Aliens In America
Sundays at 8:30pm
Aliens In America, Sundays at 8:30pm on CW11
Justin Tolchuck (played by Dan Byrd, Boston Legal) is a sensitive, lanky 16-year-old just tyring to make it through the social nightmare of high school in Medora, Wisconsin, with the help of his well-meaning mom Franny (played by Amy Pietz, Rodney, Caroline in the City), aspiring-entrepreneur dad Gary (Scott Patterson, Gilmore Girls), and his beautiful and popular younger sister Claire.
Although he's bright and funny, Justin is also shy, socially awkward and pretty much resigned to the fact that he'll never be one of the cool kids. Franny, however, is the kind of take-charge mom who micro-manages her family, and she's come up with a plan to help Justin: she signs up for the school's international exchange student program. Picturing an athletic, brilliant Nordic teen, Franny is sure this new friendship will bestow instant coolness on her outsider son. However, when the Tolchuck's exchange student arrives, he turns out to be Raja, a 16-year-old Muslim from a small village in Pakistan.
The family is slightly freaked out, but after the initial shock wears off, Justin is quickly won over by Raja's humor, gestures of friendship, and by their common status as outsiders.
Meet The Cast of Aliens In America:
Dan Byrd plays Justin Tolchuck. Originally from Marietta, Georgia, Byrd began acting at the age of 8, and went on to develop his craft with performances in numerous theatrical productions in Atlanta.
Byrd has starred along side Hilary Duff and Chad Michael Murray in the teen take on a classic talke in the hit film "A Cinderella Story."
Adhir Kalyan plays Raja. Kalyan was born and raised in Durban, South Africa, where his mother, Sanday Kalyan, is a member of Parliament in the South African National Assembly. He began his career in the South African theater, performing in productions of "Macbeth," "Oliver," "A Christmas Carol" and "The Ground Beneath Her Feet."
Kalyan has an impressive commmand of languages and accents. He speaks both Afrikaans and French, and has a wide range of accents, including British, South African, Middle Eastern, Indian, Pakistani, Scottish, French and Australian, as well as several American Accents.