Paevey was born in Torrance, California, and was raised in Los Angeles as the son of Les Vlieger and Linda Paevey.[2][3][4][5] Paevey ran track and cross country in high school.
Although Paevey did not plan to go into the entertainment industry, while in high school, he was scouted for modeling, leading to commercial acting. Paevey grew up working in construction with his father and bartending.[5][6] Although he initially turned down modeling opportunities, he eventually acted on one.[4]
In December 2013, Paevey joined the cast of the ABC soap opera General Hospital in the contract role of Nathan West.[8] The job was Paevey's first series regular role.[4] In October 2014, Paevey joined Extra as a guest co-host.[9] In 2015, Paevey worked as the lead in the Hallmark Channel original movie Unleashing Mr. Darcy, premiering on January 23, 2016.[10] In 2017, he worked on the Hallmark Channel movie Harvest Love.[11] In 2018, he worked in the Hallmark movie Hope at Christmas. In January 2018, Paevey announced his decision to depart General Hospital.[12] In 2019, he worked on the Hallmark Channel films Christmas at the Plaza and A Timeless Christmas. Ryan was in the Hallmark movie Two Tickets to Paradise in 2022, and in 2023, he was in the Hallmark movie Fourth Down and Love.
Personal life
He has a motorcycle he named Lilith. In July 2015, Paevey injured his wrist in a motorcycle wreck.[13]
In 2016, Paevey launched a brand called Fortunate Wanderer, selling custom prints of photography from his travels, hand-made jewelry, and outdoor gear.[14]
His other hobbies include video games, surfing (which he did with his father as a child), and cooking, and his favorite food is sushi. Paevey speaks some French and Japanese[15] and can read Japanese.[16][17] He is of Dutch and Indonesian ancestry on his father's side.[3] Paevey is a self-proclaimed "nature boy".[4] He also briefly lived in Harlem[4] and is very close with his younger sister Kaitlyn.[5]
