Klaus’ Series of Unfortunate Events

Background:

“I've never really tried to copy anyone, I like to have my own style.” Liam Aiken.

At the age of seven, Liam Aiken made his Broadway debut in the acclaimed revival of “A Doll's House” and landed his first feature film role as Ned, Parker Posey's son in Henry Fool. The next year, he gained praise for portraying Ed Harris and Susan Sarandon's son in Stepmom (1998) and has since played lead roles in such films as Sweet November (2001), Road to Perdition (2002), Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events (2004; as Klaus), and reprised his Henry Fool's role in its sequel, Fay Grim (2006). As for his upcoming film project, Liam, who once tried out for the part of Harry Potter but lost to Daniel Radcliffe, will star in Stephen Sommers' adventure drama Airborn, based on the 2004 novel by Kenneth Oppel.


Only Child

Childhood and Family:

The only child of Bill Aiken, a former MTV and Nickleodeon television producer, and his wife, an Irish immigrant named Moya Aiken, Liam Padraic Aiken was born on January 7, 1990 in New York, New York. His father died of cancer in October 1992 at age 34, when Liam was 2 1/2 years old.

Liam currently attends Dwight-Englewood School in Englewood, New Jersey, and is going to finish his study in 2008. During his offs, Liam enjoys doing magic tricks and playing the guitar. A fan of punk music, he aspires to play the guitar like Rage Against the Machine's Tom Morello. He also likes to play with his first dog, a Miniature Italian Greyhound named Kes (after the kestrel in Kes), which was given to him as a gift by the crew of Good Boy! (2003).

“I hang out with the 'nerdy' people -- they have a different sense of humor than most kids.” Liam Aiken.


Screen Son

Career:

“Shortly after my dad died, my mom figured that if I could do a few commercials, I'd get a college fund.” Liam Aiken.

Shortly after the death of his father, Liam Aiken was urged by his mother to start acting so he can fund his college. He got his first acting job in a Ford Motor Company Windstar commercial and made his Broadway debut at age seven, as one of the two sons abandoned by Janet McTeer's confused Nora in the award-winning revival of Ibsen's “A Doll's House.” That same year, he landed his first feature film role, as Parker Posey's long-suffering son in director Hal Hartley's drama comedy Henry Fool (1997).

He followed it up with a small part as Paul Rudd's student in Nicholas Hytner's adaptation of Stephen McCauley's romantic/comedy book with the same title, The Object of My Affection (1998), which also stars Jennifer Aniston, John Pankow, Alan Alda and Nigel Hawthorne. Also in that year, he received critical praise and won a Young Artist Award for Best Performance in a Feature Film - Young Actor Age Ten or Under for his role as Ben, Ed Harris and Susan Sarandon's precocious son in Chris Columbus' family comedy/drama Stepmom. Meanwhile, on the small screen, he could be seen in an April 1998 episode of NBC's police procedural and legal drama “Law & Order.”

After turning down the role in The Sixth Sense (1999), which eventually went to Haley Joel Osment, Liam filmed Tom Rice's big screen version of David Armstrong's novel, the World War II drama The Rising Place (released in 2001), costarring with Frances Fisher. And in the new millennium, he had a featured role as Kim Basinger's 7-year-old son in Hugh Hudson's adventure drama based on the autobiography of Kuki Gallman, I Dreamed of Africa.

The subsequent years, Liam shared the screen with Keanu Reeves and Charlize Theron in Sweet November (2001), Pat O'Connor's remake of the 1968 Sandy Dennis/Anthony Newley film, and portrayed Tom Hanks' son, Peter Sullivan, in Sam Mendes’ drama film Road to Perdition (2002), which was based on the graphic novel of the same name written by Max Allan Collins and illustrated by Richard Piers Rayner. He also guest starred in an October 2002 episode of NBC cop/crime drama “Law & Order: Criminal Intent.”

2004 saw Liam playing the lead role of intelligent orphan Klaus Baudelaire in Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events, an Academy Award-winning film directed by Brad Silberling and was based on the first three novels in Lemony Snicket's children’s book series. He said: “It's actually kind of interesting to see one book transferred to another book, because they basically...where one book ends, they glue them together. So, but it's fun to see all of these characters that have been created from Lemony Snicket. From his mind, that they're just so incredible and deep and interesting. Klaus he's an avid reader. He reads many books. And he basically remembers everything he reads. And he uses that in the struggle to survive through all of these terrible things that happened.”

In 2006, Liam reunited with writer/director Hal Hartley in the sequel to his 1997 film Henry Fool, Fay Grim, playing Parker Posey's son once again. The film premiered at that year’s Toronto International Film Festival and was released in theatres across America on May 18, 2007. Also in May 2007, Liam made his second appearance on “Law & Order.”

Currently, Liam is filming Stephen Sommers' upcoming project, Airborn. In the film, based on the 2004 novel by Kenneth Oppel, Liam will star as a cabin boy named Matt Cruse who works on the passenger airship Aurora. Kay Panabaker is rumored to play a co-starring role.

Awards:

- Young Artist: Best Performance in a Feature Film - Young Actor Age Ten or Under, Stepmom, 1999