Oliver James Hudson was born on June 1, 1980. His father taught him driving in the age of 5. One day Oliver picked car racing as a profession. At the age of seventeen he had to choose between racing and becoming an entertainer. Oliver James graduated from the Guilford School for Performing Arts in England, picked up an agent and had only been working for a year before he snagged his role as Ian Wallace in "What a Girl Wants". Since 1999 he changed his stage name to Oliver James. After "What a Girl Wants" hit the big screen, everyone wanted to know who the British boy was that played Amanda Bynes' love interest, Ian Wallace. Then he starred in a new teen flick alongside Hilary Duff "Raise Your Voice" started theaters October 8, 2004 and Oliver played the part of Jay, a cute musician that Hilary met at a summer music camp. While starring in "What a Girl Wants", Oliver James was rehearsing with a British boyband. When he got the part of Ian Wallace, he left the group. In mid-March of 2003 he moved to Los Angeles. Like most other actors, Oliver does not enjoy watching himself on screen.