Sam Waterston

Biography

Samuel Atkinson "Sam" Waterston (born November 15, 1940) is an American actor and occasional producer and director. Among other roles, he is noted for his Academy Award-nominated portrayal of Sydney Schanberg in 1984's The Killing Fields, and his Golden Globe- and Screen Actors Guild Award-winning portrayal of Jack McCoy on the NBC television series Law & Order. He has been nominated for multiple Golden Globe-, Screen Actors Guild-, BAFTA- and Emmy Awards, having starred in over eighty film and television productions during his forty-five year career. Allmovie has characterised Waterston as having "cultivated a loyal following with his quietly charismatic, unfailingly solid performances." Description above from the Wikipedia article Sam Waterston, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.

Known For

Law & Order: Special Victims Unit

Law & Order

Family Guy

The Late Show with Stephen Colbert

Saturday Night Live

Jeopardy!

The View

The View

All Movies (91)

• Carousel2026 · as Sam
• The Six Triple Eight2024 · as Franklin Delano Roosevelt
• Merchant Ivory2024 · as Self
• Rain Falls from Earth: Surviving Cambodia's Darkest Hour2024 · as Self (voice)
• A Case for Love2024 · as Self
• Kurt Vonnegut: Unstuck in Time2021 · as Self (voice)
• The Man in the Woods2020 · as Headmaster Waldorf
• Gatsby in Connecticut: The Untold Story2020 · as Self
• On the Basis of Sex2018 · as Erwin Griswold
• The Mayo Clinic2018 · as Charlie Mayo (voice)
• Jane Fonda in Five Acts2018 · as Self - (archive footage)
• Monkey Business: The Adventures of Curious George's Creators2017 · as Narrator (voice)
• Dateline: Saigon2017 · as Narrator (voice)
• Miss Sloane2016 · as George Dupont
• Anesthesia2016 · as Prof. Walter Zarrow
• And It Was Good2015 · as Judge Alexander Baas / Doctor / Gravedigger
• Dean Smith2015 · as Narrator
• Please Be Normal2015 · as Dad
• The Rally to Restore Sanity and/or Fear2010 · as Self
• The Best of The Tony Awards: The Plays2006 · as John Honeyman (segment "A Walk in the Woods")
• Hammer and Cycle2004 · as Self - Narrator
• The Commission2003 · as J. Lee Rankin
• Le Divorce2003 · as Chester Walker
• The Matthew Shepard Story2002 · as Dennis Shepard
• A House Divided2000 · as David Dickson
• The Unfinished Journey1999 · as Narrator (voice)
• In Bad Taste1999 · as Self
• Moment of Impact: Stories of the Pulitzer Prize Photographs1999 · as Self / Host / Narrator
• Here Am I, Send Me: The Story of Jonathan Daniels1999 · as Narrator
• Exiled1998 · as Jack McCoy
• Miracle at Midnight1998 · as Dr. Karl Koster
• Shadow Conspiracy1997 · as The President
• The Proprietor1996 · as Harry Bancroft
• Nixon1995 · as Richard Helms
• The Journey of August King1995 · as Mooney Wright
• Amazing Stories: The Movie IV1995 · as Jordan Manmouth (archive footage)
• Tennessee Williams: Orpheus of the American Stage1994 · as Tom Wingfield (archive footage)
• The Enemy Within1994 · as President William Foster
• Serial Mom1994 · as Eugene Sutphin
• David's Mother1994 · as John Nils
• Assault at West Point: The Court-Martial of Johnson Whittaker1994 · as Daniel Chamberlain
• I'll Fly Away: Then and Now1993 · as Forrest Bedford
• Earth and the American Dream1992 · as Reader (voice)
• Mindwalk1991 · as Jack Edwards
• The Man in the Moon1991 · as Matthew Trant
• Night of 100 Stars III1990 · as Self
• A Captive in the Land1990 · as Royce
• Crimes and Misdemeanors1989 · as Ben
• Welcome Home1989 · as Woody
• Lantern Hill1989 · as Andrew Stuart
• Terrorist on Trial: The United States vs. Salim Ajami1988 · as Jim Delmore
• A Walk in the Woods1988 · as John Honeyman
• September1987 · as Peter
• Devil's Paradise1987 · as Jones
• Swimming to Cambodia1987 · as Additional Cast from 'The Killing Fields' (archive footage)
• The Room Upstairs1987 · as Travis Coles
• Flagrant désir1986 · as Inspecteur Gerry Morrison
• Just Between Friends1986 · as Harry Crandall
• The Fifth Missile1986 · as Capt. Allard Renslow
• Hannah and Her Sisters1986 · as David (uncredited)
• Warning Sign1985 · as Cal Morse
• Love Lives On1985 · as Bernie
• Finnegan Begin Again1985 · as Paul Broadbent
• The Killing Fields1984 · as Sydney Schanberg
• The Boy Who Loved Trolls1984 · as Ofoeti
• Dempsey1983 · as Doc Kearns
• In Defense of Kids1983 · as Paul Wilcox
• Games Mother Never Taught You1982 · as David Bentells
• Heaven's Gate1980 · as Frank Canton
• Friendly Fire1980 · as C.D.B. Bryan
• Hopscotch1980 · as Jack Cutter
• Sweet William1980 · as William McClusky
• Eagle's Wing1979 · as White Bull
• Interiors1978 · as Mike
• Capricorn One1977 · as Lt. Col. Peter Willis
• Sweet Revenge1976 · as Le Clerq
• Journey into Fear1975 · as Mr. Graham
• Rancho Deluxe1975 · as Cecil Colson
• Reflections of Murder1974 · as Michael Elliott
• The Great Gatsby1974 · as Nick Carraway
• The Glass Menagerie1973 · as Tom Wingfield
• Much Ado About Nothing1973 · as Benedick
• Mahoney's Last Stand1972 · as Felix
• Savages1972 · as James, the Limping Man
• Who Killed Mary Whats'ername?1971 · as Alex Monte
• Cover Me Babe1970 · as Cameraman
• Three1969 · as Taylor
• Generation1969 · as Desmond
• Fitzwilly1967 · as Oliver
• The Plastic Dome of Norma Jean1966 · as Andy
• Serial Mom: Surreal Moments— · as Self

All TV Shows (36)

• Liv Ullmann: A Road Less Travelled2023 · as Self
• The Dropout2022 · as George Shultz
• Godless2017 · as Marshall John Cook
• The Late Show with Stephen Colbert2015 · as Self - Guest
• Grace and Frankie2015 · as Sol Bergstein
• Jo2013
• The Newsroom2012 · as Charlie Skinner
• Prohibition2011 · as Reader (voice)
• Masters of Science Fiction2007
• The Colbert Report2005
• The Colbert Report2005 · as Self (uncredited)
• Law & Order: Trial by Jury2005 · as Jack McCoy
• Law & Order: Special Victims Unit1999 · as Jack McCoy
• Family Guy1999 · as Bruce Kaplan (voice)
• Lewis & Clark - The Journey of the Corps of Discovery1997 · as Thomas Jefferson (voice)
• The View1997 · as Self
• The View1997 · as Self - Guest
• Thomas Jefferson1997 · as Thomas Jefferson (voice)
• Time Life's Lost Civilizations1995 · as Narrator
• Homicide: Life on the Street1993 · as Jack McCoy
• HBO First Look1992
• I'll Fly Away1991 · as Forrest Bedford
• The Civil War1990 · as Abraham Lincoln (voice)
• Law & Order1990 · as Jack McCoy
• The Nightmare Years1989 · as Bill Shirer
• Tales from the Crypt1989 · as G.G. Devoe (segment "As Ye Sow")
• Lincoln1988 · as Abraham Lincoln
• Amazing Stories1985 · as Jordan Manmouth
• Jeopardy!1984 · as Self
• Q.E.D.1982
• Oppenheimer1980 · as Robert Oppenheimer
• Saturday Night Live1975 · as Self (uncredited)
• People's Choice Awards1975 · as Self - Presenter
• Film '721971 · as Self
• Dr. Kildare1961 · as Mark
• Hallmark Hall of Fame1951 · as Travis Coles