# Josh Henderson: Dallas-Born Star of the Dallas Revival > Josh Henderson was born in Dallas on October 25, 1981, and played John Ross Ewing III in TNT's Dallas revival from 2012 to 2014. **By:** John McGillie **Published:** October 25, 2026 **Tags:** Actors, Dallas, Dallas Tv Series, Josh Henderson, Southfork Ranch --- Some actors spend years auditioning for a role that feels like it was built for them. Josh Henderson got the one that practically came with a cattle brand: the son of J.R. Ewing, on a show called _Dallas_, filmed in and around the city where he was born. Henderson was born October 25, 1981, in Dallas. Texas cares because he was the young face of the 2012 revival of one of the state's most famous TV exports, playing John Ross Ewing III for all three of its seasons. ## A Dallas birth, an Oklahoma childhood Let's be straight about the geography. Wikipedia lists his birthplace as Dallas, and TMDb says the same. Wikipedia also says he grew up in Tulsa, Oklahoma, and graduated from Memorial High School there. So he's a Dallas-born actor, not a lifelong Dallas kid, and I won't pretend otherwise. His path to the screen started with music. In 2001 he competed on the second season of The WB's _Popstars_ and ended up in the pop group Scene 23, which won that competition. When the group broke up, he turned to acting, according to TMDb. ## Television, one role after another The résumé fills in fast. He was a main cast member as PFC Bo "Texas" Rider Jr. in the FX series _Over There_ in 2005. Then came ABC's _Desperate Housewives_, where he had a recurring role as Austin McCann, nephew of Edie Britt, across 2006 and 2007. He followed that with a few episodes of _90210_ on The CW in 2008 and 2009. A 2010 CW pilot called _Betwixt_ never sold. ## Back to Southfork The _Dallas_ revival premiered on TNT on June 13, 2012. The Ewings, in the show's own terms, are a wealthy Dallas oil family whose home is Southfork Ranch. Henderson's John Ross is the son of J.R. and Sue Ellen, and he is determined to start drilling for oil at Southfork. The show was filmed in and around Dallas, and Southfork Ranch is in Parker, Texas. For a show about the city's most famous fictional family, that's the right part of the world to point a camera. The original series, by contrast, was filmed mostly in Los Angeles. The series ran 40 episodes over three seasons, ending September 22, 2014. Larry Hagman, the original J.R., died during the filming of season two. TNT announced in early October 2014 that it had "decided not to renew Dallas," and CBS News reported the news on October 6. After that, Henderson was the male lead in the E! series _The Arrangement_, playing Kyle West for 20 episodes across two seasons, 2017 and 2018. He later appeared in _All Rise_ in 2021 and 2022. ## Your turn There's something fitting about a Dallas-born actor ending up on that porch at Southfork. Did you watch the original, the revival, or both? Tell us in the comments which John Ross scene you remember best. Photo: Joyce Costello, USAG Livorno Public Affairs., CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons --- **About the author:** John McGillie is a pen name, used for safety after threats of violence. I grew up in Wishek, North Dakota, and moved to Texas 20 years ago. I write about the history, food and back roads I keep finding along the way. --- _Read the full article at [everybittexas.com/posts/josh-henderson-dallas-born-actor](https://everybittexas.com/posts/josh-henderson-dallas-born-actor)_ [← All Posts](https://everybittexas.com/posts/index.md)