Derek Theler

Derek Theler, born on October 29, 1986, is an American actor, writer, producer, and model. Standing at 6 feet 6.5 inches tall, he was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes at three years old. He attended Colorado State University in Fort Collins, Colorado, before embarking on his career in entertainment. Theler is best known for his portrayal of Danny Wheeler on the comedy series Baby Daddy.

Theler began his acting career in 2009, making early appearances in minor roles across several television shows, including The Middle, Cougar Town, and The Hills. Alongside his early television appearances, he worked as a model in various television commercials. His commercial work began with a Coke Zero spot in 2009, followed by a State Farm campaign in which he played a character conjured up by three women. He was also featured in commercials for brands such as Nike, Kayak.com, Arby's, and Verizon.

In addition to his modeling and on-screen acting, Theler served as the writer and executive producer of the short film Intrusion. His breakthrough role came in 2012 when he was cast as Danny Wheeler, the brother of the title character, on the ABC Family comedy Baby Daddy, a role he played until 2017. That same year, he starred as Riggins in the web series Project S.E.R.A.

Following his initial success, Theler appeared in several feature films and digital projects. In 2015, he starred as Chase Walker in the digital movie Shark Killer and played Jordan in the Christmas film How Sarah Got Her Wings. That same year, he appeared in the Funny or Die parody Chicago Sanitation. In 2016, he played Jake Kenman in the family movie Secret Summer and portrayed the Huntsman in the YouTube short Princess Rap Battle.

Theler continued to take on diverse television and film roles in subsequent years. In 2017, he starred in the short film Brotherly Love, guest-starred as Dirk on American Housewife, and was cast as Craig Hollis / Mister Immortal in the planned Marvel Cinematic Universe series New Warriors prior to its cancellation. In 2018, he played Aric Dacia / X-O Manowar in Ninjak vs. the Valiant Universe, guest-starred as Conan in Wayne, played Thor / Donar the Great in American Gods, and appeared as Ryan in Dollface.

In 2019, Theler was cast as Sasquatch in the Paramount Network military series 68 Whiskey. He later guest-starred as Billy McShane in an episode of Leverage: Redemption in 2022 and played Iverson in the horror film Deadlocked: Dad of the Dead in 2026. In his personal life, Theler began dating actress Lisa Marie Summerscales in May 2016. The couple announced their engagement in July 2022 and married that September in a ceremony officiated by his former Baby Daddy co-star Melissa Peterman.