Background:

Jacob Hays is an American young actor. He starred as Sam Steele Jr. on the film  “Sam Steele and the Junior Detective Agency” (2009) and its continuation, “Sam Steele and the Crystal Chalice” (2011). He also appeared in the television shows “Disney's Really Short Report” (2007-2009) and “Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader?” (2007).      


Missouri Native

Childhood and Family:

Jacob Hays was born on August 21, 1995, in St. Joseph, Missouri.


Disney's Really Short Report

Career:

Jacob Hays made his screen debut in a eight minute length film called “Benjamin Silverstein,”  where he played the title role of a young boy who wishes to make his inventions known, but has to deal with obstacles before success is his. The short was written and directed by Josh Strnad and was released in Los Angeles, California in April 2006.   

Hays' big break arrived when he was tapped to play Sonny Raines, co-anchor and features host on “Disney's Really Short Report,” a mini show that ran on the Disney Channel and promoted upcoming Disney DVD releases. He was on the show throughout its two seasons run from January 23, 2007 to January 23, 2009.
Meanwhile, Hays also appeared in the television game show “Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader?” (29 episodes) as well as in other TV shows like “Entertainment Tonight” (1 episode), “The View” (1 episode) and “Ellen: The Ellen DeGeneres Show” (2 episodes) (all 2007). In 2008, he made  his film debut in the family film “Matchmaker Mary,” which was written and directed by Tom Whitus and starred Jeff Fahey, Katherine McNamara and Jilanne Klaus.  

Hays landed the role of Sam Steele Jr. on the family film “Sam Steele and the Junior Detective Agency,” for which he reunited with director/writer Tom Whitus. The film premiered at the St. Louis International Film Festival on November 22, 2009 and was released to theaters in the USA on January 4, 2011. He reprised the role on the sequel “Sam Steele and the Crystal Chalice” (2011). His co-stars in the latter film included Kevin Sorbo and Dee Wallace.     


Awards:

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