Dean McDermott

Tall, with sandy brown hair, blue eyes and an ingenious smile, Dean McDermott can easily assume the role of a romantic lead, such as Garnett, a farmhand whom a young woman falls in love with, despite protests from her mother, in the telefilm Lives of Girls and Women. His intriguing performance earned him a Gemini nomination for Best Supporting Actor.

Yet it has been his performance in Due South as the by-the-book Constable Renfield, who makes Constable Fraser look positively at ease, that has endeared him to a growing number of television viewers.

The Canadian native got his start in show business when, around age 19, he decided to stop procrastinating and went and got himself an agent. A variety of commercials and guest appearances in various TV shows and movies ensued, and soon he found his way onto one of Canada's most popular TV series, Due South.

Dean's first appearance on this series was in the first season episode "The Man Who Knew Too Little," in which the path of pathological liar Ian MacDonald crosses disastrously with that of Fraser and Ray. Dean portrayed Laurier, one of the Canadian mobsters chasing Ian. Creator Paul Haggis was so impressed with Dean that when he created the character of Turnbull, a Mountie who was even "straighter-arrow than Fraser." Dean seemed the natural choice. When Haggis left the series to pursue new opportunities, he suggested to the new producers that Turnbull become a semi-regular.

Dean felt that every law enforcement agency has its 'doofus,' and Turnbull fell into that category with incredible ease. Somehow the man passed the rigorous paramilitary training of the RCMP, yet his work at the consulate perplexes his superior, Inspector Thatcher, and Fraser has simply just learned to live with it. Dean feels that Turnbull isn't necessary stupid, but just tries too hard, and is an honest individual.

One of Dean's favorite Due South episodes was the Christmas-themed "Good for the Soul," where Dean got to flex his singing muscles and belted out the amusing song, 'Santa Drives a Pickup Truck.' Dean also mentioned that working on the third and fourth seasons of that Mountie comedy-drama was a delight, as the cast was given much freedom in how to express their characters.

Power Play

"I got the best job in the world.
I get to play an NHL superstar and get paid to do it.
I just love it." 1

Although his time on Due South is now over, it has left Dean with good memories. Both personally and professionally, it has left him with security and confidence to pursue new opportunities in the vast world of acting. He quickly obtained a new job, that of the captain of the fictitious Hamilton Steelheads in Alliance's hockey series, Power Play, which begain airing on the Canadian airwaves in October 1998.

To some people, spending fourteen hours a day at Copps Colliseum in Hamilton, Ontario, paying hockey and acting, might be an arduous task, but Dean loved every minute of it. The team was composed of four actors surrounded by a variety of hockey players, from up and coming college players to ex-NHLers.

After Power Play was cancelled, Dean continued to find parts in a wide variety of productions.

Food for the Tabloids

Dean met his first wife, Mary Jo Eustace, in 1987 when they both shared the same agency. Dean saw her 8x10 photo and fell in love with her, but the love wasn't reciprocated - until November 1992. Dean was doing security for an AIDS ball, and had come alone. Mary Jo also came solo, and soon the two struck up a conversation. After she left - alone - Dean realized he couldn't lose her, so he sent her flowers and asked her out. They went out for lunch and became inseparable. Nine months later, in July 1993, they married. The marriage lasted 12 years, until September 2005, and the couple had two children.

During the summer of 2005, Dean was filming a TV movie called 'Mind Over Murder' and became involved with his co-star Tori Spelling. Both were married at the time, but that didn't seem to stop them. As their relationship progressed, they filed for divorce from their spouses in September 2005. Dean proposed to Spelling on Christmas Eve that same year, and they married in Fiji in May 2006. Dean now lives in California and has started a family with Spelling.

Due South Cast Information | William & Elyse's Due South Page

The following is a brief bibliography of sources quoted.

¹ - Jane Hawtin Live (Toronto), March 1999.