A handsome heartthrob, one of Hollywood's enviable grooms, Sam Rockwell - a star hiding in the shadow of the glory of his colleagues or an underestimated talent?
Family of actors
November 5, 2014, Sam Rockwell will turn 46 years old, most of which he spent on the set. It was on this day in the autumn of 1968 that the baby Sammy was born into the family of young California actors Penny Hess and Pete Rockwell. However, the small town of Daily City, in which the family lived at that time, did not meet the high ambitions of novice talents. Therefore, when the boy was 2 years old, the Rockwells moved to New York, and then, after the next three years of marriage, they divorced. Five-year-old Sam, left in the care of his father and moved with him to San Francisco, saw his beloved mother only on vacation. However, it was she who managed to instill in the boy a love of acting and the stage. Seeing his outstanding talent from an early age, Penny decided to make him a Hollywood star at all costs. And already at the age of 10, Sam Rockwell made his debut on stage with his mother, playing the role of Humphrey Bogart in one of the comedies.
School years are wonderful
The father enrolled his son in a specialized art school in San Francisco, but the guy who was not particularly keen on his studies soon abandoned her without having received a high school diploma. Parents had to look for an alternative, and Sam still had to study, although already at Urban Pioneers. I must say, young Sam was not particularly zealous with his studies, spending most of the time at parties and running after the girls. But nature took its toll, and, as Sam Rockwell himself says now, it was this institution that aroused in him a passion for acting. Although the reputation of this school left much to be desired - the students of the dubious institution were mostly “gouging”, and it was possible to get a diploma without any problems.
Not a minute of rest
1989 was a landmark year for Sam - he got his first role in a big movie. Yes, in what! The producer of the horror film “House of Clowns,” in which he played the role of Randy, was Francis Ford Coppola himself. It is with this picture that his professional filmography begins. Sam Rockwell, having finished filming in the film and school, returns to New York, where he studied for another two years as an acting profession at William Esper Studio. He does not lose this time in vain: in parallel with filming in several television pictures, he plays a large number of theatrical roles. In 1990, the series Law and Order, which received the Emmy Award, was released, where Sam played a cameo role.
However, even such an abundance of acting could not ensure the normal existence of a person in New York, so Sam had to earn extra money (as a waiter, delivery man, and even a detective’s assistant). From the constancy of such a fate, he was saved by participating in the filming of an advertisement for Miller Ice beer, a generous fee from which allowed him to completely surrender to the acting profession.
The door to the "dream factory"
After filming in the commercial, several other not very noticeable roles followed. And the very door to the world of the film industry was the picture "Moonlight Box", which was released on blue screens in 1996. And although the project was not particularly successful at the box office, critics noted in chorus what a talented actor Sam Rockwell is!
And just a year later, a newly made Hollywood figure appeared on the same platform with Misha Barton on the set of the film “Meadow Dogs”. The lawnmower man, who was very successfully played by Sam, brought him the first significant award in his life - the prize for the Best Actor Montreal and California film festivals.
But in 1999, Sam Rockwell broke all the stereotypes that prevailed among the directors, who offered him only the role of the “right” heroes. Having brilliantly played the pedophile maniac in The Green Mile, he not only showed his versatility, but also got acquainted with the movie legend Tom Hanks.
Hollywood Recognition
The next successful work of Sam was the role in George Clooney's film “Confessions of a Dangerous Person.” An unusually strong cast (Clooney himself, Drew Barrymore, Julia Roberts, Rutger Hauer) and a good script brought the film two whole awards of the National Council of Film Critics of the United States. Rockwell himself was awarded the Berlin Film Festival Prize for Best Actor in the Year.
Further - like clockwork. The main roles in the hit Charlie's Angels, Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, Magnificent Scam, Sentence, Midsummer Night's Dream, Snow Angels, Iron Man bring Sam excellent fees and acquaintance with the giants of the film industry: Nicholas Cage, Michelle Pfeiffer, Cameron Diaz, Robert De Niro, Hilary Swank.
Well, it’s worth recognizing that the most surprising thing is the acting filmography. Sam Rockwell tries himself in diverse roles and, apparently, he succeeds. Already in 2015, another horror movie by Gili Kanan called “Poltergeist” should be released, where Sam will again play a leading role. Look forward to!
Sam's life position
As Rockwell himself says in his interviews, which, incidentally, he hates, he has not yet moved into the category of so-called famous celebrities. Filming for him is a kind of fun. Although the actor prefers theatrical play in life, it is much more interesting and dynamic. Sam does not consider his film career to be work, he just does not dare to call her that. What the guy earned his bread in the early years in New York - that was real work for him, and that was real hell. Therefore, if suddenly laziness covers the actor, he quickly remembers his young years and inspiration comes by itself.
If you believe Sam’s words, he’s not going to play zombie films, like almost all American actors do. Although horror films on the zombie apocalypse theme, in essence, attract him, he can take part in such a film only if he is sure of the future "greatness" of this picture. Rockwell will not star in any mediocre “zombies”. There you go!
Interesting life
- Sam considers himself a little crazy and constantly feels excluded from the events around him.
- At the age of 10, the baby Sammy already smoked weed, talked to the lush-breasted beauties who were constantly spinning at acting parties (where his mother, in fact, brought him).
- Dark-haired handsome Sam Rockwell, whose height is 175 cm, has always been popular with the beautiful half of humanity, but, nevertheless, has never been married.
- He prefers to take part in films to which trailers do not release (it is not clear why).
- Sam lived in his "concrete jungle" all his conscious life, but he was most often invited to the roles of provincials and village men.
- He pretty well performs polka.
- He is unable to radically change his appearance (for example, to grow a mustache) in order to get a role in the movie.
- Sam considers himself a talented professional, but not like Al Pacino or Marlon Brando. To these two, in his opinion, the Lord God himself touched.
- She does not like to be naked. I did it only once, and then for fun.
- He is addicted to shooting from military weapons, although he himself knows little about it.
Especially nothing personal
Flaunting personal life is clearly not what Rockwell will do. Sam, whose photo is usually decorated with only one girl (Leslie Bibb), as mentioned above, was never married. And, as he himself admitted, this does not threaten him, because he definitely does not want children. They are for him only a burden with which to go all his life. Agree, few girls agree with such an ultimatum. Nevertheless, Sam Rockwell and his girlfriend Leslie Bibb have been dating for several years, appearing together at parties and ceremonies. Perhaps, and let's hope, this friendship will grow into something more serious.