Michael Barrett Watson (born April 23, 1974) is an American actor known for his roles of Matt Camden on 7th Heaven, Brian Davis in What About Brian, Todd Deepler in Samantha Who? and Lachlan Murdoch in The Loudest Voice. Early life Watson was one of four children of Karen, a paralegal, and Michael Watson, an attorney. At the age of 8, Watson and his family moved to Dallas, Texas, where he began his modeling career. For a period of time, he studied acting at the Dallas Young Actors Studio with director Linda Seto. Watson was 14 when his parents divorced. When he was 15, he moved to Burbank, California, where he immediately landed a six-month contract on the soap opera Days of Our Lives. After his contract ended, Watson moved back to Texas and graduated from Richardson High School in 1992. Career When he turned 19, Watson moved back to Los Angeles, where he worked parking cars at a House of Blues nightclub while auditioning for roles. He landed guest spots in several television series such as Baywatch and Sister, Sister. Eventually he was chosen for a minor role on the Aaron Spelling series Malibu Shores. Though his role was brief, it led him to Aaron Spelling's next project, 7th Heaven. It was on The WB's 7th Heaven that Watson finally gained much recognition for his portrayal as Matt Camden. Watson said in 2016 that his mindset at the time was one of wanting to get paid despite his unsureness in the project or why the people involved wanted him to participate in the first place. He stopped being a full-time regular after the sixth season, but continued to guest star on the show until its 10th season. In his break from acting on 7th Heaven, he was brought in to write an episode by series creator and producer Brenda Hampton. He did not appear at all during the eleventh and final season. In 1999, he starred in his first feature film with fellow WB star Katie Holmes in Teaching Mrs. Tingle. Watson hoped that his role in the film would help him avoid being pigeonholed by his role in 7th Heaven. During the production, Watson felt "strange" at times due to his being the only male on set, but had "an amazing experience" working with his co-stars. Watson directed two episodes of 7th Heaven in 2005, and likewise directed