Samuel L. Jackson usually played bad guys and drug addicts before becoming an action hero, as the character Mitch Henessey, in The Long Kiss Goodnight and in Die Hard: With a Vengeance. From character player to leading man. His performance in Pulp Fiction gave him an Oscar nomination for his character Jules Winnfield. He was active in the black student movement. In the seventies he joined the Negro Ensemble Company (together with Morgan Freeman). In the eighties he became well known by three movies made by Spike Lee - Do the Right Thing, Mo' Better Blues and Jungle Fever. He received a Silver Berlin Bear for his part in the movie Jackie Brown as Ordell Robbi.


No Good Deed (2002): $6,000,000
Unbreakable (2000): $7,000,000
Shaft (2000): $10,000,000
White Sands (1992): $75,000

Daughter - Zoè Jackson (b. 1982). One of Jackson's jobs as a struggling actor in New York was as a doorman at the popular Manhattan Plaza subsidized apts, home to hundreds of actors and artists, including Giancarlo Esposito, who co-starred with Jackson in Amos & Andrew (1993). Was an admitted drug user until he completed drug rehab two weeks before playing a drug addict in Jungle Fever (1991). Graduated from Morehouse College in Atlanta, Georgia in 1972. Daughter Zoe attends Vassar College. [January 2002] Worked as a camera stand-in for Bill Cosby during the filming of "The Cosby Show" (1984). In 2003, he spoke out against rappers turned actors, saying that as a classically trained thespian it was not his job to lend credibility to rappers by appearing in movies with them. But in reality, he has worked with more rappers than most actors in Hollywood, eleven times as of this writing: Juice (1992) (Tupac Shakur and Queen Latifah), Menace II Society (1993) (MC Eiht), One Eight Seven (1997)(Method Man), Deep Blue Sea (1999) (LL Cool J), Shaft (2000) (Busta Rhymes), S.W.A.T. (2003) (Eve and LL Cool J), xXx: State of the Union (2005) (Ice Cube and Xzibit), Black Snake Moan (2006) (David Banner) and Home of the Brave (2006) (50 Cent). The commencement speaker at his daughter's graduation from Vassar College (May 2004). Was the first choice for "Fallon" in Judgment Night (1993). One of the late bloomers of Hollywood, he was already 46 years old when Pulp Fiction (1994) premiered and has acted in an average of 3-4 films a year since. Hosted the 1998 MTV Movie Awards (1998) (TV). His performance as "Jules Winnfield" in Pulp Fiction (1994) is ranked #41 on Premiere Magazine's 100 Greatest Performances of All Time (2006). Member of the jury at the Cannes Film Festival in 2006. To date (2006), his films have grossed more money at the box office than the work of any other actor in cinematic history. Before super-stardom, he played a very minor role in Goodfellas (1990), starring Robert De Niro. After super-stardom, he co-starred in Jackie Brown (1997), this time with Robert De Niro playing a supporting role. Was member of the dramatic jury at the Sundance Film Festival in 1995. Gave his consent for Marvel Comics to design their "Ultimate" version of the character Nick Fury after his likeness. He later went on to play Nick Fury in Iron Man (2008). He participated in Model United Nations during his years in school. Has the rare distinction of having played characters that have been eaten by both a shark and a dinosaur. Like Christopher Walken, he makes films for the pleasure he gets out of acting, regardless of how the film turns out. Beverly Hills neighbors include, Denzel Washington, Eddie Murphy, Sylvester Stallone, Rod Stewart, Britney Spears, Mariah Carey, Prince, David Beckham and Victoria Beckham, etc.