Everything about Samuel L Jackson totally explained
Samuel Leroy Jackson (born
December 21,
1948) is an
American Academy Award-nominated and
BAFTA-winning
actor. Jackson came to fame in the early 1990s, after a series of well-reviewed performances, and has since become a major film star and cultural icon, having appeared in a large number of high-grossing films.
Jackson is married to
Latanya Richardson and has a daughter. He is a huge sports fan and an avid golfer. Jackson has won multiple awards for his film performances and has been portrayed in various forms of media including films, television series, and lyrics. Jackson has starred in over sixty films throughout his career and is currently working on five films that will debut between 2008 and 2009. Jackson's most recent role was a cameo in
Iron Man released on
May 2,
2008.
Jackson has noted that he chooses roles that are "exciting to watch" and have an "interesting character inside of a story", and that in his roles he wanted to "do things [hehasn't] done, things he saw as a kid and wanted to do and now has an opportunity to do".
Biography
Early life
Jackson was born in
Washington, D.C . He grew up as an only child in
Chattanooga,
Tennessee with his mother, Elizabeth Jackson (
née Montgomery), who was a factory worker and later a supplies buyer for a mental institution, and his maternal grandparents and extended family. His father lived away from the family in
Kansas City, Missouri and later died from
alcoholism; Jackson had only met his father twice during his life. Jackson attended
Riverside High (Now Chattanooga School for the Arts and Sciences), a segregated school where, between the third and twelfth grades, he played the
French horn and
trumpet in the school
orchestra.
Civil Rights Movement involvement
After the 1968 assassination of
Martin Luther King, Jr., Jackson attended the
funeral in Atlanta as one of the ushers. Jackson then flew to Memphis to join an equal rights protest march. In a
Parade interview Jackson revealed: "I was angry about the assassination, but I wasn’t shocked by it. I knew that change was going to take something different—not sit-ins, not peaceful coexistence." In 1969, Jackson and several other students held members of the Morehouse College board of trustees (including a nearby
Martin Luther King, Sr.) hostage on the campus, demanding reform in the school's curriculum and governance. The college eventually agreed to change its ways, but Jackson was suspended for two years for his actions (although he'd later return to the college to earn his
Bachelor of Arts in Drama in 1972). Jackson decided to remain in Atlanta, where he met with
Stokely Carmichael,
H. Rap Brown and others active in the
Black Power movement. after taking a public speaking class and appearing in a version of
The Threepenny Opera. Jackson began acting in multiple plays including
Home and
A Soldier's Play. At this point in his early career, Jackson developed an alcohol and cocaine addiction, resulting in him being unable to proceed with the two plays as they continued to Broadway (actors
Charles S. Dutton and
Anthony Chisholm took his place). After this role, Jackson became involved with multiple film requests, including
Strictly Business,
Juice,
Patriot Games, and then moving on to two comedies:
National Lampoon's Loaded Weapon 1 and
Amos & Andrew. After rapid involvement in these films, Jackson worked with director
Steven Spielberg in
Jurassic Park. He played a major role in
Quentin Tarantino's
Pulp Fiction. The film was perhaps Jackson's most notable role, mainly for his monologues and one-liners along with co-star
John Travolta.
With a succession of unsuccessful films such as
Kiss of Death,
The Great White Hype, and
Losing Isaiah, Jackson began to receive poor reviews from critics who had praised his performance in
Pulp Fiction. This ended with his involvement in the two successful box office films
A Time To Kill, where he depicted a father who is put on trial for killing two men who raped his daughter, and
Die Hard with a Vengeance, co-starring along side
Bruce Willis in the third installment of the
Die Hard series. For
A Time to Kill, Jackson earned a NAACP Image for Best Supporting Actor in a Motion Picture.
Quickly becoming a box office star, Jackson continued with three starring roles in 1997. In
187 he played a teacher, dedicated to educating students in a
Los Angeles high school but with a terrible secret. He received an Independent Spirit award for Best First Feature
2000s
On
June 13,
2000, Jackson was honored with a star on the
Hollywood Walk of Fame which can be found at 7018 Hollywood Blvd. He began the next decade in his film career as a Marine colonel put on trial in
Rules of Engagement, co-starred with
Bruce Willis for a third time in the supernatural thriller
Unbreakable, and starred in the
2000 remake of the 1971 film
Shaft. Jackson's sole film in 2001 was
The Caveman's Valentine, where he plays a homeless musician in a murder thriller. The film was directed by Kasi Lemmons, who previously worked with Jackson in
Eve's Bayou. In 2002, he played a recovering alcoholic attempting to keep custody of his kids while dealing with a mishap with
Ben Affleck's character in
Changing Lanes. Jackson then acted as a
NSA agent alongside
Vin Diesel in
xXx and a drug dealer wearing a kilt in
Formula 51. In 2003, Jackson portrayed another character in a military role, working with
John Travolta again in
Basic and then as a police sergeant alongside
Colin Farrell in the television show remake
S.W.A.T. In 2004, Jackson played a mentor to
Ashley Judd in the thriller
Twisted, and lent his voice to the computer-animated film
The Incredibles as the superhero Frozone. Jackson once again appeared in a Tarantino film, by cameoing in
Kill Bill, Vol. 2.
In 2005, he began with the sports drama,
Coach Carter, where he played a coach (based on the actual coach
Ken Carter) dedicated to teaching his players that education is more important than basketball. Jackson also returned for two sequels:, this time commanding
Ice Cube, and the final prequel George Lucas installment, . His last film for 2005 was
The Man alongside comedian
Eugene Levy. On
November 4,
2005, he was presented with the
Hawaii International Film Festival Achievement in Acting Award.
On
January 30,
2006, Jackson was honored with a hand and footprint ceremony at
Grauman's Chinese Theater; he's the seventh
African American and 191st actor to be recognized in this manner. He next starred opposite of actress
Julianne Moore in the box office bomb
Freedomland, where he depicted a police detective attempting to help a mother find her abducted child, while quelling a city racial riot. Jackson's second film of the year,
Snakes on a Plane, gained cult interest months before the film was released based on its title and cast. Jackson's decision to star in the film was solely based on the title. To build anticipation for the film, he also cameoed in the 2006
music video Snakes on a Plane (Bring It) by
Cobra Starship. On
December 2, Jackson won the German
Bambi Award for International Film, based on his many film contributions. On
December 15,
2006, Jackson starred in
Home of the Brave, as a doctor returning home from the
Iraq War, resorting to alcohol to cope with his feelings after the war.
On
January 30,
2007, Jackson was featured as narrator in
Bob Saget's direct-to-DVD Farce of the Penguins. The film was a spoof of the box office success
March of the Penguins (which was narrated by
Morgan Freeman). His most recent films, released in 2007, were
Black Snake Moan, where he portrays a blues player who imprisons a young woman (
Christina Ricci) addicted to sex, and the horror film
1408, which casts him alongside
John Cusack in an adaptation of the
Stephen King short story.
Throughout Jackson's career, he's appeared in many films alongside mainstream
rappers. These include
Tupac Shakur (
Juice),
Queen Latifah (
Juice),
Method Man (
One Eight Seven),
LL Cool J (
Deep Blue Sea/
S.W.A.T.),
Busta Rhymes (
Shaft),
Eve (
xXx),
Ice Cube (
xXx: State of the Union),
Xzibit (
xXx: State of the Union),
David Banner (
Black Snake Moan), and
50 Cent (
Home of the Brave). Additionally, Jackson has appeared in four films with actor
Bruce Willis (National Lampoon's
Loaded Weapon 1,
Pulp Fiction,
Die Hard with a Vengeance, and
Unbreakable) and the actors were slated to work together in
Black Water Transit before both dropped out.
Upcoming films
Jackson has five upcoming film projects between 2008 and 2009, starting with three 2008 films where he'll first join
Cleaner, about an obsessive crime scene cleaner who uncovers a murder linked to his family's past. Additionally in 2008, he also is signed on to be the villain, the Octopus, in the film
The Spirit and will portray a racist cop in
Lakeview Terrace. He will also star along with
Bernie Mac in
Soul Men. In 2009 he'll provide his voice for the animated science fiction film, . Jackson's small appearance at the post-credit scene of
Iron Man has given him the role of
Nick Fury for
Iron Man 2, April 30 2010. Also he's been confirmed as
Nick Fury in
The Avengers movie that's set to be released in July of 2011. He will also be reprising his role of
Mace Windu in the CGI film, .
Box office performance
In motion pictures that feature him as a leading actor or supporting co-star, his films have grossed a total of $2.31 to $4.22 billion at the North American box office, placing him as the seventh (as strictly lead) or the second highest-grossing movie star (counting supporting roles) of all time; behind only that of
voice actor,
Frank Welker. In August 2007, Jackson stated in an interview that director
George Lucas wanted Jackson to play a small role in
Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull so that he could keep his box office position over
Harrison Ford.
Other work
Jackson gave his consent for
Marvel Comics to design their "
Ultimate" version of the character
Nick Fury after his likeness. Jackson had a cameo as the character in the 2008
Iron Man film. Jackson has also had a song named after him, entitled
Sammy L. Jackson by
Hot Action Cop. The song was featured on the soundtrack for the 2003 film
S.W.A.T, in which Jackson appeared.
Jackson has been parodied multiple times in various television shows and films. He was parodied twice on
Chappelle's Show where he was played by comedian
Dave Chappelle in sketches involving
Mace Windu and a fake commercial peddling
"Samuel Jackson" beer (a parody of
Samuel Adams). He has also been spoofed in the film, where he was portrayed as a villainous member of the
Film Actors Guild, and the
2007 film
Epic Movie, poking fun at his role in
Snakes on a Plane.
Jackson also guest-starred as himself in an episode of the
BBC/
HBO sitcom Extras, voiced the main
antagonist,, of, the lead role in a current
anime series,
Afro Samurai, and has a recurring part as the voice of "Gin Rummy" in several episodes of the animated series
The Boondocks. In one episode, he paid tribute to his
Pulp Fiction character, Jules Winnfield, by reenacting the "What?" scene from the film. He also appeared in children's television series "
Viva Pinata" in 2007 as Paulie Preztail.
Jackson also provided the voice of
God for a
New Testament audio book version of the
Bible entitled
The Bible Experience, which was released in November 2006. He was given the lead role because producers felt his deep, authoritative voice was perfect for the role.
Jackson is also a sought after host. Thus far, he's hosted the
MTV Movie Awards (1998), the
ESPYs (1999, 2001, 2002), and the
Spike TV Video Game Awards (2005, 2006, 2007).
Personal life
Jackson married actress
Latanya Richardson in 1980, whom he met while attending
Morehouse College. He also became a keen
Liverpool F.C. fan after filming the movie
The 51st State in
Liverpool, England. Jackson enjoys playing
golf, a game he's been reported to have become very proficient at. Jackson has also stated in an interview that he's a clause in his film contracts that allows him to play golf twice a week.
Jackson has revealed in an interview that he sees every one of his movies in theaters with paying customers claiming that "Even during my theater years, I wished I could watch the plays I was in--while I was in them! I dig watching myself work." He also enjoys collecting the action figures of the characters he portrays in his films including Jules Winnfield, Shaft, Mace Windu, and Frozone.
Jackson is
bald in real life, but enjoys wearing unusual wigs in his films. For the film
Black Snake Moan, he was allowed to choose the hairstyle he wanted for his character.
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Television work
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