Sam Worthington

Samuel Henry John Worthington[1] (born 2 August 1976) is an Australian actor and writer. He is best known for playing Jake Sully in the Avatar film series, Marcus Wright in Terminator Salvation, and Perseus in Clash of the Titans as well as its sequel Wrath of the Titans. He then transitioned to more dramatic roles, appearing in Everest (2015), Hacksaw Ridge (2016), The Shack (2017), Manhunt: Unabomber (2017), and Fractured (2019). He also voiced the protagonist, Captain Alex Mason, in the video games Call of Duty: Black Ops (2010) and Call of Duty: Black Ops II (2012).

Sam Worthington
Worthington at the Drift Movie Media Event at Event Cinemas, Bondi Junction 2013.
Born	Samuel Henry John Worthington (1976-08-02) 2 August 1976 Godalming, Surrey, England
Nationality	Australian
Alma mater	National Institute of Dramatic Art
Occupation	Actor, writer
Years active	2000–present
Home town	Perth, Western Australia, Australia
Spouse(s)	Lara Bingle ​ ( m. 2014)
Children	2

In 2004, Worthington received Australia's highest film award for his lead role in Somersault.

Early life

Worthington was born to English parents in Godalming, Surrey, in South East England, and moved to Perth, Western Australia when he was six months old. He grew up in Warnbro, a suburb of Rockingham. His mother, Jeanne J. (née Martyn), is a housewife, and his father, Ronald W. Worthington, is a power plant employee.[2] He has a sister, Lucinda.[3][4]

He attended John Curtin College of the Arts, a school specialising in the dramatic arts, located in Fremantle, Western Australia, where he studied drama but did not graduate. When he left the college, his father gave him $400 and sent him on a one-way trip to Cairns, Queensland, telling him to "work his way home". He began working on construction and odd jobs, eventually settling in Sydney. At age 19, while working as a bricklayer, he auditioned for the National Institute of Dramatic Art (NIDA) and was accepted with a scholarship.[5]

Career

2000–2003

Worthington played a small role alongside Adam Garcia in the Aussie dance film Bootmen (2000). He played a lead role in the low budget Aussie comedy gettin’ square.

2004–2008

Worthington had a major role in Somersault (2004) and played the lead in a modern Australian retelling of Macbeth (2006). He won the AFI Award for Best Lead Actor for his role in Somersault. He was well known in Australia for his role as Howard in the acclaimed Australian TV series Love My Way, in which he played the main love interest of the female lead.

Worthington's international film career began with a series of small roles in Hollywood production The Great Raid (2005), which was filmed in Australia. He auditioned for the role of James Bond in Casino Royale but lost the role to Daniel Craig.[6] He starred in the Australian creature-feature film Rogue (2007), as a man named Neil, which gained a 100 percent fresh rating from Rotten Tomatoes.[7]

2009–2019

In Terminator Salvation, Worthington plays cyborg Marcus Wright who assists the humans despite their suspicions of him. Shot prior to the release of Terminator Salvation, the James Cameron-directed science-fiction film Avatar was Worthington's next project. In the film, he played Jake Sully, a paraplegic US Marine who, assigned to control an alien body called an avatar through a neural link, finds himself at the centre of a war between his own species and the indigenous Na'vi people of the moon Pandora. The film went on to become the highest-grossing film of all time, grossing more than $2.73 billion ($3.3 billion adjusted for inflation) in box-office receipts worldwide, before being overtaken by Avengers: Endgame.[8] In November 2010, Worthington told GQ Australia[9] that he went to audition, but wasn't told what it was for and got annoyed. So he did his part, left, forgot about it – and was called back. "I was a bit pissed off, and I think that came across," he says. "I think Jim saw a spark and liked it because that's Sully's character – a guy who doesn't like to be bullied and a guy who just wants to set things right."[10]

He provided voice work for Captain Alex Mason, the protagonist character in the video game Call of Duty: Black Ops. Some gamers criticised Worthington's inability to mask his Australian accent, as in Avatar.[11] In November 2010, The Hollywood Reporter named Worthington as one of the young male actors who are "pushing – or being pushed" into taking over Hollywood as the new "A-List".[12]

He was selected as one of the entrants to the Who's Who in Australia 2011 edition.[13]

In 2012, Worthington starred in the sequel to Clash of the Titans, called Wrath of the Titans, alongside Liam Neeson. As in the first film, Worthington played the demigod and son of Zeus, Perseus. He also reprised his role as Alex Mason in Call of Duty: Black Ops II.[14] Also in 2012, Worthington starred as Nick Cassidy in Man on a Ledge, a suspense-thriller film directed by Asger Leth.

Worthington also portrays Jim Fitzgerald in the Discovery Channel television series, Manhunt: Unabomber.[15]

In 2019, Worthington starred as Ray Monroe in the Netflix thriller film Fractured.[16]

2020 - present

In 2021, Worthington will star in the upcoming Disney animated film, Encanto alongside Ben Stiller.

Personal life

Lara Bingle and Worthington on the 2014 AACTA Awards red carpet

Worthington has said that when he was about 30, he sold most of his possessions and ended up with around $2,000 to his name. He says he bought a car with the proceeds and was living in it before he successfully auditioned for his role in the film Avatar.[17] He then found a place to live.[18]

On 18 October 2013, Worthington had confirmed rumours of a relationship with fellow Australian, model Lara Bingle.[19][20] They married on 28 December 2014 and had a son, Rocket Zot, in 2015.[21] In October 2016, Bingle and Worthington had their second child, another son, Racer.[22]

Worthington is a Christian.[23]

Arrest

On 23 February 2014, Worthington was arrested in New York City for assault, after punching a paparazzo, Sheng Li, who allegedly kicked Bingle in the shin. Video footage of the incident depicts Worthington referring to Bingle as his "wife", furthering speculation about the pair's marital status.[24] Worthington was initially released on a desk appearance ticket, while Li was arrested on charges of reckless endangerment, assault and harassment.[25]

On 26 February 2014, Worthington appeared in Manhattan Criminal Court, where he was ordered to stay away from Li for six months. The case was adjourned until 8 May 2014, with the actor to face charges of assault in the third degree, attempted assault and harassment.[26]

On 1 April 2014, Li blamed Bingle for starting the fight and called for her to be arrested.[27] Later that month, Worthington secured a conditional discharge deal on a misdemeanour assault charge, therefore avoiding any jail time, while the charges against Li were dismissed "in the interest of justice".[28] Li then filed a $3.7 million civil lawsuit against Worthington, which was settled out of court before going to trial in September 2015.[29]

Filmography

Worthington at the Tropfest 2013 in Sydney, 17 February 2013

Films

Year	Title	Role	Notes
2000	Bootmen	Mitchell Okden
2001	A Matter of Life	Our Hero	Short film
2002	Hart's War	Cpl. B.J. "Depot" Guidry
	Dirty Deeds	Darcy Ryan
2003	Gettin' Square	Barry "Wattsy" Wirth
2004	Enzo	-	Short film; Director, Writer, Music and Cinematography
	Somersault	Joe
	Thunderstruck	Ronnie
2005	The Great Raid	Pfc. Lucas
	Fink!	Able
2006	Macbeth	Lord Macbeth
2007	Rogue	Neil Kelly
2009	Terminator Salvation	Marcus Wright
	Avatar	Jake Sully
2010	Clash of the Titans	Perseus
	Last Night	Michael Reed
	Love & Distrust	Miles	Segment: "Blue Poles"
2011	The Debt	Young David Peretz
	Texas Killing Fields	Detective Mike Souder
2012	Man on a Ledge	Nick Cassidy
	Wrath of the Titans	Perseus
2013	Drift	JB
2014	Sabotage	James "Monster" Murray
	Cake	Roy Collins
	The Keeping Room	Moses
2015	Paper Planes	Jack Webber
	Kidnapping Freddy Heineken	Willem Holleeder
	Everest	Guy Cotter
2016	Hacksaw Ridge	Captain Glover
2017	The Shack	Mack Philips
	The Hunter's Prayer	Stephen Lucas
2018	The Titan	Rick Janssen
2019	Fractured	Ray Monroe
2020	Dreamland	TBD	Post-production
2021	Encanto	TBD	Voice In development
2022	Avatar 2	Jake Sully	Filming
2024	Avatar 3	Jake Sully	Filming
TBA	The Georgetown Project		Post-production
	Lansky	David Stone	Post-production

Television

Year	Title	Role	Notes
2000	JAG	Dunsmore	Episode: "Boomerang: Part 1"
	Water Rats	Phillip Champion	Episode: "Able to Leap Tall Buildings"
	Blue Heelers	Shane Donovan	Episode: "Bloodlines"
2004	Love My Way	Howard Light	10 episodes
2005	The Surgeon	Dr. Sam Dash	8 episodes
2006	Two Twisted	Gus Rogers	Episode: "Delivery Man"
2015	Deadline Gallipoli	Phillip Schuler	4 episodes; miniseries Executive Producer
2017	Manhunt: Unabomber	Jim Fitzgerald

Video games

Year	Title	Role	Notes
2010	Call of Duty: Black Ops	Alex Mason
2012	Call of Duty: Black Ops II	Alex Mason
2018	Call of Duty: Black Ops 4	Alex Mason	Specialist HQ and Blackout Character

Awards and nominations

Year	Award	Category	Title	Result
2000	AFI Award	Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role	Bootmen	Nominated
2002	FCCA Award	Best Supporting Actor – Male	Dirty Deeds	Won
2004	AFI Award	Best Actor in a Leading Role	Somersault	Won
	FCCA Award	Best Actor – Male	Somersault	Won[30]
	IF Award	Best Actor	Somersault	Won
2009	Teen Choice Awards	Choice Movie Fresh Face Male	Terminator Salvation	Nominated
	Australians in Film Breakthrough Award	Australians in Film[31]	Avatar
2010	Saturn Award	Best Actor	Avatar	Won
	Australian Film Institute International Award for Best Actor	Best Actor	Avatar	Won
	Empire Award	Best Actor	Avatar	Won
	Giffoni Award			Won
	Kid's Choice Awards	Cutest Couple (shared with Zoe Saldana)	Avatar	Nominated
	MTV Movie Awards	Best Fight (shared with Stephen Lang)	Avatar	Nominated
		Best Kiss (shared with Zoe Saldana)	Avatar	Nominated
	ShoWest Award	Male Star of the Year		Won
	Teen Choice Awards	Choice Movie: Fight (shared with Stephen Lang)	Avatar	Nominated
		Choice Movie Actor: Sci-Fi	Avatar	Won
		Choice Movie Actor: Fantasy	Clash of the Titans	Nominated

References

1. "Incident 123082579" (PDF). E! Online. Atlanta, Georgia, Police Department. 3 November 2012. Archived from the original (PDF) on 13 January 2016. Retrieved 5 November 2012.
2. "Avatar first reviews, Sam Worthington next Hollywood star in the making". The Daily Telegraph. 11 December 2009. Retrieved 12 December 2009.
3. Lipworth, Elaine (4 February 2012). "Sam Worthington on 'Man on a Ledge'". Telegraph. Retrieved 9 June 2017.
4. "Jeanne J. Worthington". MyHeritage. Retrieved 9 June 2017.
5. "Sam Worthington Interview for Terminator". Screencrave.com. 21 May 2009. Archived from the original on 8 October 2009. Retrieved 30 May 2010.
6. "Bard arse". The Sydney Morning Herald. 15 September 2006.
7. "Rogue". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved 2 November 2011.
8. "Worldwide Grosses". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved 27 June 2010.
9. "Sam Worthington". GQ. Archived from the original on 19 April 2014.
10. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 19 April 2014. Retrieved 31 October 2017.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link), GQ Australia November 2010, Sam Worthington
11. "How an Australian Man Nearly Ruined Black Ops for Me".
12. Blank, Emily; Schutte, Lauren. "Hollywood's A-List Redefined". (slide 9 of 10 in slideshow) The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 26 June 2012.
13. "Who's Who pack now boasts Siddle, Hamish and Andy and the Masterchef judges". heraldsun.com.au. 9 December 2010.
14. John Gaudiosi (13 November 2012). "'Call of Duty: Black Ops II': Treyarch's Dave Anthony on Directing Sam Worthington, Michael Keaton (Q&A)". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 6 March 2015.
15. McLennan, Cindy (28 March 2017). "Manhunt: Unabomber: Scripted Discovery Series Debuts in August". TV Series Finale.
16. N'Duka, Amanda (12 November 2018). "Sam Worthington Set As Lead In Brad Anderson-Directed Netflix Film". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved 19 October 2019.
17. "Watch The Jay Leno Show Online at Hulu". Hulu.
18. "I was living in my car before 'Avatar': Sam Worthington".
19. "Aussie actor 'smitten' with Bingle".
20. "Sam Worthington says he is smitten with new squeeze Lara Bingle".
21. Anya Leon (27 March 2015). "Sam Worthington and Lara Bingle Welcome Son Rocket Zot". People. Retrieved 13 July 2016.
22. Ellie McDonald (1 November 2016). "CONFIRMED! Lara and Sam Worthington have welcomed their second son". Woman's Day. Retrieved 23 December 2016.
23. "Actor Sam Worthington Says 'The Shack' Helped Him Understand Relationship With God (Interview)". www.christianpost.com.
24. "So are Sam Worthington and Lara Bingle really married?". News.com.au. Retrieved 27 February 2014.
25. "'Avatar' actor Sam Worthington arrested in NYC". Yahoo. Retrieved 24 February 2014.
26. "Sam Worthington ordered to stay away from photographer". Sydney Morning Herlad. Retrieved 27 February 2014.
27. "Photographer blames 'Avatar' star's girlfriend for starting fight". Reuters. 1 April 2014. Retrieved 13 July 2016.
28. Peter Mitchell (9 May 2014). "Paparazzo walks free as Sam Worthington assault case dropped". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 13 July 2016.
29. Ebony Bowden (4 September 2015). "Sam Worthington settles $5 million lawsuit with photographer over scuffle". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 13 July 2016.
30. "Urban Cinefile FCCA AWARDS 2004 WINNERS". www.urbancinefile.com.au.
31. "Australians in Film Breakthrough Awards". Australians in Film. Archived from the original on 3 July 2012.

External links

• Sam Worthington on IMDb
• ArtistDirect.com Video Interview – Clash Of the Titans