Sam Trammell (pictured) planned to become a theoretical physicist, but was forced to lower his sights while studying at Brown University after realising he was not a genius.

He certainly never imagined himself an actor, let alone one who plays a shape-shifter on a hit HBO show about vampires. The series is True Blood, created by Alan Ball based on the novels of Charlaine Harris, and Trammell is enjoying the unexpected development.

“I wanted to stop thinking,” he says of his career switch.

“I wink when I say that. You have to be smart to be a good actor. But acting took me out of my head and back into my body.”

He admits that early in his career, he had a condescending attitude toward television. He would not have considered auditioning for the small screen. But he now thinks TV writing – especially for cable – is far superior to most film writing, calling our current era a golden age for television.

His featured role on True Blood, now in its third season, is a career turning-point. Appearing in Eugene O’Neill’s Ah, Wilderness! with New York’s Lincoln Center Theater was pretty good too, he admits. After all, it earned him a Tony nomination.

But his current gig has a huge weekly audience that crosses demographic lines.

“It’s a totally original show, a character drama set in a fantastical world. Usually genre dramas focus on genre, but Ball is a genius and he writes about character. He is wired into the Zeitgeist and bridges genres. The show is campy, funny, serious, sexy, bloody, and it’s a gothic romance. And Alan casts really well. With the exception of Anna Paquin, the cast is largely an eclectic group of unknowns, which makes it easier for the audience to buy into this world.”

For Trammell, the challenges of the show are twofold: the nuanced complexity of the writing and mastering a Louisiana accent. He is, curiously enough, a New Orleans native and grew up all over the South. Nonetheless, he says, he hasn’t spoken with a Southern accent in 25 years: “It’s not new to me, but I have to go back to it and put it on and then have to keep it up.”

Trammell kicked off his career in New York, where he bought a copy of Back Stage and hit the ground running, attending as many open calls as he could. He also dropped off headshots and resumés in person at casting offices and agencies around town, freelanced with a couple of agents,and got signed after screen-testing with Al Pacino for Scent of a Woman.

Regional theatre productions and indie films followed.

“I took whatever came along,” he says. “These were low-budget films, but really good experience, and I got better each time.”

He made his Off-Broadway debut playing an out-of-control gambler in Patrick Marber’s Dealer’s Choice and then played a gay man in Kevin Elyot’s My Night With Reg.

“New York is a club,” Trammell says. “You have to earn your way to do theatre in New York, unless you do TV,” he says with a laugh. “I auditioned for Lincoln Center for years before I got Ah, Wilderness!”

Trammell decided to try his luck in Los Angeles seven years ago and relocated to the West Coast.

“LA helped my career,” he says. “LA is a one-horse town. It’s all about the TV and movie business. That’s good because it keeps you focused. It’s bad because there’s no outside energy coming in. In New York, there is more stimulation. It’s a whole different vibe. There’s a street life. Also, there’s more respect for theatre. In LA, theatre is generally not on anyone’s radar, and in LA there is no humidity, and initially that feels fake.”

Climate challenges notwithstanding, Trammell rolled up a number of TV credits. After Ball saw his audition tape for True Blood, he arranged for Trammell to test for the network executives.

“These tests are very stressful for everyone,” the actor says. “It’s basically testing whether the actor can handle the pressure. Before you go in, you have to sign a contract that says you’ll be committed for five years. You learn your salary and deal points. Reading and signing legal documents before an audition is very heavy.

“Then you go in and there are 20 to 25 executives sitting in big swivel leather chairs. Everyone is nervous. Nobody likes it. And it’s up to the actor not only to kill, but also to make everyone feel okay. You do your best to keep your cool. For True Blood, I read with the casting director, and I felt it went fine.”

“Fine” is an understatement. Within four hours, Trammell heard that he’d got the role (usually it takes several days to get a response).

“I was in my car and I literally screamed,” he recalls.

He is fascinated by the show’s appeal. Vampires are in vogue today, not unlike superheroes are in the film world, he says. But he is not convinced that the escapist phenomenon is only a response to hard economic times. “Perhaps fantasy is just the antidote to the 24-hour news show,” he says.

Either way, Trammell is hopeful True Blood will lead to high-quality movie roles. In the future he’d also like to try his hand at directing, and he wants to return to the stage.

“I’d love to act in Chekhov and Ibsen,” he says. – Reuters

5th Annual Global Event Honoring The Year’s Best In The Sci-Fi, Fantasy, Horror And Comic Book Genres Tapes Saturday, October 16 At The Greek Theater In Los Angeles

“SCREAM 2010” Nominees Chosen By Advisory Board Of Hollywood And Genre Leaders Including Tim Burton, John Carpenter, Wes Craven, Neil Gaiman,
Damon Lindelof, Eli Roth, Quentin Tarantino, Joss Whedon,
And Many More

Voting Begins Today Only At Scream.Spike.com

New York, NY, September 1, 2010 – Summer science fiction blockbuster “Inception” leads the way with nominations in 14 categories for Spike TV’s fifth annual “SCREAM.” Taping on Saturday, October 16 at The Greek Theater in Los Angeles, CA, “SCREAM” is the first and only global event of its kind to honor the luminaries in the sci-fi, fantasy, horror and comic book genres, and the actors, creators, icons and pioneers who have influenced and shaped the industry over the past year.

This year’s show will also continue the tradition of featuring exclusive World Premieres from some of the most anticipated movies of 2011. The two-hour extravaganza will premiere on Spike TV on Tuesday, October 19 (9:00–11:00 PM, ET/PT). Presenters and musical performers will be announced shortly.

“SCREAM nominees comprise the top four grossing films of 2010, totaling a US box office of over 1 billion dollars among them, and that doesn’t even include 2009’s Avatar, the most successful film in history,” said Casey Patterson, executive producer of “SCREAM 2010” and senior vice president of event production, talent development and studio relations for Spike TV. “This October, the fans, whose reverence for these genres makes them the commercial successes that they are, will once again have their night on Spike dedicated to honoring their heroes.”

Directed by Christopher Nolan, “Inception” nabbed 15 nominations in 14 categories, one for every year the critically hailed project was in development, including nods for “The Ultimate Scream,” “Best Ensemble,” and “Fight Scene of the Year.” “Kick-Ass” was nominated in 13 categories for a total of 17 nominations, while Tony Stark’s adventures in “Iron Man 2” garnered 13 nominations. HBO’s “True Blood” had the most nominations of any television series with 10.

source

Source: HBO

Is Sam going “bad boy” on us?! It’s difficult to tell by this preview, but it sure looks like he’s going to be kicking butt and taking names.

Check out the preview for “True Blood” (Season 3, Episode 10 – “I Smell a Rat”).

Go Sam! Looks like he’s finally had enough of being Mr. Nice Guy and having it come back and kick him in the teeth!

Here are the Sam scenes from last night’s episode of “True Blood,” Season 3, Episode 9 (“Everything Is Broken”).

Enjoy this video clip of Sam’s scenes from this week.