Richard Sammel is a renowned artist with an international reputation, effortlessly fluent in English, German, French, Italian, and Spanish. With a remarkable career spanning over four decades, he has appeared in approximately forty films and sixty television productions, shot on location in various countries including Sweden, Italy, Portugal, Slovakia, England, the Balkans, Canada, South Africa, and the United States.
Throughout his illustrious career, Sammel has had the privilege of working with esteemed directors such as Quentin Tarantino, Luc Besson, Martin Campbell, Bertrand Tavernier, Claude Lelouche, Jean-Paul Rappeneau, Roberto Begnini, Dario Argento, McG, and Michel Hazanavicius. He has also acted, danced, and directed for the stage in theaters across Europe, Russia, and Canada.
The prolific actor has recently completed "A Day Like a Week," a supernatural thriller in which he stars alongside Armand Assante, directed by Kader Ayd. Additionally, Sammel will return for the seventh season of the popular French TV series "The French Village," in which he has held a leading role since its inception. He also stars as 'Thomas Eichhorst' in the hit FX series "The Strain," directed by Guillermo Del Toro and Carlton Cuse.
Sammel's professional acting debut occurred in 1981 on stage in Hildesheim, Germany. From 1983, he worked in France, where he made a breakthrough in 1987 with an acclaimed performance in "Catch" by the Company Nelson Dumont. Beginning in 1989, he collaborated with theater director Giorgio Barberio Corsetti in Rome, where he met Susan Strasberg, who assisted him in securing his film debut, the lead role in "Il Piacere Delle Carni," directed by Barbara Barni. In 1993, Sammel relocated to Paris and landed the lead role in the musical film adaptation of the Brecht-Eisler opera "The Lindberghs Flight."
Sammel's indelible performance in Quentin Tarantino's "Inglourious Basterds" in 2009 earned him international recognition. In 2012, he won "Best Actor" at the Syracuse International Film Festival for his performance in Ruggero Dipaola's "Apartment in Athens."
Throughout his illustrious career, Sammel has accumulated a wide range of film credits, including "Les Miserable du XX Siècle" for director Claude Lelouche; "Life is Beautiful" for director Roberto Begnini; the original "Taxi" written by Luc Besson; "Casino Royale" for director Martin Campbell; "Beauty and the Beast" opposite Vincent Cassel and Léa Seydoux for director Christophe Gans; and most recently, McG's "Three Days to Kill" opposite Kevin Costner.
Born in Heidelberg, Germany, Richard Sammel studied music, particularly the violin, before pursuing his true passion, acting. He went on to study music and acting in Hildesheim, Germany; acting and directing in Aix en Provence; and acting with both Susan Strasberg and Francesca de Sapio in Rome.
