Sam Elliott | |
|---|---|
_(cropped).jpg) Elliott at the2018 Toronto International Film Festival | |
| Born | Samuel Pack Elliott (1944-08-09)August 9, 1944 (age 80) Sacramento, California, U.S. |
| Education | |
| Occupation | Actor |
| Years active | 1966–present |
| Works | Filmography |
| Spouse | |
| Children | 1 |
| Awards | Full list |
| Military career | |
| Allegiance |  United States |
| Service |  United States Air Force |
| Unit | 146th Airlift Wing |
Samuel Pack Elliott (born August 9, 1944) is an American actor. With a career spanning over five decades offilm and television, he is recognized for his deepsonorous voice. Elliott has receivedvarious accolades, including aScreen Actors Guild Award and aNational Board of Review Award, in addition to nominations for anAcademy Award, twoPrimetime Emmy Awards and twoGolden Globe Awards.
Elliott began his career with minor roles on screen, making his film debut in the westernThe Way West (1967). After his first leading film role in the horrorFrogs (1972), Elliott gained wider attention with hisbreakthrough role in the dramaLifeguard (1976). He achieved commercial success with his role in the biopicMask (1985) and received Golden Globe nominations for starring inLouis L'Amour's adaptation ofConagher (1991) and the miniseriesBuffalo Girls (1995), the latter of which also earned him his firstPrimetime Emmy Award nomination. Throughout the 1990s, he portrayedJohn Buford in the historical dramaGettysburg (1993),Virgil Earp in the westernTombstone (1993),Sgt. Buckey O'Neill in the epic adventure war miniseriesRough Riders (1997), and the Stranger in the crime comedyThe Big Lebowski (1998).
In ensuing decades, Elliott established himself as acharacter actor, with supporting roles in a number of films, such as the dramaWe Were Soldiers (2002) and superhero filmsHulk (2003) andGhost Rider (2007). In the 2010s, he had guest starring roles in theFX neo-western seriesJustified (2015) and theNetflix comedy seriesGrace and Frankie (2016) and subsequently starred in theNetflix sitcomThe Ranch (2016–2020). He went on to headline the comedy drama filmThe Hero (2017) and star oppositeLady Gaga andBradley Cooper in Cooper's2018 adaptation ofA Star Is Born, for which he received critical acclaim and a nomination for theAcademy Award for Best Supporting Actor. His role in theParamount+ western miniseries1883 (2021–2022) earned him further praise and aSAG Award.
Samuel Pack Elliott was born August 9, 1944, at theSutter Memorial Hospital inSacramento, California,[1][2] the son of Glynn Mamie (née Sparks), a Texas state diving champion in high school and later a physical-training instructor and high-school teacher, and Henry Nelson Elliott, who worked as a predator-control specialist for theDepartment of the Interior.[3][4] His parents were originally fromEl Paso, Texas, and Elliott has an ancestor who served as a surgeon at theBattle of San Jacinto.[5][6][7] He moved from California toPortland, Oregon, with his family when he was 13 years old.[8][9]
Elliott spent his teenage years living innortheast Portland,[8] and graduated fromDavid Douglas High School in 1962.[9] After graduating from high school, Elliott attended college at theUniversity of Oregon as an English and psychology major[10] for two terms before dropping out.[3] He returned toPortland and attendedClark College in nearbyVancouver, Washington, where he completed a two-year program and was cast as Big Jule in a stage production ofGuys and Dolls.[8] The VancouverColumbian newspaper suggested that Elliott should be a professional actor. After his graduation from Clark in 1965, Elliott re-enrolled at the University of Oregon and pledged at theSigma Alpha Epsilon fraternity.[3] He dropped out again after his father died of aheart attack.[3]
In the late 1960s, Elliott relocated toLos Angeles to pursue a career in acting, which his father had dissuaded him from doing, instead urging him to obtain a college degree.[3] "He gave me that proverbial line, 'You've got a snowball's chance in hell of having a career in (Hollywood),'" Elliott recalled. "He was a realist, my dad. He was a hard worker. He had a work ethic that I've fashioned mine after, and I thank him for that every day."[3] Elliott worked in construction while studying acting and served in theCalifornia Air National Guard's146th Airlift Wing (the Hollywood Guard) atVan Nuys Airport before the unit moved to Channel Islands Air National Guard Station.[11]
Elliott began his career as acharacter actor; his appearance, voice, and bearing were well-suited toWesterns. In 1969, he earned his first television credit as Dan Kenyon inJudd for the Defense in the episode "The Crystal Maze".
That same year he appeared in the showLancer in the episode "Death Bait", playing Renslo.[12] He went on to appear in two additional episodes of the series between 1970 and 1971.[12] One of his early film roles was as acard player who watches as the Sundance Kid (Robert Redford) demonstrates his shooting ability in the opening scene ofButch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (1969).[13] In the 1970–1971 television season, Elliott starred as Doug Robert for several episodes in the hit seriesMission: Impossible.[13] Beginning in 1972, Elliott appeared as the cowboy Walker in a series of Falstaff Beer commercials.[14][15][16] In 1975, Elliott was cast in a lead role asCharles Wood in the television filmI Will Fight No More Forever, a dramatization of Chief Joseph's resistance to the U.S. government's forcible removal of his Nez Perce Indian tribe to a reservation in Idaho.[17]
From 1976 to 1977, he played the lead character Sam Damon in the miniseriesOnce an Eagle, an adaptation of theAnton Myrernovel of the same name, oppositeAmy Irving,Kim Hunter,Clu Gulager, andMelanie Griffith.[18] He also had a starring role as Rick Carlson in the summer sleeper hitLifeguard (1976), which marked his feature film breakthrough.[19] He portrayed a lifeguard in Southern California who reevaluates his life choices after being invited to a reunion.[20]Variety deemed the film "unsatisfying," adding: "Elliott, who has some beefcake value, projects a character who is mostly a passive reactor rather than a person in sure command of his fate."[20]
Elliott played Tom Keating in the miniseriesAspen in 1977. He later played an abusive wife-killer in the miniseriesMurder in Texas (1981) oppositeFarrah Fawcett and his future wifeKatharine Ross,[21] and starred withCheryl Ladd inA Death in California (1985).[22] In 1979, he co-starred withTom Selleck in the popular miniseries adaptation ofLouis L'Amour'sThe Sacketts. Elliott and Selleck were a team again in 1982 inThe Shadow Riders, another Louis L'Amour adaption.[23]
Elliott had a supporting role inMask (1985) oppositeCher. He played a hard-nosed, rough-around-the-edges but ultimately sympathetic father figure in the Christmas filmPrancer (1989). He has made guest appearances on shows includingFelony Squad,Gunsmoke,Lancer, andHawaii Five-O, and has been featured in many TV movies, includingBuffalo Girls (1995), in which he playedWild Bill Hickok.
In 1986, he starred in the TV movieGone to Texas, based on a biography ofSam Houston. The role allowed him to play Houston as both fighter and a man who grew into a skillful political leader; the film depicted his disgrace as governor of Tennessee, his return to hisCherokee Nation friends, and his pivotal role in the liberation of Texas from Mexico in 1836. Elliott appeared withPatrick Swayze inRoad House (1989) as Wade Garrett, a bouncer, mentor and friend of Swayze's character. In 1991, Elliott and his wife Katharine Ross starred in the adaptation of theLouis L'Amour novelConagher (1991).[24]
He portrayedBrigadier GeneralJohn Buford in the 1993 historical dramaGettysburg, and the same year playedVirgil Earp in the WesternTombstone (1993).[25] Elliott played The Stranger, a character narrating the story ofThe Big Lebowski (1998).[25] He co-starred inWe Were Soldiers (2002), an adaptation ofWe Were Soldiers Once… And Young, in which he portrayedCommand Sergeant MajorBasil L. Plumley. He played GeneralThaddeus Ross in the 2003 action filmHulk.
In 2005, he appeared inThank You for Smoking as a formerMarlboro Man advertisement cowboy who has developed lung cancer. In 2006 he provided the voice for the character Ben the Cow in the animated filmBarnyard.
In 2007, Elliott joined the comic book adaptationGhost Rider. He played the characterCarter Slade. The same year, Elliott appeared inThe Golden Compass as the character Lee Scoresby. The film is based onNorthern Lights inPhilip Pullman's trilogyHis Dark Materials. Also appearing in the film areNicole Kidman,Christopher Lee, andDaniel Craig.
In 2009, Elliott had a small role inUp In The Air in which he portrayed the chief pilot of American Airlines. He appeared three times onParks and Recreation as Ron Dunn, the Eagleton equivalent ofRon Swanson; Dunn is a hippie, compared to Swanson's staunchsurvivalist andLibertarian personality. He then provided the voice of Buster (a.k.a. Chupadogra) in the animated filmMarmaduke (2010). He had a supporting role in the thriller filmThe Company You Keep and played a college football coach in 2014's drama filmDraft Day.
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In 2015, Elliott appeared oppositeLily Tomlin as a former love interest of a grandmother (Tomlin) attempting to help her pregnant granddaughter inPaul Weitz's comedyGrandma.[26] In the same year he appeared in the romanceI'll See You in My Dreams, and had a role in the independent filmDigging for Fire.[27] In 2015, he won theCritics' Choice Television Award for best guest performer in a drama for his role in theFX Network's showJustified.[27]
In 2015, Elliott began appearing as a series regular in theNetflix seriesThe Ranch, oppositeAshton Kutcher andDanny Masterson.[28] He also had a recurring role as Phil Millstein in the second season ofGrace and Frankie. In film, he supplied the voice of Butch in the animated filmThe Good Dinosaur (2015).[29]
In 2017, Elliott starred inThe Hero, as Lee Hayden, an aging Western icon with a golden voice, whose best performances are decades behind him.[30] His work in the film received much critical acclaim with Joey Magidson, writing forAwardsCircuit, proclaiming that "Elliott is perfect here.The Hero encapsulates everything you love about him into one package."[31] Later that year, Elliott starred inThe Man Who Killed Hitler and Then the Bigfoot.[32]
The following year, Elliott costarred inA Star Is Born (2018), in which he plays Bobby Maine, the elder half-brother ofBradley Cooper's lead character.[33] Elliott received critical acclaim for his performance, winning theNational Board of Review Award for Best Supporting Actor.[34] He was also nominated for theScreen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Supporting Role, as well as theAcademy Award for Best Supporting Actor, his career-first nomination.[35] Commenting on his Academy Award nomination, Elliott declared: "I think the thing off the top of my head might be, 'It's about fucking time!'"[36]
In 2022, Elliott starred as Shea Brennan on theParamount+ miniseries1883, a prequel to theYellowstone series. The show's story involves Brennan as he leads a group of immigrants fromFort Worth, Texas into the untamed western areas of the plains, and its connection to the Dutton family and its migration to Montana. The show's first season was aired from late 2021 until February 2022. For his performance he won theScreen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Miniseries or Television Movie.
In 1998, Elliott was named the grand marshal of theCalgary Stampede parade and rode in theprocession before an estimated 300,000 spectators.[37]
Elliott has performed voice-over narration for various commercials. He has lent his voice to campaigns forDodge,IBM,Kinney Drugs,Union Pacific, and most notably theAmerican Beef Council, succeedingRobert Mitchum in the latter. Since late 2007 Elliott has done voice-overs forCoors beer, bringing his deep, rich voice and "western" appeal to the brand brewed in Colorado. In 2010,Ram Trucks hired Elliott to do the voice-over for their Ram Heavy Duty truck commercial; he has been voicing their commercials since. Starting in 2008, he has voicedSmokey Bear, and shares the mascot's birth date (August 9, 1944). He also narrated thePittsburgh Steelers andGreen Bay Packers team introductions toSuper Bowl XLV, played atCowboys Stadium inArlington, Texas at the conclusion of the2010 NFL season forNFL on Fox. On September 9, 2020, it was announced that Elliott would begin recurring onFamily Guy as the new mayor ofQuahog, the lateMayor Adam West's cousin, Wild Wild West.[38] Also in 2020, he voicedJoe Biden's "Go From There"campaign ad.[39] He did another ad forThe Lincoln Project, in support ofKamala Harris'2024 presidential campaign, where he said "It's time to be a man and vote for a woman."
Elliott married actressKatharine Ross in 1984, becoming her fifth husband.[40] They have a daughter, Cleo,[41] who is a musician inMalibu, California.[42] Ross and Elliott live on a seaside ranch in Malibu, which they purchased in the 1970s.[3] Elliott also maintains a property in theWillamette Valley in Oregon.[3] Following his mother's death in 2011 at the age of 96, he also took ownership of his childhood home in northeast Portland.[3]
Elliott has receiveda number of awards and nominations forhis numerous screen performances. These include aScreen Actors Guild Award, aNational Board of Review Award and nominations for anAcademy Award, twoPrimetime Emmy Awards and twoGolden Globe Awards.
After gaining early recognitions inwestern films in the late 1960s and continuing into the 1970s and 1980s, Elliott received twoGolden Globe Award nominations—forBest Actor in a Miniseries or Television Film andSupporting Actor in a Series, Miniseries or Television Film—for his respective roles in the television filmConagher (1991) and miniseriesBuffalo Girls (1995), the latter of which also earned him a nomination for thePrimetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Miniseries or Special. Hisvoice-over performance inRobot Chicken (2012–2020) earned him a nomination for thePrimetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Voice-Over Performance. Elliott's guest role inJustified (2015) earned him aCritics' Choice Television Award for Best Guest Performer in a Drama Series.
As a member of theensemble cast ofUp in the Air (2009), Elliott was nominated for theCritics' Choice Movie Award for Best Acting Ensemble. For starring oppositeLady Gaga andBradley Cooper inCooper's 2018 adaptation ofA Star Is Born, Elliott won theNational Board of Review Award and received nominations for theAACTA International,Academy Award,Critics' Choice andSAG Award for Best Supporting Actor, as well as another nomination for theSAG Award for Outstanding Cast. His role in theParamount+ miniseries1883 (2021–2022) won him theSAG Award for Outstanding Actor in a Miniseries or Movie.
