# Drew Van Acker
**Drew Van Acker** (born 1986) is an American actor and producer known for playing Jason DiLaurentis on the teen mystery series *Pretty Little Liars*, Ian Archer on [Cartoon Network](https://www.edgepedia.org/cartoon-network)'s live-action series *Tower Prep*, and Garth, also known as Aqualad, on *[Titans](https://www.edgepedia.org/titans-2018-tv-series)*.[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm3216408/) • [2](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/celebrity/drew_van_acker) Since 2019 he has also worked as a producer on independent films, most recently the science-fiction thriller *Orion* (2025), in which he stars as the astronaut Apollo.[3](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm3216408/news/)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Born | 1986, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; grew up in Medford, New Jersey[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm3216408/) |
| Height | 6′ (1.83 m)[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm3216408/) |
| Breakout role | Jason DiLaurentis on *Pretty Little Liars*, 2011–2016, 35 episodes, replacing Parker Bagley[2](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/celebrity/drew_van_acker) • [1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm3216408/) |
| Other lead TV roles | Ian Archer in *Tower Prep* (2010); Remi Delatour in *Devious Maids* (2013–2015); Tommy Campbell in *Training Day* (2017, 13 episodes)[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm3216408/) • [4](https://www.formulatv.com/personas/drew-van-acker/trabajos/) |
| Superhero role | Garth / Aqualad in the second season of DC Universe's *Titans* (2019)[5](https://www.dc.com/blog/2019/06/14/breaking-news-aqualad-swims-up-to-dc-universes-titans) |
| Producing | Executive producer on *Spy Intervention* (2020) and *Last Survivors* (2021); producer of *Orion* (2025)[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm3216408/) |
| Award | Best Actor, Feature, at the FilmQuest festival for *Orion* (2025)[3](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm3216408/news/) • [6](https://www.tvguide.com/celebrities/drew-van-acker/bio/3000195024/) |
## Early life and modeling
Van Acker was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and his family settled in Medford, New Jersey, when he was ten.[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm3216408/) • [7](https://www2-direct.entertainment.ie/person/drew-van-acker/) His own IMDb biography gives [Omaha, Nebraska](https://www.edgepedia.org/omaha-nebraska), as his birthplace, while the same site's personal-details section and most other sources list Philadelphia; the discrepancy is unresolved.[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm3216408/) He played soccer, lacrosse, wrestling, and basketball as a child, and has said his interest in acting began with watching the *Star Wars* trilogy and films starring [Robert De Niro](https://www.edgepedia.org/robert-de-niro).[7](https://www2-direct.entertainment.ie/person/drew-van-acker/)
He began acting in high school drama classes and earned a soccer scholarship to [Towson University](https://www.edgepedia.org/towson-university) in Maryland, where he took theater courses to refocus on acting.[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm3216408/) In his sophomore year, 2005, he met a talent scout from ProScout and moved to New York City, where he worked for several years as a model, mostly in underwear campaigns for International Jock, Abercrombie & Fitch, and American Eagle; his [Abercrombie & Fitch](https://www.edgepedia.org/abercrombie-and-fitch) campaign was photographed by Bruce Weber.[7](https://www2-direct.entertainment.ie/person/drew-van-acker/) • [8](https://tv.apple.com/us/person/drew-van-acker/umc.cpc.2bmk06uytnc2c8y1u4zinu7f9) He also did background work on the 2006 film *The Good Shepherd*, then moved to Los Angeles and signed with Shepard Smith Management and later WME.[7](https://www2-direct.entertainment.ie/person/drew-van-acker/)
## Television career
His first credited role came in 2009 as Donny Kendall, a murder victim, in an episode of ABC's *Castle*, followed by twelve WB.com webisodes of *The Lake* and an episode of *Greek*.[7](https://www2-direct.entertainment.ie/person/drew-van-acker/) In 2010 he landed his first starring role as Ian Archer in *Tower Prep*, Cartoon Network's live-action series about a student at a mysterious school for people with special abilities; his character's ability was precognition.[8](https://tv.apple.com/us/person/drew-van-acker/umc.cpc.2bmk06uytnc2c8y1u4zinu7f9)
While filming *Tower Prep* in Vancouver, he caught the attention of executive producer Glen Morgan, a friend of a producer on *Pretty Little Liars*, which was looking for a new actor to play Jason DiLaurentis after its first season.[7](https://www2-direct.entertainment.ie/person/drew-van-acker/) Van Acker joined the cast in the second season, replacing Parker Bagley as the brother of [Alison DiLaurentis](https://www.edgepedia.org/alison-dilaurentis), whose disappearance drives the show's central plot.[2](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/celebrity/drew_van_acker) He played the role for 35 episodes from 2011 to 2016, and [Sara Shepard](https://www.edgepedia.org/sara-shepard), author of the book series the show is based on, said on Twitter that he matched the character she had imagined.[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm3216408/) • [7](https://www2-direct.entertainment.ie/person/drew-van-acker/)
He then played Remi Delatour for three seasons of the Lifetime comedy-drama *Devious Maids* (2013–2015) and Detective Tommy Campbell in the 2017 CBS series *Training Day*, a 13-episode run.[4](https://www.formulatv.com/personas/drew-van-acker/trabajos/) In 2019 he appeared in two episodes of the second season of [DC Universe](https://www.edgepedia.org/dc-universe)'s *Titans* as Garth, Aquaman's former sidekick Aqualad and a founding member of the Titans.[5](https://www.dc.com/blog/2019/06/14/breaking-news-aqualad-swims-up-to-dc-universes-titans) He has said he grew up familiar with the character from *Teen Titans* and called being fitted for a super-suit and working with DC unforgettable.[9](https://lrmonline.com/news/drew-van-acker-interview/)
## Film and producing
Van Acker's film work has centered on independent science fiction and comedy. He played James in *Life Like* (2019), released by Lionsgate, Corey Gage in the spy comedy *Spy Intervention* (2020), and Jake in *Last Survivors* (2021) opposite [Alicia Silverstone](https://www.edgepedia.org/alicia-silverstone) and [Stephen Moyer](https://www.edgepedia.org/stephen-moyer).[10](https://tvmeg.com/index.php/2025/11/01/vanacker/) On *Spy Intervention* he was also an executive producer, a role he repeated on *Last Survivors*, which reached number one on Hulu in the United States and on [Amazon Freevee](https://www.edgepedia.org/amazon-freevee) in the United Kingdom and is his highest-rated film on Rotten Tomatoes at 72 percent.[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm3216408/) • [2](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/celebrity/drew_van_acker) • [10](https://tvmeg.com/index.php/2025/11/01/vanacker/)
**Orion.** His most prominent producing project is *Orion* (2025), a contained science-fiction thriller he developed with producer Sunil Perkash from Van Acker's own interest in space and science fiction.[10](https://tvmeg.com/index.php/2025/11/01/vanacker/) Directed by the South African filmmaker Jaco Bouwer, whose eco-horror *Gaia* had impressed Van Acker, the film stars Van Acker as Apollo, an amnesiac astronaut who crash-lands on Earth as the sole survivor of a mission that killed his crew, opposite [Andrew McCarthy](https://www.edgepedia.org/andrew-mccarthy) as the NASA interrogator Jim and [Debby Ryan](https://www.edgepedia.org/debby-ryan) as Apollo's wife.[10](https://tvmeg.com/index.php/2025/11/01/vanacker/) • [11](https://www.scifivision.com/interviews/7480-orion-drew-van-acker-debby-ryan-on-layered-performances-shifting-truths) At its world premiere at the FilmQuest festival in [Provo, Utah](https://www.edgepedia.org/provo-utah), in fall 2025, the film received eleven nominations and won Best Actor for Van Acker and Best Visual Effects; Blue Harbor Entertainment subsequently acquired it for a U.S. theatrical release.[3](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm3216408/news/) Van Acker has described the film as a character-first story about truth and language rather than worldbuilding, and he has further projects in development with Perkash, including *Caroline Fletcher*, in post-production for 2027.[12](https://www.thegate.ca/film/073451/drew-van-acker-on-crafting-orion/) • [1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm3216408/)
## References
1. [Drew Van Acker, IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm3216408/)
2. [Drew Van Acker, Rotten Tomatoes](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/celebrity/drew_van_acker)
3. [Drew Van Acker, News, IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm3216408/news/)
4. [Trayectoria de Drew Van Acker, FormulaTV](https://www.formulatv.com/personas/drew-van-acker/trabajos/)
5. [Breaking News: Aqualad Swims Up to DC Universe's Titans, DC.com](https://www.dc.com/blog/2019/06/14/breaking-news-aqualad-swims-up-to-dc-universes-titans)
6. [Drew Van Acker Biography, TV Guide](https://www.tvguide.com/celebrities/drew-van-acker/bio/3000195024/)
7. [Drew Van Acker, Entertainment.ie](https://www2-direct.entertainment.ie/person/drew-van-acker/)
8. [Drew Van Acker, Apple TV](https://tv.apple.com/us/person/drew-van-acker/umc.cpc.2bmk06uytnc2c8y1u4zinu7f9)
9. [Drew Van Acker Interview: Spy Intervention, LRM Online](https://lrmonline.com/news/drew-van-acker-interview/)
10. [Interview with Drew Van Acker and Jaco Bouwer, TVMEG](https://tvmeg.com/index.php/2025/11/01/vanacker/)
11. [Orion: Drew Van Acker & Debby Ryan on Layered Performances & Shifting Truths, SciFi Vision](https://www.scifivision.com/interviews/7480-orion-drew-van-acker-debby-ryan-on-layered-performances-shifting-truths)
12. [Drew Van Acker on crafting a different kind of sci-fi drama for new film, Orion, The GATE](https://www.thegate.ca/film/073451/drew-van-acker-on-crafting-orion/)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Screen people and creators › Screen actors of the Anglosphere and Europe › American actors: 2000s onward › Surnames A to At*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 17, 2026; Sep 20, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Sep 20, 2026; Oct 12, 2026; Oct 15, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
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