He had his break out role on TV’s acclaimed drama series “Mad Men,” earning rave reviews for his portrayal of Stan Rizzo. Now, Jay R. Ferguson matches wits opposite Zac Efron in Warner Bros.’ new romantic drama “The Lucky One,” based on the bestselling novel by Nicholas Sparks
In the film, U.S. Marine Sergeant Logan Thibault (Efron) returns from his third tour of duty in Iraq, with the one thing he credits with keeping him alive—a photograph he found of a woman he doesn’t even know. Discovering her name is Beth (Taylor Schilling) and where she lives, he shows up at her door, and ends up taking a job at her family-run local kennel. Despite her initial mistrust and the complications in her life, a romance develops between them, giving Logan hope that Beth could be much more than his good luck charm.
Beth’s ex-husband, is the town’s Deputy Sheriff, Keith Clayton (Ferguson), who uses their young son Ben as a pawn to intimidate and control Beth. It only gets worse when he jealously starts to view Logan as an interloper in his family.
Ferguson states, “Keith uses his position as a sheriff and as Ben’s father to his advantage. He likes to keep Beth in a box with that power. When Logan comes to town, it’s the first time anyone has challenged him without backing down.”
“Keith is the antagonist in the film but, as with all great antagonists, you have to feel for him in some way. Jay has a great power and on-screen presence, which is layered and textured so you see a real conflict is going on inside him,” director Scott Hicks notes.
“I found the series of interconnected relationships between these different people so compelling,” Hicks continues. “It’s not just the promise of romance between Logan and Beth. There are four individuals whose lives are ultimately changed when Logan finds that photo in the sand.”
Ferguson made his screen debut at age 14 portraying Ponyboy in Francis Ford Coppola’s episodic follow-up to his classic film “The Outsiders,” based on the novel by S.E. Hinton.
Other television credits include regular roles in several television series, including Showtime’s Emmy-nominated “Sleeper Cell,” NBC’s “Surface,” CW’s “Easy Money” and CBS’ “Evening Shade.”
Ferguson’s feature film credits include Michael Winterbottom’s “The Killer Inside Me” and John Singleton’s “Higher Learning.”
On stage, he has performed in Brazilian director Gulu Monteiro’s “A Flea In Her Ear” at The Stages Theatre in Hollywood and “The Good Soul Of Szechwan” at the Electric Lodge Theatre.