Thomas Ian Griffith
27 movies · 9 TV shows
- Known for
- Acting
- Born
- Mar 18, 1962 (age 64)
- Place of birth
- Hartford, Connecticut, USA
Biography
Thomas Ian Griffith (born March 18, 1962) is an American actor and martial artist. He is best known for portraying Terry Silver in the 1989 film The Karate Kid Part III, a role he reprised in the 4th season of the Netflix series Cobra Kai.
Griffith became obsessed with Tae Kwon Do while in high school and earned a black belt when he was 18. His knowledge of Tae Kwon Do helped him land his first feature film: 1989's The Karate Kid Part III, in which he played Terry Silver.
Read the full biography
In 1996, Griffith starred in the film Hollow Point alongside Tia Carrere, as DEA agent Max Parish and FBI agent Diane Norwood respectively. Griffith has also collaborated with director John Carpenter. He played head vampire Jan Valek in the 1998 film Vampires and co-created the comic book series Asylum, together with Carpenter and producer Sandy King. Griffith appeared in the 2002 film XXX, in which he portrayed Agent Jim McGrath.
His first TV role was on the soap opera Another World, as Catlin Ewing, whom he played from 1984 to 1987. In 1999, he starred in the TV movie Secret of Giving with Reba McEntire; earlier in 1999, he had appeared in Reba's video for the song "What Do You Say". He also starred as Rock Hudson in a 1990 TV movie Rock Hudson. He has made guest appearances on a number of television shows, including In the Heat of the Night, Wiseguy, and One Tree Hill.
From 2013 to 2017, Griffith periodically wrote and worked as a story editor for the NBC television series Grimm and became a co-producer in 2015.
In 2021, Griffith reprised the role of Terry Silver from The Karate Kid Part III in Season 4 of Cobra Kai.
Known for
Thomas Ian Griffith: movies and TV shows
Acting (30)
- 2022
- 2018
- 2008 The Kidnapping
as Cash
- 2005
- 2005 Sea Wolf: The Pirate's Curse
as Captain Jeffery Thorpe
- 2003 Timecop: The Berlin Decision
as Brandon Miller
- 2003
- 2003
- 2002 Black Point
as Gus Travis
- 2002 xXx
as Agent Jim McGrath
- 2002 Beyond the Prairie, Part 2: The True Story of Laura Ingalls Wilder Continues
as Cornelius Loudermilk
- 2001 High Adventure
as Chris Quartermain
- 2000 For the Cause
as Evans
- 2000 A Vision of Murder: The Story of Donielle
as Doug Brister
- 1999 Secret of Giving
as Harry Withers
- 1999 Escape from Alaska
as Neal Meekin
- 1999 The Unexpected Mrs. Pollifax
as Jack Farrell
- 1998 Vampires
as Jan Valek
- 1997 Kull the Conqueror
as General Taligaro
- 1997 Behind Enemy Lines
as Mike Weston
- 1997 The Guardian
as The Guardian
- 1996 Hollow Point
as Max Parrish
- 1994 Crackerjack
as Jack Wild
- 1994 Blood of the Innocent
as Frank Wusharsky
- 1993 Excessive Force
as Terry McCain
- 1993 Ulterior Motives
as Jack Blaylock
- 1990 Rock Hudson
as Rock Hudson
- 1989 The Karate Kid Part III
as Terry
- 1987
- 1964
Behind the camera (8)
- 2020 Dolly Parton's Christmas on the Square
Consulting Producer
- 2019
- 2019
- 2011
- 2009 Mr. Troop Mom
Writer
- 2002 Black Point
Writer
- 1993 Excessive Force
Writer, Producer
- 1991 Night of the Warrior
Writer, Producer
Talk shows and appearances (2)
- 2024 Cobra Kai: Inside the Dojo
1 episode
- 2020 Reunited Apart
1 episode