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Sam Rockwell

Sam Rockwell

Birthday: 1968-11-05 | Place of Birth: Daly City, California, USA

Sam Rockwell was born on November 5, 1968, in San Mateo, California, the only child of two actors, Pete Rockwell and Penny Hess. The family moved to New York when he was two years old, living first in the Bronx and later in Manhattan. When Sam was five years old, his parents separated, at which point he and his father moved to San Francisco, where he subsequently grew up, while summers and other times were spent with his mother in New York. He made his acting debut when he was ten years old, alongside his mother, and later attended J Eugene McAteer High School in a program called SOTA. While still in high school, he got his first big break when he appeared in the independent film Clownhouse (1989). The plot revolved around three escaped mental patients who dressed up as clowns and terrorized three brothers home alone--Sam played the eldest of the brothers. His next big break was supposed to have come when he was slated to star in a short-lived NBC TV-series called Dream Street (1989), but he was soon fired. After graduating from high school, Sam returned to New York for good and for two years he had private training at the William Esper Acting Studio. During this period he appeared in a variety of roles, such as the ABC Afterschool Specials (1972): Over the Limit (1990) (TV) and HBO's Lifestories: Families in Crisis (1992): Dead Drunk: The Kevin Tunell Story (Season 1 Episode 7: 15 March 1993); the head thug in Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (1990); and a guest-star turn in an Emmy Award-winning episode of Law & Order (1990), while working a string of regular day jobs and performing in plays. His performances in The Green Mile (1999) and Galaxy Quest (1999) wowed audiences and critics alike with his chameleon-like performances as a crazed killer in the former and a goofy actor in the latter. More recently, he appeared in another string of mainstream films, most notably as Eric Knox in Charlie's Angels (2000) and as Zaphod Beeblebrox in The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy (2005), while continuing to perform in smaller independent movies. After more than ten years in the business, Sam has earned his success. In 2018, he won an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor as a troubled police deputy in Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri (2017).

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Known For

Acting

Year
Title

Role

2022
The Bad Guys

as    Wolf (voice)

2022
Maraschino Ruby

as    Wolf (voice)

2020
Trolls World Tour

as    Hickory (voice)

2020
The One and Only Ivan

as    Ivan (voice)

2019
Fosse/Verdon

as    Bob Fosse

2019
Jojo Rabbit

as    Captain Klenzendorf

2019
The Best of Enemies

as    Claiborne Paul Ellis

2019
Richard Jewell

as    Watson Bryant

2018
Blue Iguana

as    Eddie

2018
Vice

as    George W. Bush

2018
Mute

as    Sam Bell

2017
2017
Woman Walks Ahead

as    Silas Groves

2016
Mr. Right

as    Mr. Right

2015
Don Verdean

as    Don Verdean

2015
Poltergeist

as    Eric Bowen

2015
Digging for Fire

as    Ray

2014
Laggies

as    Craig Hunter

2014
Better Living Through Chemistry

as    Douglas Varney

2014
Marvel One-Shot: All Hail the King

as    Justin Hammer

2014
Loitering with Intent

as    Wayne

2013
Trust Me

as    Aldo

2013
A Case of You

as    Gary

2013
A Single Shot

as    John Moon

2013
The Way Way Back

as    Owen

2012
Seven Psychopaths

as    Billy Bickle

2011
Cowboys & Aliens

as    Doc

2011
The Sitter

as    Karl