About Ian

Ian James was born and raised in Houston, Texas and currently resides in Los Angeles, California.

Ian spent the majority of his transformative years cutting his teeth in the vibrant Houston theatre community. He holds a B. F. A. in Acting & Directing from Sam Houston State University.

On his very first audition in LA, Ian James was cast in South Pacific at the Rubicon Theatre and made his Los Angeles theatre debut in 2018. Ian James was nominated for Best Leading Actor and won the award for Best Breakthrough at the 2019 HoustonPress Theatre Awards for his acclaimed run as Ethan Kane in Stages Repertory Theatre’s production of “Sex with Strangers” directed by Seth Gordon. He’s gone to work alongside NAACP Award, Ovation Award, and LA Drama Critic Circle Award winning director Daniel Henning(The Blank Theatre) on multiple occasions with the Young Playwrights Festival in Hollywood, working alongside directors like Jesus Reyes(The Center Theatre Group) and multi-award winning composer and musical director David O(“Mr Saturday Night”, “The Wild Party”).

During the Covid-19 Pandemic he performed live with Netflix and SecretCinema in The Stranger Things Drive Into Experience in Downtown Los Angeles on a 10 month run in the role of Billy.

Moving to the world of film, Ian made his feature film debut in a lead role in the international film “Paradies”shot on location in Belize. “Paradies” won Best Independent Film(Hollywood) and Best Director (Dale Stelly) at the 2022 HAPA Awards and was recently released on BET+ October 26, 2023. Ian has also appeared in multiple short films such as The Lucy Effect, Chaos Conducted, Red River, The First Few Days, Apt 3201, Cassette, and The Flame.

On television Ian was featured on an episode of FoxSoul’s The GenZone discussing the 2022 midterm election. He has had a day player role in Buried in the Backyard on the Oxygen Network, and worked on sets of Curb Your Enthusiasm, Winning Time, Griselda, The Offer, Hunters, Dr. Phil, Jimmy Kimmel Live!, The Titan Games, Extremely Wicked Shocking Evil and Vile, Hollywood, and Daisy Jones and the Six.

He can be seen in commercials/ads on instagram for Dossier Perfumes and Fedora Nights, a Houston-based designer hat brand.

In addition to acting Ian is also a trained singer, dancer, model, songwriter, bartender, and musician playing both piano and guitar. He also maintains a freelance career in production having collaborated on campaigns with Mercedes-Benz, Uber, New Era, GAP, Chase, Hulu, Apple, HBO, Square, On Running, P!nk, Hyundai, and others. Ian also spends time doing a variety of physical activities including lifting weights, handstand walking, running, skateboarding, hiking, and swimming.

When he’s not on the go Ian enjoys watching the sunset on a rooftop, listening to music, playing Pokemon, and watching movies with pizza.