Why Drew Thomas From The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It Looks So Familiar
Ever since the franchise began with 2013's "The Conjuring," viewers have watched Ed and Lorraine Warren (Patrick Wilson and Vera Farmiga) put their paranormal investigation skills to work in some terrifying situations. From the first film's demonic exorcism in Rhode Island to the sequel's battle with a nun possessing spirit in England, the pair has always found a way to outwit evil from another world.
However, the Warrens don't always work alone. In "The Conjuring 2," they contact another pair of famous paranormal experts, Maurice Grosse (Simon McBurney) and Anita Gregory (Franka Potente). Beyond that, the husband-and-wife team can always trust in their helpful assistant, Drew Thomas (Shannon Kook). While Drew was much closer to the action in the first film than in the second, he returns in "The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It" to once again help the Warrens protect the innocent and thwart malevolent spirits.
While Drew typically stays in the background when the real action gets started in the "The Conjuring" films, some fans may find that they might remember him from someplace that they can't quite put their finger on. That's because Kook has been active in TV and film for over a decade, often in small but memorable roles. Here is why Drew Thomas from "The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It" looks so recognizable.
Later seasons of Degrassi featured Shannon Kook as a gay football player
Shannon Kook was born and raised in South Africa and discovered a love of acting as an extramural school activity, according to NewNowNext. It was appropriate then that after Kook moved to Canada to attend theatre school, his first major acting gig was on perhaps the most famous Canadian high school drama of all time, "Degrassi: The Next Generation."
Kook joined "Degrassi: The Next Generation" during Season 10, which was actually the year that the show shortened its name to "Degrassi" and adopted a format similar to soap operas, with over 40 episodes per season. In the 10th season, Kook was featured in a guest role as Zane Park, an out-of-the-closet gay teenager who eventually became a love interest for the closeted football player Riley Stavros (Argiris Karras). Kook then became a primary cast member for Season 11, which would be his last.
Kook's late arrival to the show meant that he never had a chance to work with legends like Drake, but it did mean he was around when the show produced "My Body is a Cage," the Season 10 episode centered on transgender identity which won a Peabody, via IMDb.
Kook has been featured in a wide variety of independent films and TV shows
After making his mark on "Degrassi," Kook began to find much more work on television and film. Almost immediately, he starred as David Cho in five of the six episodes that made up Season 3 of the crime drama "Durham County" and had a lead role in the children's comedy series "Baxter," playing Devon Phillip. Over the next couple of years, Kook landed his first role in a feature film with "Verona," in which he played Xan, as well as some higher-profile TV series like "XIII: The Series" and "Rookie Blue," although often only for an episode or two.
His most important project after "Degrassi" was, of course, his appearance as Drew in "The Conjuring," which became a surprise megahit, launched a film universe, and gave Kook his most widely recognized role. His part in that film also established him as a prominent young Canadian actor and helped him win the TIFF Rising Star award in 2014, via The Star.
After receiving that honor, Kook has found consistent work in film. He appeared in the neo-noir mystery "Dark Places," which was based on a Gillian Flynn novel, was the star of the first story featured in the holiday horror anthology "A Christmas Horror Story," and had a prominent role in "Goliath," a 2019 mystery film.
The final season of The 100 featured Shannon Kook in a significant role
In between his roles in various feature films, Kook also found time to appear on The CW show "The 100" as Jordan, the son of Monty (Christopher Larkin) and Harper (Chelsey Reist).
Kook first appeared as Jordan during the finale of Season 5, after many of the show's main characters had been put into cryosleep and the series had moved away from a decimated Earth to a new habitable planet called Sanctum. Jordan becomes a key figure in both Seasons 6 and 7. In the sixth season, he helps the refugees find their place among the rulers of Sanctum, the Primes, and in Season 7, he is a crucial character who retranslates instructions to keep humanity out of a war and find a peaceful afterlife.
Jordan is portrayed by Kook as intelligent and empathetic, embodying the best qualities of his parents, who were fan-favorite characters before they left the show in Season 5 during the cryosleep event. While Jordan was never a true replacement for Monty or Harper, Kook's balanced depiction of the character proved to be a key element in the ending of "The 100."