Eric Olsen arrive in Hollywood with connections, trust funds, and industry introductions already lined up. Eric Olsen arrived with five hundred dollars in his pocket and a dream that most people from Bettendorf, Iowa would have talked themselves out of before buying the plane ticket. He made it work anyway. Within his first week in California he scored a guest role on a Steven Spielberg produced television series and he hasn’t stopped working since. Today he’s one of the most recognizable faces on American network television, best known for fourteen seasons as Investigator Marty Deeks on NCIS Los Angeles and currently expanding his career as executive producer on both Matlock and the upcoming third season of NCIS Origins.
What makes Eric Olsen genuinely interesting isn’t just the roles he’s played. It’s the person who played them. A man who attended culinary school at night while going to daytime auditions because he needed something productive to do with his evenings. A man who taught himself to surf after a bad audition and turned that new skill into an actual film role. A man whose brother serves as his personal stunt double and whose sister-in-law is his NCIS Los Angeles co-star. A man who speaks fluent Norwegian, earned a degree in child psychology from Pepperdine University, and is on the board of directors of the Environmental Media Awards. The full Eric Christian Olsen biography is richer and more unexpected than any single television credit suggests.
Who Is Eric Christian Olsen?
Eric Olsen is an American actor, producer, and writer born on May 31, 1977 in Eugene, Oregon. He built one of the most consistently productive careers in American network television over nearly three decades of professional work spanning film, television, and behind-the-camera production. His most famous role is Investigator Marty Deeks on the CBS television series NCIS Los Angeles, a character he portrayed across the show’s entire fourteen-season run and one that made him a genuinely beloved figure among one of the most dedicated fan communities in American television history.
Read more: /michael-jeffers-biography/
Beyond NCIS Los Angeles, Eric Christian Olsen has established himself as a serious television producer through his production company Cloud Nine Productions and a first-look deal with CBS Studios that he has maintained since 2018. His executive producer credits include the CBS legal drama Matlock starring Kathy Bates, the Hulu series Woke, and most recently the upcoming third season of NCIS Origins announced in June 2026. That combination of acting excellence and producing ambition makes him one of the most genuinely versatile figures working within the CBS franchise universe today.
Quick Bio info
| Field | Detail |
|---|---|
| Full Name | Eric Christian Olsen |
| Nickname | Not publicly documented |
| Gender | Male |
| Date of Birth | May 31, 1977 |
| Age | 49 years old (as of 2026) |
| Birthplace | Eugene, Oregon, USA |
| Hometown | Bettendorf, Iowa, USA (spent most of his childhood there) |
| Current Residence | Malibu, California |
| Nationality | American |
| Ethnicity | Of Norwegian descent |
| Religion | Not publicly documented (his mother is a non-denominational chaplain) |
| Education / Qualification | Attended Bettendorf Middle and High School; also studied at Pepperdine University and briefly attended culinary school at Le Cordon Bleu |
| Profession | Actor, producer, and writer — best known as Marty Deeks on NCIS: Los Angeles |
| Languages Spoken | English (confirmed); reported to also speak Norwegian |
| Hobbies & Interests | Surfing, cooking, environmental advocacy |
| Marital Status | Married |
| Spouse / Partner | Married actress Sarah Wright near Jackson Hole, Wyoming, on June 23, 2012, after becoming engaged in October 2011 |
| Children | They have a son and three daughters |
| Father Name | Paul V. Olsen, a professor of English and head track and cross country coach at Augustana College |
| Mother Name | Jeanne (née Donstad), a non-denominational chaplain |
| Siblings | Has an older brother, David, who acts as his stunt double; David is married to actress and Olsen’s NCIS: Los Angeles costar Daniela Ruah |
Personal information
Full Name
Eric Christian Olsen is his full name.
Nickname
No public nickname has been documented for him.
Gender
He is male.
Date of Birth
He was born on May 31, 1977.
Age
He is 49 years old, as of 2026.
Birthplace
He was born in Eugene, Oregon, USA.
Hometown
His hometown is Bettendorf, Iowa, where he spent most of his childhood.
Current Residence
He currently lives in Malibu, California.
Nationality
He holds American nationality.
Ethnicity
He is of Norwegian descent.
Religion
His mother is a non-denominational chaplain.
Education / Qualification
He attended Bettendorf Middle and High School, later studied at Pepperdine University, and briefly attended culinary school at Le Cordon Bleu.
Profession
He works as an actor, producer, and writer, best known for playing Marty Deeks on NCIS: Los Angeles.
Languages Spoken
He speaks English and is also reported to speak Norwegian.
Hobbies & Interests
He enjoys surfing, cooking, and environmental advocacy.
Marital Status
He is married.
Spouse / Partner
He married actress Sarah Wright near Jackson Hole, Wyoming, on June 23, 2012, after getting engaged in October 2011.
Children
He and his wife have a son and three daughters.
Father Name
His father is Paul V. Olsen, a professor of English and head track and cross country coach at Augustana College.
Mother Name
His mother is Jeanne (née Donstad), a non-denominational chaplain.
Siblings
He has an older brother, David, who acts as his stunt double and is married to Olsen’s NCIS: Los Angeles costar Daniela Ruah.
Physical appearance
Height (Feet/Inches)
He stands between 6’1″ and 6’2″ tall.
Height (cm)
His height is approximately 185–188 cm.
Weight (kg)
He weighs 90 kg.
Weight (lbs)
His weight is 198 lbs.
Eye Color
His eyes are blue.
Hair Color
His hair color is blonde.
Body Type
He has an athletic build.
Skin Tone
His skin tone is fair.
Early Life and Childhood in Eugene Oregon and Bettendorf Iowa
Eric Olsen was born in Eugene, Oregon on May 31, 1977 but spent most of his formative years in Bettendorf, Iowa, a mid-sized city on the Mississippi River that forms part of the Quad Cities metropolitan area straddling the Iowa-Illinois border. His father Paul V. Olsen was a professor of English and head track and cross country coach at Augustana College in Rock Island, Illinois, which placed the family within an intellectually stimulating academic environment that clearly shaped how the young Eric approached learning and creative development. His mother Jeanne Olsen, born Jeanne Donstad, worked as a non-denominational chaplain, giving the family a warm spiritual dimension alongside its academic character.
Growing up in Bettendorf during the 1980s and early 1990s gave Eric Olsen a Midwestern upbringing characterized by sports, community, and the specific kind of grounded, unpretentious work ethic that the region tends to produce in people who later find success in competitive national fields. He pursued interests including sports, Japanese, and Chinese during his time at Bettendorf Middle and High School, suggesting a natural curiosity about the world that extended well beyond the typical teenage interests of a small-city kid in the American heartland. He also started acting in grade school, which means his professional trajectory wasn’t a sudden late decision but a natural extension of something he had been developing since childhood within the specific community and family context that Bettendorf and Augustana College provided.
Physical Appearance
| Field | Detail |
|---|---|
| Height (Feet/Inches) | Reported between 6’1″ and 6’2″ |
| Height (cm) | Approximately 185–188 cm |
| Weight (kg) | 90kg |
| Weight (lbs) | 198lbs |
| Eye Color | Blue |
| Hair Color | Blonde |
| Body Type | Athletic |
| Skin Tone | Fair |
Growing Up Between Oregon and Iowa — Building a Multi-Dimensional Character
The specific combination of his Eugene, Oregon birth, his Bettendorf, Iowa upbringing, his Norwegian heritage, and his family environment of academic achievement, spiritual engagement, and athletic commitment produced a specific kind of person that shows up clearly in everything Eric Christian Olsen has done professionally. He isn’t a typical Hollywood archetype.
He’s curious about too many things, competent across too many domains, and too genuinely warm and collaborative to fit the conventional leading man template. That distinctive combination of qualities turned out to be exactly what Marty Deeks required, a character who balances sharp comedic timing with genuine dramatic vulnerability, and it’s what has made Eric Olsen valuable to CBS Studios not just as an actor but as a creative partner building and developing content within the broader NCIS franchise universe.
Eric Olsen Education — Pepperdine University and Improv Training
Pepperdine University in Malibu, California is one of those institutions that tends to attract students who want the combination of serious academic rigor and proximity to the specific kind of creative, sun-soaked environment that Southern California provides. Eric Olsen attended Pepperdine and earned a degree in child psychology, a genuinely unexpected academic choice for someone building an acting career but one that makes complete sense when you consider the emotional intelligence and behavioral observation skills that both professions require. Understanding how people think, feel, and behave under different conditions of stress and comfort is useful in therapy offices and equally useful on film sets where portraying authentic human emotion is the entire professional requirement.
Before arriving at Pepperdine, his performance training in Bettendorf included improv work with ComedySportz Quad Cities, an improvisational comedy organization that gave him foundational skills in spontaneous performance, audience awareness, and the specific kind of fearless in-the-moment creativity that improv demands from its practitioners. He later joined the ComedySportz cast, which gave him sustained performance experience in front of live audiences before he ever faced a professional camera. That combination of Pepperdine child psychology and ComedySportz improv training produced exactly the specific skill set that would later make Marty Deeks such a distinctive and beloved character.
The Pepperdine University campus in Malibu sits on a hillside overlooking the Pacific Ocean and its student population tends to reflect the specific combination of intellectual ambition and California lifestyle orientation that the setting encourages. For Eric Olsen, studying child psychology at Pepperdine while simultaneously continuing his acting development represented exactly the kind of dual commitment that characterizes his approach to everything he does. He rarely pursued just one thing at a time. He was attending culinary school at night while doing daytime auditions during the difficult early years before NCIS happened. He was learning languages while building his acting career.
Eric Olsen Move to Hollywood — The $500 Dream
The story of how Eric Olsen arrived in California is one of those genuinely inspiring career origin stories that deserves more attention than it typically receives in standard biographical coverage. He came to California in 1999 with $500 in his pocket. That’s not a metaphor for starting with limited resources. That was his actual liquid financial situation upon arriving in one of the most expensive states in America to begin one of the most competitive careers available to any human being. What happened next is the part that sounds like a movie. Within his first week in California he scored a guest role on High Incident, the ABC television series produced by Steven Spielberg. Landing a professional television credit in your first week of professional life in Hollywood with five hundred dollars in your pocket is statistically improbable enough to qualify as genuinely remarkable.
That first-week success didn’t mean everything was easy from there. The early years of any acting career in Hollywood involve far more rejection than success regardless of how promising the beginning is and Eric Olsen navigated that reality with the same practical creativity he brought to everything else. The culinary school story is particularly revealing. Rather than spending his evenings anxious about the auditions that hadn’t worked and the roles that hadn’t come through, he enrolled in culinary school at night to keep his mind engaged and his time productive. He was doing daytime auditions and learning to cook professionally in the evenings and somewhere in that period of sustained activity and forward motion NCIS Los Angeles came into his life and changed everything.
Early Career — ER, Get Real, and Arthur’s Quest
The professional career of Eric Olsen technically began in 1997 with a single episode appearance in Beyond Belief Fact or Fiction before his California move, but the sustained professional trajectory that led to his eventual breakthrough began in earnest after his 1999 arrival in Los Angeles. His first title role came in Arthur’s Quest (1999), a television movie that placed him at the center of a production and gave him immediate experience with the specific demands of carrying a narrative rather than simply contributing to one as a supporting player. That kind of early responsibility in a title role develops performance confidence and professional stamina in ways that supporting work simply doesn’t replicate.
His role on the Fox television series Get Real as Cameron Green gave him his first sustained series regular experience and placed him alongside a cast that included a young Anne Hathaway and Jesse Eisenberg, both of whom would go on to extraordinary subsequent careers. The ensemble received a Young Artist Award ensemble nomination that included Eric Olsen, Jesse Eisenberg, Kyle Gibson, and Anne Hathaway, placing him in recognized company at the very beginning of his professional career. His NBC work on ER was even more specifically celebrated. He delivered an Emmy submitted portrayal of a dying burn victim in a guest appearance that demonstrated dramatic capability well beyond what comedy roles alone would have suggested about his range. These early credits built the credibility and professional relationships that opened the film doors that followed.
| Year | Production | Role | Format |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1997 | Beyond Belief Fact or Fiction | Guest appearance | TV episode |
| 1999 | Arthur’s Quest | Arthur — title role | TV movie |
| 1999 | High Incident | Guest role — Steven Spielberg produced | TV episode |
| 1999-2000 | Get Real | Cameron Green | Fox TV series |
| 2000 | ER | Dying burn victim | NBC — Emmy submitted |
| 2000 | Black Cat Run | Supporting role | HBO |
Eric Christian Olsen in Not Another Teen Movie and Pearl Harbor
The transition from television to film represented the next major chapter in Eric Olsen professional development and two films in particular defined the shape of his early film career. Pearl Harbor (2001) directed by Michael Bay placed him on one of the biggest film sets of that year as Ben Affleck’s gunner, giving him immediate exposure to major blockbuster production at a scale that few early career actors encounter. The film generated over $449 million worldwide and its cast included Ben Affleck, Josh Hartnett, Kate Beckinsale, and Cuba Gooding Jr., putting Eric Christian Olsen in genuinely major professional company from very early in his film career.
Not Another Teen Movie (2001) followed quickly and gave him his first genuine film star moment as Austin, nicknamed “The Cocky Blond Guy,” in the teen comedy send-up that became a cult favorite. His comedic timing in the role demonstrated exactly the qualities that ComedySportz training and natural wit produce in performers who understand how to make audiences genuinely laugh rather than simply indicating that something is supposed to be funny. Cellular (2004) gave him another opportunity to work with Chris Evans, this time in a thriller context that broadened his film range beyond comedy, while Local Boys allowed him to showcase the surfing skills he had genuinely developed after teaching himself to surf following a bad audition and discovering a passion that he has maintained throughout his adult life.
| Year | Film | Role | Notable Co-stars |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2001 | Pearl Harbor | Ben Affleck’s gunner | Ben Affleck, Josh Hartnett, Kate Beckinsale |
| 2001 | Not Another Teen Movie | Austin — The Cocky Blond Guy | Ensemble comedy cast |
| 2002 | The Hot Chick | Jake | Rob Schneider ensemble |
| 2003 | Local Boys | Surfing showcase | Mark Harmon — NCIS star |
| 2004 | Cellular | Supporting role | Chris Evans |
| 2006 | Beerfest | Comedy ensemble | Jay Chandrasekhar production |
| 2007 | License to Wed | Supporting role | Mandy Moore, Robin Williams |
| 2007 | The Last Kiss | Supporting role | Zach Braff film |
| 2009 | Eagle Eye | Supporting role | Shia LaBeouf |
| 2010 | The Back-up Plan | Supporting role | Jennifer Lopez |
| 2011 | The Thing | Lead role | Sci-fi horror prequel |
Eric Christian Olsen as Lloyd Christmas in Dumb and Dumberer
Dumb and Dumberer When Harry Met Lloyd (2003) gave Eric Olsen his most celebrated pre-NCIS film role and demonstrated something genuinely important about his abilities as a comedic performer. Playing Lloyd Christmas, the character originated by Jim Carrey in the original Dumb and Dumber (1994), required a specific kind of courage. You’re stepping into a role that an iconic comedian made beloved and you’re doing it in a prequel that the entire comedy world is prepared to dismiss before a single frame is screened. Eric Olsen is specific physical and comedic commitment to Lloyd Christmas became the most discussed aspect of a production that otherwise generated mixed responses across the board.
The physical commitment that his Lloyd Christmas portrayal required mirrors something consistent across his best work. He doesn’t hold back. The same full-body, fearless commitment to comedic performance that made ComedySportz Quad Cities audiences respond to him in Bettendorf shows up in every comedy role he has played since and it showed up with particular clarity in Dumb and Dumberer. Critics who dismissed the film typically acknowledged that Eric Christian Olsen himself was doing something genuinely skilled within a production that didn’t fully support what he was attempting. That kind of individual recognition within a broadly criticized film is actually one of the more meaningful forms of industry acknowledgment a comedic performer can receive because it confirms that your ability is visible even when the surrounding material isn’t helping you.
Eric Christian Olsen as Marty Deeks on NCIS Los Angeles
The role that defined Eric Olsen career arrived at the end of NCIS Los Angeles’s first season when he was cast as LAPD Detective Marty Deeks, an undercover operative and legal liaison who would become one of the show’s most beloved characters across fourteen seasons and hundreds of episodes on CBS. He appeared in two episodes of season one before joining the cast as a series regular in season two and from that point forward Marty Deeks became his professional home, his greatest creative achievement, and the role that built him a global fan following across the show’s distribution in syndication markets around the world.
Marty Deeks is a character that required precisely the combination of qualities that Eric Olsen had been developing across his entire career to that point. The comedic fearlessness from ComedySportz. The emotional intelligence from Pepperdine’s child psychology curriculum. The dramatic range demonstrated in his ER Emmy submitted performance. The physical commitment shown in Dumb and Dumberer. The ensemble warmth developed across years of supporting roles in both film and television. All of it came together in a character whose trademark combination of humor, vulnerability, and genuine moral seriousness made him a fan favorite from almost his first appearance on the series. His real-life love of surfing mapped directly onto Deeks’s character identity giving the portrayal a specific authenticity that can’t be manufactured through research alone.
Marty Deeks and NCIS Los Angeles — Career Highlights
| Detail | Information |
|---|---|
| Show | NCIS Los Angeles — CBS |
| Character | Investigator Marty Deeks — LAPD liaison |
| Seasons | Joined season 1 finale — series regular seasons 2-14 |
| Total seasons | 14 |
| Character trait | Surfer — mirrors Olsen’s real surfing passion |
| Writing contribution | Season 11 episode 10 — 250th episode — Mother — December 1 2019 |
| Sister-in-law co-star | Daniela Ruah — married to Olsen’s brother David Paul Olsen |
| Brother’s role | David Paul Olsen serves as Eric’s personal stunt double on set |
| Awards | People’s Choice Award nominations — Favorite TV Crime Drama Actor |
| Legacy | One of CBS’s most beloved procedural characters of the 2010s |
The specific professional relationship between Eric Olsen and his brother David Paul Olsen on the NCIS Los Angeles set deserves its own moment of appreciation. Having your older brother serve as your personal stunt double across fourteen seasons of a physically demanding action series creates a working environment of profound personal trust and communication efficiency that no other stunt relationship can replicate. David Paul Olsen knows his brother’s physical capabilities, limitations, and movement patterns better than any professional stunt coordinator could develop through working partnership alone and that specific knowledge produces stunt work of unusual quality and safety across hundreds of episodes of production.
Eric Christian Olsen as Producer — Cloud Nine Productions and CBS Deal
The transition from actor to producer that Eric Olsen has executed across the past decade represents one of the more strategically intelligent career evolutions in contemporary American television. Most actors who develop producing ambitions do so reactively, pursuing a credit on a passion project or attaching their name to something being developed by others. Eric Olsen did it systematically, building Cloud Nine Productions as a genuine production entity and then securing a first-look deal with CBS Studios in 2018 that gave his production ambitions the infrastructure and studio support they needed to become commercially meaningful rather than just personally satisfying.
His first major executive producing achievement came with Woke (2019), the Hulu series he developed and executive produced that starred Lamorne Morris and received strong critical attention for its specific blend of comedy, social commentary, and visual storytelling innovation. Getting a show picked up by Hulu as your first executive producing project represents a significant industry achievement in a competitive streaming environment where development deals are plentiful but actual greenlight orders are rare and demanding of genuine creative quality. The Woke success established Eric Olsen as a legitimate producer rather than an actor with a vanity credit and it directly contributed to the Matlock opportunity that followed.
Eric Christian Olsen and Matlock — Executive Producer 2024 to Present
The 2024 reboot of Matlock starring Kathy Bates as Matilda “Matty” Matlock, a shrewd older woman who joins a prestigious law firm with hidden personal motivations, gave Eric Olsen his most commercially significant behind-camera credit to date. The show premiered on CBS in September 2024 and immediately became one of the network’s strongest performers, drawing an older and highly loyal audience demographic that CBS has always served particularly well. Eric Olsen serves as executive producer on the series under his Cloud Nine Productions banner and the show’s commercial success has validated his producing instincts in the most concrete possible way: strong ratings, renewal, and trajectory toward a third season.
Working on Matlock alongside Kathy Bates, one of America’s most respected and decorated dramatic actresses with an Academy Award, a Golden Globe, and multiple Emmy Awards to her name, placed Eric Olsen in an executive producing relationship with the kind of talent that elevates every project it touches. His role as executive producer means he influences casting, storytelling direction, production design, and the overall creative vision of a series that sits firmly within the CBS primetime landscape where he built his acting career across fourteen seasons of NCIS Los Angeles. The continuity of his relationship with CBS Studios across the two chapters of his career reflects a mutual respect and productive professional partnership that few actors successfully transition into from the performing side of the business.
Eric Olsen Joining NCIS Origins as Executive Producer
The announcement in June 2026 that Eric Olsen would serve as executive producer on the third season of NCIS Origins under his Cloud Nine Productions banner represented the latest chapter in one of the most productive actor-to-producer career evolutions in CBS history. NCIS Origins, the prequel drama following a young Leroy Jethro Gibbs in the early 1990s narrated by Mark Harmon, had already established itself as a strong performer within the CBS franchise universe across its first two seasons. Eric Olsen joins the production’s executive producer team alongside showrunner David J. North, Mark Harmon, Sean Harmon, and Michele Greco who was promoted from co-executive producer for the upcoming season.
The specific nature of this new role is worth understanding clearly. Eric Olsen has now been continuously employed within the CBS NCIS franchise universe for seventeen years stretching from his 2009 NCIS Los Angeles casting through to this 2026 NCIS Origins producing announcement. That kind of sustained institutional relationship within a specific franchise represents an extraordinary professional achievement in an industry where relationships shift constantly and institutional loyalty is rare. His transition from franchise actor to franchise producer within the same universe demonstrates the confidence that CBS Studios has in his creative judgment and his understanding of what the NCIS audience wants and responds to.
Eric Olsen Complete Filmography and Television Credits
The complete professional credits of Eric Olsen span nearly three decades of continuous work across film, television, producing, and writing, building one of the most genuinely comprehensive bodies of work of any actor of his specific generation working within the American network television landscape. His trajectory from a five-hundred-dollar arrival in California through a first-week Spielberg produced credit through fourteen seasons of a beloved CBS procedural through to a first-look producing deal with a major studio represents one of the most complete and satisfying career arcs currently operating in the industry.
What the full credit list reveals most clearly is the specific consistent upward trajectory of his career decisions. He didn’t chase quick fame or obvious commercial choices. He built relationships, developed range across comedy and drama, invested in production skills alongside performance skills, and positioned himself strategically within the CBS ecosystem where his specific combination of audience affability, creative range, and collaborative professional character made him genuinely invaluable as both a performer and a creative partner.
Complete Filmography and Television Credits Table
| Year | Title | Role / Capacity | Format |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1997 | Beyond Belief Fact or Fiction | Guest appearance | TV episode |
| 1999 | Arthur’s Quest | Title role | TV movie |
| 1999 | High Incident | Guest role | TV — Spielberg produced |
| 1999–2000 | Get Real | Cameron Green | Fox TV series |
| 2000 | ER | Dying burn victim | NBC — Emmy submitted |
| 2001 | Pearl Harbor | Ben Affleck’s gunner | Theatrical film |
| 2001 | Not Another Teen Movie | Austin | Theatrical film |
| 2002 | The Hot Chick | Jake | Theatrical film |
| 2003 | Local Boys | Surfer role | Film |
| 2003 | Dumb and Dumberer | Lloyd Christmas | Theatrical film |
| 2004 | Cellular | Supporting | Theatrical film |
| 2004 | Tru Calling | Supporting | Fox TV series |
| 2006 | Beerfest | Comedy ensemble | Theatrical film |
| 2006 | The Loop | Sully | Fox TV sitcom |
| 2007 | License to Wed | Supporting | Theatrical film |
| 2007 | The Last Kiss | Supporting | Theatrical film |
| 2009 | Eagle Eye | Supporting | Theatrical film |
| 2009 | Community | Vaughn | NBC — recurring |
| 2009–2023 | NCIS Los Angeles | Marty Deeks | CBS — 14 seasons |
| 2010 | The Back-up Plan | Supporting | Theatrical film |
| 2011 | The Thing | Lead | Theatrical film |
| 2014 | Bald | Producer | Short film |
| 2018 | Andy Irons Kissed by God | Executive producer | Documentary |
| 2019 | Woke | Executive producer | Hulu series |
| 2024–present | Matlock | Executive producer | CBS drama |
| 2026 | NCIS Origins season 3 | Executive producer | CBS drama |
Eric Christian Olsen Wife Sarah Wright and Family Life
The personal life of Eric Olsen centers around his marriage to actress Sarah Wright and their four children, a family story that has unfolded with remarkable warmth and public openness across more than a decade of Hollywood partnership. He and Sarah Wright began dating in 2007 and were engaged in October 2011 before marrying on June 23, 2012 near Jackson Hole, Wyoming, a location that reflects their shared love of natural landscapes and outdoor environments far from the Los Angeles entertainment industry bubble.
Their family grew steadily through the following years. Son Wyatt Oliver Olsen was born on August 16, 2013. Daughter Esmé Olivia Olsen arrived on August 9, 2016. Daughter Winter Story Olsen was born in September 2020. A fourth daughter completes the family. Eric Olsen shares glimpses of family life regularly across his public channels and the warmth he brings to his portrayal of Marty Deeks on screen clearly flows directly from a genuine personal happiness with his domestic life that makes the performance feel inhabited rather than performed. He and Sarah appeared together on an HGTV House Hunters episode in 2015, documenting their search for a vacation home near Jackson Hole, and both sit on the board of directors of the Environmental Media Awards, reflecting a shared commitment to environmental causes that extends beyond individual charitable gestures into organized advocacy.
| Family Member | Relation | Detail |
|---|---|---|
| Sarah Wright | Wife | Actress — married June 23 2012 near Jackson Hole Wyoming |
| Wyatt Oliver Olsen | Son | Born August 16 2013 |
| Esmé Olivia Olsen | Daughter | Born August 9 2016 |
| Winter Story Olsen | Daughter | Born September 2020 |
| Fourth daughter | Daughter | Additional family member |
| David Paul Olsen | Brother | Personal stunt double on NCIS LA |
| Daniela Ruah | Sister-in-law | NCIS LA co-star — married to David |
| Paul V. Olsen | Father | English professor and coach at Augustana College |
| Jeanne Olsen | Mother | Non-denominational chaplain |
| Dakota and Delilah | Pets | Two Akitas |
Trivia and Lesser-Known Facts About Eric Olsen
The lesser-known details of the Eric Olsen biography consistently surprise people who encounter them because they paint a portrait of someone significantly more multi-dimensional than the typical network television leading man profile suggests. Start with the culinary school fact. During the difficult audition period before NCIS Los Angeles changed his professional trajectory, he was attending culinary school at night while doing daytime auditions. It wasn’t a backup plan. It was what he did with his evenings because he needed to stay active, learning, and forward-moving rather than sitting with the anxiety of an uncertain professional future.
Then there’s the surfing story. After a bad audition he went and bought a surfboard and taught himself to surf. He fell in love with the sport. That self-taught surfing passion eventually led directly to a film role in Local Boys where he got to showcase those skills on screen alongside NCIS star Mark Harmon in a connection that predates their CBS franchise relationship by years. His degree in child psychology from Pepperdine University is another detail that surprises people who haven’t looked closely at his biography. He considered a career in medicine at one point. He speaks fluent Norwegian as a tribute to his Norwegian heritage. He improvises lines on set regularly to the delight of co-stars. He’s on the board of directors of the Environmental Media Awards alongside his wife Sarah Wright. And his brother David Paul Olsen has served as his personal stunt double across fourteen seasons of NCIS Los Angeles, one of the most unusual and warmly human professional arrangements in the history of the series.
Surprising Facts About Eric Olsen Most Articles Miss
| Fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| $500 arrival | Moved to California in 1999 with $500 — scored Spielberg show in first week |
| Culinary school | Attended at night during daytime audition period before NCIS |
| Self-taught surfer | Bought a surfboard after a bad audition and taught himself to surf |
| Surfing led to role | Local Boys gave him chance to use real surfing skills on screen |
| Child psychology degree | Earned from Pepperdine University — not a traditional performing arts degree |
| Medical consideration | Once considered a career in medicine before committing to acting |
| Norwegian fluency | Speaks Norwegian fluently — tribute to Norwegian heritage |
| Improv background | Trained and performed with ComedySportz Quad Cities in Bettendorf Iowa |
| Brother stunt double | David Paul Olsen served as personal stunt double across all 14 seasons |
| Daniela Ruah connection | Sister-in-law was his co-star playing Deeks’s wife on NCIS LA |
| Perry Hilton character | Created Paris Hilton parody character for Will Ferrell’s Funny or Die |
| Writing debut | Co-wrote NCIS LA 250th episode in season 11 — December 2019 |
| HGTV appearance | Appeared with Sarah Wright on House Hunters 2015 — Jackson Hole home |
| Mark Harmon connection | Appeared with Mark Harmon in Local Boys years before NCIS franchise |
| CBS first look deal | Under first-look deal with CBS Studios since 2018 through Cloud Nine Productions |
FAQs About Eric Christian Olsen
Who is Eric Olsen?
Eric Olsen is an American actor and producer born May 31, 1977 in Eugene, Oregon and raised in Bettendorf, Iowa. He is best known as Investigator Marty Deeks on NCIS Los Angeles across fourteen seasons on CBS and as executive producer of Matlock and the upcoming third season of NCIS Origins through his production company Cloud Nine Productions.
What is Eric Olsen best known for?
He is best known for his portrayal of Marty Deeks on NCIS Los Angeles across the show’s entire fourteen-season run on CBS from 2009 through 2023. He is also recognized for Lloyd Christmas in Dumb and Dumberer When Harry Met Lloyd (2003), Austin in Not Another Teen Movie (2001), and his current role as executive producer of Matlock and NCIS Origins.
Who is Eric Olsen married to?
He married actress Sarah Wright on June 23, 2012 near Jackson Hole, Wyoming after dating since 2007 and becoming engaged in October 2011. They have four children together: son Wyatt Oliver, daughters Esmé Olivia and Winter Story, and a fourth daughter.
What is Eric Olsen net worth?
His estimated net worth is approximately $13 million as of 2026, accumulated through his fourteen-season salary as lead on NCIS Los Angeles, syndication residuals from global distribution, executive producer fees on Matlock and Woke, and his first-look producing deal with CBS Studios since 2018.
What is Eric Olsen doing now in 2026?
He is currently executive producer of Matlock on CBS heading into its third season and was announced in June 2026 as executive producer of NCIS Origins season 3 under his Cloud Nine Productions banner, continuing a seventeen-year institutional relationship with CBS Studios within the NCIS franchise universe.
Does Eric Olsen have siblings?
Yes. His older brother David Paul Olsen is his personal stunt double and is married to Daniela Ruah, Eric Christian Olsen’s co-star on NCIS Los Angeles who played Marty Deeks’s wife Kensi on the show, creating one of the most unusual and warm family professional arrangements in American television history.
Conclusion
The complete story of Eric Christian Olsen is one of the most genuinely satisfying in modern American television. He came from Bettendorf, Iowa with Norwegian roots, a Pepperdine child psychology degree, ComedySportz improv training, and five hundred dollars in his pocket and built one of the most consistently productive and creatively expanding careers in the history of CBS network television. He taught himself to surf after a bad audition. He attended culinary school at night while chasing roles during the day. He arrived in California with almost nothing and scored a Steven Spielberg produced credit in his first week.
Fourteen seasons as Marty Deeks on NCIS Los Angeles would have been enough for most performers. Eric Olsen used those fourteen seasons to simultaneously build a producing empire through Cloud Nine Productions and a first-look deal with CBS Studios that has now produced Woke on Hulu, Matlock on CBS, and a new executive producing role on NCIS Origins season 3 announced in June 2026. He married Sarah Wright, raised four children in Malibu, maintained a charitable commitment through Hats Off for Cancer and the Environmental Media Awards, and continued to demonstrate that the specific combination of curiosity, practicality, and genuine warmth he brought to Hollywood from Bettendorf, Iowa with five hundred dollars in 1999 was exactly the combination needed to build something genuinely lasting and genuinely remarkable.
