalder

• Ian Somerhalder grew up in Louisiana, United States.
  

  A childhood picture of Ian Somerhalder clicked in 1979

• He used to perform with a local community theatre group when he was a child.

• He started a career in modelling at the age of 10 and moved to New York from Louisiana when he was 16 to work as a full-time model.
  

  Ian Somerhalder modelled for Versus, Versace’s secondary line, at the age of 16

  

  April 1955: Ian Somerhalder as the face of Versus

• He has often avoided discussing his modelling career in interviews because he did not want to be seen as just “another pretty face.”

• Ian decided to pursue acting at the age of 17 after which he began taking lessons from actor William Esper.
  

  Ian Somerhalder at the age of 17

• He initially did some jobs in Milan and Paris to pay his bills, which made it difficult for him to focus on studying acting. Ian, in an interview, said,
  

  I was trying very hard to focus on acting, but I had to pay bills. I realized I couldn’t do it halfway. So I had to just work for a while, save up money, and say, ‘Okay, I can sustain myself on this; I can just focus on the work.’ I’m thankful that I had the gall to do that. It was definitely not the easiest thing I’d ever done, but it was the most rewarding.”

• In 1997, he appeared as ‘I.Q.’ in USA Network’s ‘The Big Easy,’ and in 1999, he appeared as ‘Brian’ in CBS’ ‘Now and Again.’
  

  Ian Somerhalder as ‘I.Q.’ in a still from the television series ‘The Big Easy’ (1986)

• In 1998, he played an uncredited role in the American film ‘Celebrity.’

• In 2002, Ian started dating American actor Kate Bosworth, whom he first met while they worked together for the 2000 television series ‘Young Americans.’ They broke up the same year later.
  

  Ian Somerhalder (second from the left) and Kate Bosworth (third from the left), along with the cast of ‘Young Americans’ (2000)

• Ian has worked in many other television series like CBS’ ‘CSI: Miami’ (2003), ABC’s ‘Lost’ (2004-2007; 2010), and HBO’s ‘Tell Me You Love Me’ (2007).
  

  Ian Somerhalder as ‘Nick’ in a still from the television series ‘Tell Me You Love Me’ (2007)

• In 2004, he appeared as ‘U.S.S. Swordfish Danny Miller’ in the American submarine film ‘In Enemy Hands.’
  

  Ian Somerhalder (left) in the film ‘In Enemy Hands’

• He met American actor Maggie Grace on the sets of the television series ‘Lost’ in 2004 and began dating her in 2006. They reportedly adopted a cat together and named it ‘Roo.’ They, however, broke up in 2007 and remained friends.
  

• He had a fluctuating relationship with Megan Auld, an NYU alum, between 2007 and 2010.

• Ian has appeared in many other American films like ‘Pulse’ (2006), ‘Wake’ (2009), and ‘How to Make Love to a Woman’ (2010).

• In 2008, he was romantically linked with Mexican actor Lupita Jones as they were often seen displaying affection at public events. Their relationship, however, was never confirmed officially.

• He has also worked in some British films including ‘The Tournament’ (2009) and ‘The Anomaly’ (2014).
  

  Ian Somerhalder as ‘Miles Slade’ in the film ‘The Tournament’ (2009)

• He played the role of ‘Damon Salvatore’ in the television series ‘The Vampire Diaries’ (2009-2017), which is considered his most iconic performance.
  

• He charged about USD 40,000 per episode for The Vampire Diaries.

• Ian started dating actor Nina Dobrev during the making of the show ‘The Vampire Diaries.’ Their onscreen and offscreen chemistry, named ‘Delena’ by fans, added to the show’s popularity.
  

• His dialogue ‘Hello Brother’ from The Vampire Diaries soon became a favourite among viewers and fans.
  

• He not only acted in The Vampire Diaries but also worked as a director and executive producer.
  

  Ian Somerhalder while directing an episode of ‘The Vampire Diaries’

• Ian is a philanthropist who has dedicated his efforts to various causes.

• On 22 April 2010, he participated in the clean-up drive after the Deepwater Horizon oil spill disaster, which occurred in the Macondo Prospect in the Gulf of Mexico on 20 April 2010.

• He established the ‘Ian Somerhalder Foundation’ (ISF) on his 32nd birthday, i.e., on 8 December 2010, to promote environmental awareness, eco-friendly innovations, and policies to protect the planet.

• He often promotes ISF by funding and attending Mardi Paws, a Mardi Gras parade which is held in Covington, Louisiana, for animal welfare.
  

  Ian Somerhalder at the 2020 Mardi Paws parade, held in Covington, Louisiana

• Ian is also a supporter of the ‘It Gets Better Project’ along with actors Candice Accola and Michael Trevino; the project is aligned with ‘The Trevor Project,’ and it focuses on preventing suicide among LGBTQ youth.

• He is an avid animal lover and calls himself a cat person. He cares for a range of pets including cats and dogs.
  

  Ian Somerhalder while posing with his cat Moke at People’s Sexiest Man Alive shoot

• Ian actively supports many animal welfare societies such as the ‘St. Tammany Humane Society’ aka ‘Northshore Humane Society’ located in Covington, Louisiana.

• He served as the UNEP Global Goodwill Ambassador from 2012 to 2019.
  

  Ian Somerhalder as the UNEP Goodwill Ambassador during a panel discussion

• On 21 August 2012, he launched the ‘Let’s Get Dirty’ campaign under ISF as a clean-up drive in Santa Monica, California.
  

  Ian Somerhalder during the ‘Let’s Get Dirty’ campaign in Santa Monica, California

• In 2013, he became a member of the advisory board for the media company ‘RYOT’ to support their cause.
  

  Ian Somerhalder with the RYOT staff

• Ian was spotted getting cosy with American actor Malese Jow at the 2013 BloodyCon event, which sparked speculation about them being in a relationship; they, however, never confirmed their relationship.

• In July 2014, he began dating actor Nikki Reed. She, however, faced backlash from ‘Delena’ fans who favoured his relationship with Nina Dobrev.

• He launched a t-shirt campaign for charity in collaboration with actor Paul Wesley in 2015. The t-shirts, launched in partnership with the brand ‘Represent,’ featured the logo ‘Blood Brothers since 1864’ and over 10,000 shirts were sold.
  

  Ian Somerhalder and Paul Wesley while wearing the ‘Blood Brothers since 1864’ merchandise

• He played the role of Dr. Luther Swann in the television series ‘V Wars’ in 2019; the series premiered on Netflix. He also worked as an executive producer for the series.
  

  Ian Somerhalder as Dr. Luther Swann in the television series ‘V Wars’ (2019)

• After appearing in ‘V Wars,’ he retired from acting and relocated to a farm outside of Los Angeles, California, to live life as a “farm manager.” While talking about his decision to quit acting in Hollywood, Ian, in an interview, said,
  

  I loved what I did for a really long time. I don’t miss any of it. I love making films, and I just did it for so long. We had an amazing run.”

  

  Ian Somerhalder at the farm

• On 1 May 2021, Ian and Paul Wesely launched ‘Brother’s Bond Straight Bourbon,’ a whiskey brand.
  

  Ian Somerhalder and Paul Wesley at the Brother’s Bond Straight Bourbon Whiskey office

• He often expresses his concerns about Genetically Modified Organisms (GMOs) and factory farming while supporting livestock farming and organic methods like allowing cows to graze naturally to benefit the ecosystem.

• Ian supports a livestock farmer named Allan Savory with whom he shot the initial footage for the documentary ‘Kiss the Ground’ in Africa in 2011; the documentary, for which he worked as an executive producer, was released in 2023.

• He also worked as an executive producer for the 2023 film ‘Common Ground,’ which aimed to educate people about the ecosystem.
  

  Ian Somerhalder’s Instagram post about the film ‘Common Ground’ (2023)

• Ian is an avid traveller and prefers road trips. He often shares his travelling experiences on social media.
  

  A picture of Ian Somerhalder from a road trip

• He began building muscles at the age of 26 for a lead role in a television show.

• His looks and physical transformation over the years have amazed fans, who believe he never ages and looks even better with time.

• He is very spiritual.

• Ian believes ‘food is medicine and medicine is food’ and avoids fast foods. In an Instagram post, he once shared an incident where a woman at a grocery store found his basket filled with only vegetables “unusual.”

 

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• His secret desire is to visit Mars.

• He often smokes cigars.
  

  Ian Somerhalder while smoking a cigar along with Paul Wesely

• He consumes alcohol occasionally.
  

  Ian Somerhalder while having whiskey

• Ian owns a family pizza parlour in Mandeville, Louisiana, USA. He also co-owns a furniture shop called “Built of Barnwood” (BOB) with his brother, Robert Somerhalder aka Bob Somerhalder.
  

  Ian Somerhalder with his brother, Robert Somerhalder

• Ian has a profound love for aircraft and has flown many of them; he developed his love for aircraft when he used to fly with his uncle in a Cessna aircraft as a child.
  

  Ian Somerhalder while posing with the King Air 350i

  

  Ian Somerhalder while flying the Beechcraft Baron near the Gulf of Mexico in 2011