Samuel Leroy Jackson, popular called Samuel L. Jackson or Mr Cool is an American actor and producer.
Gatekeepers News reports that Jackson is one of the most widely recognised actors of his generation, as the films he has appeared have collectively grossed over $27 billion worldwide, making him the second highest-grossing actor of all time.
Early Life
Samuel Leroy Jackson was born in on December 21, 1948, in Washington, D.C. He is the only child of Elizabeth Harriett (née Montgomery) and Roy Henry Jackson.
According to DNA tests, Jackson partially descends from the Benga people of Gabon, and he became a naturalized citizen of Gabon in 2019.
Early Career
Jackson initially majored in marine biology at Morehouse College before switching to architecture. He later settled on drama after taking a public speaking class and appearing in a version of The Threepenny Opera. Jackson began acting on the stage, including Home and A Soldier’s Play, which was the inspiration for the 1984 film, A Soldier’s Story.
Jackson’s early film roles include Coming to America (1988), Goodfellas (1990), Patriot Games (1992), Juice (1992), True Romance (1993), and Jurassic Park (1993), Menace II Society (1993), and Fresh (1994).
Jackson’s breakout role was in Quentin Tarantino’s Pulp Fiction (1994) which earned him a BAFTA Award win and a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor.
However, his collaborations with Spike Lee led to greater prominence with films such as School Daze (1988), Do the Right Thing (1989), Mo’ Better Blues (1990), Jungle Fever (1991), Oldboy (2013), and Chi-Raq (2015).
In 2002, Jackson gave his consent for Marvel Comics to design their “Ultimate” version of the character Nick Fury after his likeness. In February 2009, Jackson signed on to a nine-picture deal with Marvel Studios which would see him appear as the character in Iron Man 2, Thor, Captain America: The First Avenger, and The Avengers.
In 2022, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences gave him an Academy Honorary Award in 2022 as “A cultural icon whose dynamic work has resonated across genres and generations and audiences worldwide”.
He is set to produce a live-action film adaptation of Afro Samurai, and will play the role of Sho’nuff in a remake of The Last Dragon.
Personal Life
In 1980, Jackson married actress and producer LaTanya Richardson, whom he met while attending Morehouse College. In 1982, the couple welcomed their daughter Zoe.
In 2009, they started their own charity to help support education.
Net Worth
Jackson’s net worth is $250 million, with a worldwide box office total from his films (not including cameos) of more than $16.7 billion.
