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IMDbPro

Sam Trammell

  • Actor
  • Writer
  • Producer
IMDbProStarmeterSee rank
Sam Trammell
Follows a family seeking shelter in their neighbor's bunker, when the American economy is in collapse, and the danger inside is greater than outside.
Play trailer2:17
American Refugee (2021)
38 Videos
99+ Photos
Tony Award-nominee Sam Trammell may be most widely recognized as "Sam Merlotte" in HBO's AFI award-winning series True Blood (2008), filmed in Trammell's native Louisiana. The Alan Ball-created fantasy drama set ratings records for the network over its seven year run. He co-starred in the feature film Nancy Drew and the Hidden Staircase (2019). He starred opposite Chrissy Metz in Breakthrough (2019). He appeared in Netflix's dramatic series The Order (2019) and starred in Sony Television's Reckoning (2019). He appeared on Homeland (2011) as Vice-President Benjamin Hayes.

In 2014, Trammell co-starred in The Fault in Our Stars (2014), based on the best-selling novel, with Shailene Woodley and Laura Dern. He co-wrote, co-produced and starred in the indie film All Mistakes Buried (2015). His additional film credits include I Am Wrath (2016) with John Travolta, Imperium (2016) opposite Toni Collette, 3 Generations (2015), with Naomi Watts, Susan Sarandon and Elle Fanning. He completed production on the indie films Hospitality (2018) opposite Emmanuelle Chriqui,and La Gran Promesa (2017) by Mexican filmmaker Jorge Ramírez Suárez. He was a series regular on Maximum Bob (1998), Trinity (1998) and Going to California (2001).

A theater veteran, he earned the Clarence Derwent and Theater World Awards, as well as a Tony nomination, for his role in Eugene O'Neill's "Ah, Wilderness!" at Lincoln Center. His extensive on and off Broadway, as well as regional credits, include "Kit Marlowe" at The Public Theater, "Dealer's Choice" at the Manhattan Theater Club, "Ancestral Voices" at Lincoln Center, "My Night With Reg" with The New Group, "Rope" with The Drama Dept, "If Memory Serves" at the Promenade Theater, and "Our Town" at Williamstown.

A native of Louisiana and West Virginia, Trammell graduated from Brown University and the Sorbonne with a Bachelor of Arts in Semiotics. He currently resides in Los Angeles with his family. He is an advocate for clean oceans and beaches and works with the non-profit organization Oceana.
BornJanuary 29, 1969
  • More at IMDbPro
    • Contact info
    • Agent info
    • Resume
BornJanuary 29, 1969
IMDbProStarmeterSee rank
  • Unlock contact info on IMDbPro
  • Awards
    • 5 wins & 2 nominations

Photos159

Sam Trammell at an event for The 69th Primetime Emmy Awards (2017)
Sam Trammell in True Blood (2008)
Laura Dern, Sam Trammell, and Shailene Woodley at an event for The Fault in Our Stars (2014)
Sam Trammell at an event for God's Pocket (2014)
Sam Trammell at an event for Whip It (2009)
Sam Trammell at an event for The 67th Primetime Emmy Awards (2015)
Queen Latifah and Sam Trammell in The Tiger Rising (2022)
Mandy Moore and Sam Trammell in This Is Us (2016)
Sam Trammell in This Is Us (2016)
Mandy Moore and Sam Trammell in This Is Us (2016)
Mandy Moore and Sam Trammell in This Is Us (2016)
Sam Trammell in White Rabbit (2013)

Known for

Anna Paquin, Ryan Kwanten, Stephen Moyer, Sam Trammell, Nelsan Ellis, and Rutina Wesley in True Blood (2008)
True Blood
7.9
TV Series
  • Sam Merlotte
Shailene Woodley and Ansel Elgort in The Fault in Our Stars (2014)
The Fault in Our Stars
7.7
  • Michael
  • 2014
Claire Danes in Homeland (2011)
Homeland
8.3
TV Series
  • President Ben Hayes
  • Vice President Ben Hayes
Sam Trammell and Aden Young in Reckoning (2019)
Reckoning
6.6
TV Mini Series
  • Leo Doyle

Credits

Edit
IMDbPro

Actor

  • Big George Foreman: The Miraculous Story of the Once and Future Heavyweight Champion of the World
    • Completed
    • 2023
  • Days When the Rains Came
    • Harrison
    • Post-production
  • 72 Hours
    • Sebastian James
    • Post-production
  • It's Time
    • Coach Billy Brewer
    • Completed
  • Pursued
    • Jack
    • Completed
  • Kristin Bauer van Straten and Deborah Ann Woll in Truest Blood (2022)
    Truest Blood
    • Podcast Series
    • 2022
  • Dennis Quaid, Queen Latifah, Madalen Mills, Schicka, and Christian Convery in The Tiger Rising (2022)
    The Tiger Rising
    • Robert Horton Sr.
    • 2022
  • Erika Alexander, Sam Trammell, and Derek Luke in American Refugee (2021)
    American Refugee
    • Winter
    • TV Movie
    • 2021
  • Sam Trammell, Ting Wu, James Yi, Anastasia Lin, and Tzu-Chiang Wang in Unsilenced (2021)
    Unsilenced
    • Daniel Davis
    • 2021
  • Uly Schlesinger, Haley Sanchez, Chase Sui Wonders, Chloe East, Justice Smith, Nathanya Alexander, Lukita Maxwell, and Sydney Mae Diaz in Generation (2021)
    Generation
    • Mark
    • TV Series
    • 2021
  • Sarah Grey and Jake Manley in The Order (2019)
    The Order
    • Eric Clarke
    • TV Series
    • 2019–2020
  • Sam Trammell and Aden Young in Reckoning (2019)
    Reckoning
    • Leo Doyle
    • TV Mini Series
    • 2019–2020
  • Claire Danes in Homeland (2011)
    Homeland
    • President Ben Hayes
    • Vice President Ben Hayes
    • TV Series
    • 2020
  • Tom Arnold, Brian Dennehy, Larry Clarke, Mo Gaffney, J.K. Simmons, and Julie Ann Emery in 3 Days with Dad (2019)
    3 Days with Dad
    • Dr. Rabinawitz
    • 2019
  • Topher Grace, Dennis Haysbert, Josh Lucas, Mike Colter, Chrissy Metz, and Marcel Ruiz in Breakthrough (2019)
    Breakthrough
    • Dr. Kent Sutterer
    • 2019
  • Sophia Lillis in Nancy Drew and the Hidden Staircase (2019)
    Nancy Drew and the Hidden Staircase
    • Carson
    • 2019
  • I See You (2019)
    I See You
    • Todd (uncredited)
    • 2019
  • Emmanuelle Chriqui, Howard Barish, Jim Beaver, JR Bourne, Sam Trammell, David Guglielmo, Ali Helnwein, Christina Eunji Kim, Nick Chakwin, Eli Arenson, Alex Ivany, and Alexandra McVicker in Hospitality (2018)
    Hospitality
    • Cam
    • 2018
  • Berlin Station (2016)
    Berlin Station
    • Morgan
    • TV Series
    • 2017
  • Michelle Forbes in Say You Will (2017)
    Say You Will
    • Dean Hall
    • 2017

Writer

  • Sam Trammell and Vanessa Ferlito in All Mistakes Buried (2015)
    All Mistakes Buried
    • story
    • 2015

Producer

  • Sam Trammell and Vanessa Ferlito in All Mistakes Buried (2015)
    All Mistakes Buried
    • executive producer
    • 2015

Videos38

True Blood Season 4: Sam
Clip 1:19
True Blood Season 4: Sam
Official Trailer
Trailer 2:17
Official Trailer
Official Trailer
Trailer 2:27
Official Trailer
Season 1 Official Trailer
Trailer 2:01
Season 1 Official Trailer
Official Trailer
Trailer 2:12
Official Trailer
Season 7
Trailer 1:36
Season 7
Extended Trailer
Trailer 2:58
Extended Trailer
Clip Tease
Trailer 0:35
Clip Tease
Trailer #1
Trailer 2:29
Trailer #1
Comic-Con Trailer
Trailer 1:43
Comic-Con Trailer
Sookie and Ben
Trailer 0:55
Sookie and Ben
Eric and Pam
Trailer 0:31
Eric and Pam

Personal details

Edit
  • Height
    • 5′ 10″ (1.78 m)
  • Born
    • January 29, 1969
    • New Orleans, Louisiana, USA
  • Relatives
      Elizabeth Trammell(Sibling)
  • Other works
    Played "Richard" in "Ah, Wilderness!", a play by Eugene O'Neill (Vivian Beaumont Theater, Lincoln Center, New York City, New York, USA).

Did you know

Edit
  • Trivia
    Sam is the only cast member on True Blood (2008) who is actually from Louisiana.
  • Quotes
    When you get into Louisiana, it really is like a different country in a lot of ways. The plants you see are a little different, like the weeping willows and the cypress trees that come up out of the bayou. And it's steamy hot. There's something about a humid, dusky evening that's kind of sexy. In the country, it feels like you don't have control over nature anymore - nature is in control of you. It's like the naturalists at the turn of the century, that idea that nature is so much bigger than you and man is a small thing. You walk out to the bayou and you're overshadowed by these strange plants and the heat and the mists, and I think that lends itself to supernatural creatures because there are things that can hide in the shadows. There's also the tradition of voodoo, the Haitian magic arts, in New Orleans. And because New Orleans is below sea level, when they bury people in New Orleans, it's mostly above ground. So you have this idea that the spirits are more accessible and can access you more easily because they're not even buried.

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