Party of Five fans with a sharp eye will remember Marsden as the original Griffin--not only was he prettier than Jeremy London, he was darker. So, what happened? "I did the last episode of the first season," he recalls. Uncertain whether or not Party would be renewed, he opted for a regular role on Second Noah as teen dad Ricky.

That squishy family show was short-lived, which turned out to be good news for Marsden. No fools, TV hitmakers Ed Zwick and Marshall Herskovitz scooped up the young actor for their first series since thirtysomething, My So-Called Life and Relativity. (And the comparisons between Marsden and MSCL's Jared Leto are not without merit.)

A sure bet for ABC's fall lineup The Castle is about two feuding families in the 13th century--a big-deal, rule-breaking costumer. Marsden, of course, plays a handsome young son.

Meantime, Marsden slid into the cast of MGM's big-screen teen ensemble Disturbing Behavior, due out this August, in which he costars with Dawson's Creek's Katie Holmes. "It's a sci-fi thriller/horror movie," he says--sort of a cross between The Stepford Wives and Children of the Corn--about a high-school counselor who turns delinquents into straight-A students.

But it's The Castle that will be Marsden's breakout, and he knows it: "This show is one of the best I could be doing. At one point, I galloped a horse through the castle entrance, which was this old castle they used for Braveheart, and I hopped down with my sword and thought, Man, this is pretty cool!"

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