Ned's Declassified School Survival Guide was a short-lived hit. While it didn't receive stellar ratings when it ran on Nickelodeon between 2004 and 2007, it had a dedicated cult fanbase and earned incredible reviews. The Los Angeles Times even claimed it was "one of the best" children's programs on TV. This seems to be the opinion of many of the show's fans to this date. Following Devon Werkheiser's Ned Bigby attempting to survive middle school was extremely entertaining, silly, and yet quite heartfelt. In theory, this should have set up all the cast members for incredible success. But almost all of them have seemingly vanished since.
Fans are particularly interested in what happened to Devon Werkheiser. Unlike stars such as Victoria Justice, who has primarily focused on acting since her Nickelodeon days, Devon almost entirely changed his life. While he does have a bunch of acting credits to his name after Ned's Declassified, he's been focused on radically different passions...
7 What Happened To Devon Werkheiser's Acting Career?
Devon continued to do some acting after Ned's Declassified, but it wasn't his main focus. However, he did earn 7 episodes on the TV series Greek, have a guest-starring spot on Two Broke Girls, Franklin & Bash, American Dad, and Criminal Minds.
He also starred in a number of low-budget TV movies and indie films including Beneath The Darkness, Santa Girl, Break Night, Bad Sister, Where's The Money, and Crown Vic with director Joel Souza.
In an interview with Speech Bubble, Devon claimed that he had to take acting classes again since the industry didn't see him as anything more than a Nickelodeon star. And even after that, he says his acting career hasn't gone the way he thought.
6 Devon Werkheiser Worked Normal Jobs
Since his acting career wasn't going the way he planned, Devon had to work 'normal job' in order to pay his way through life. According to his interview with Speech Bubble, he worked at the front desk at a L.A. Equinox gym as well as a bunch of other 'day jobs'.
5 Devon Was Going To Have An Acting Comeback In Alec Baldwin's Rust
Because of his working relationship with Joel Souza in Crown Vic, Devon got the chance to audition for a role in the writer/director's now-canceled film Rust. Of course, Rust was shut down after the tragic accident on set that claimed the life of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins. In an interview with ABC News, Devon claimed he was excited to make the film with the acclaimed cast that included Alec Baldwin. He also stated that he was devastated when he found out the horrific news about Halyna. Devon was not on set at the time of the accident.
"If you weren't on this movie, you can't possibly understand what this feels like," Devon said of the tragedy. "You can't know what it was like to be there on set before. And what it was to experience that day. And what it was to lose this person."
4 Devon Werkheiser's Rocky Music Career
After Ned's Declassified, Devon's main focus was advancing his music career. While he continued to take some acting jobs, the almost entirely changed his career path aiming it toward success in the music industry. Decon originally signed with Universal Motown but somehow ended up losing his record label.
"I got signed by them like right after Ned’s Declassified," Devon said during an interview with Conventional Relations in 2020. "What was amazing was I was just learning guitar and singing and I didn’t know who I was as an artist at all. Universal sent me around LA for two years songwriting with like forty different producers and making demos. I learned so much during that time. It was epic. I just got into my skin as a songwriter and as an artist and I got this crash course in pop songwriting. We made some great songs that are still around, but eventually, they just weren’t going to make the record."
Still, Devon pursued his rock/pop music and continues to make it to this day.
3 Devon Werkheiser Released His Own Music
Despite not having a record label, Devon decided to release his own music with the help of artists Charlie Midnight, Wally Gagel, Eddie Galan, and Tim Myers. He managed to get himself booked at a number of venues and released his first single, "If Eyes Could Speak" in 2010. He starred in the music video with his then-girlfriend, Molly McCook.
Devon released his first EP in 2013, his second in 2016, and his third, "Chapter One" in 2020 which only contained 5 songs despite him having written over 45. Clearly, the talented artist only wants to put his best foot forward in the challenging industry.
2 Devon's Band Opened For Seal
"I’d been with a music manager for a little while and we partnered with Seal’s manager [in 2019]," Devon said during an interview with Conventional Relations in 2020. "The first time I talked to her she was like 'Yeah, we rep Seal and we have a little tour coming up this summer. We’re gonna get you on a couple shows'. Then literally like two weeks later she’s like 'Here are the dates. You’re opening for Seal.'"
1 Devon Werkheiser Has Relied On Crowd-Funding
Despite opening for Seal and releasing three EPs, Devon still has to rely on the funds of his fans. He did this on the crowd-funding platform IndieGoGo for his third EP "Chapter One". It was successful but his music producer literally ghosted him during the process, according to Devon's interview with Conventional Relations. Still, he managed to get "Chapter One" out there. If there's one thing Devon Werkheiser isn't lacking, it's perseverance.
His music can currently be found and streamed on Spotify.