Birth nameSamuel Worthington Birth information2 August 1976, Perth, Western Australia, Australia BioBorn on August 2, 1976; Sam Worthington graduated form NIDA (Australia's National Institute of Dramatic Art) in 1998 at the age of 22. Sam received critical acclaim for his portrayal of Arthur Wellesley in his first professional role in the Belvoir Street Theatre production "Judas Kiss" (directed by Neil Armfield). He then went on to work in Australian television on such shows as Water Rats (2000) and Backburner and then on the American TV show JAG's 100th episode (Boomerang part 1). Also in 2000, Sam made his first movie appearance in the highly acclaimed Australian movie "Bootmen", about a troop of `tap dogs'; the film also starred Adam Garcia as Sam's brother. Minor roles proceeded in "Hart's War" and "Matter of Life" before Sam starred in another hailed Australian drama, 2002's "Dirty Deeds", which also starred Toni Collette and John Goodman.The following year he starred in yet another Aussie film, opposite David Wenham in "Getting Square". The director of the film, Jonathan Teplitzky originally tested actors who were up to 8 years older than the then 27 year old Worthington. Teplitzky wasn't sure Sam "could convincingly play a tough guy and also have elements of the leading man about him", but in the end Teplitzky decided Sam was "fantastic", and had "David playing the older, slightly more streetwise accomplice" proclaiming "it worked".But it wasn't until 2004 that Sam got his big break. Having made his directorial debut on the short film, "Enzo", Sam was offered the role of Joe in the unique and greatly acclaimed Australian drama, written and directed by Cate Shortland, "Somersault" opposite Abbie Cornish. "Somersault" took 7 years to make, and Shortland wanted to cast the perfect actor in the role of Joe. Shortland did much preparation for the film, arranging for a 3-week rehearsal period prior to shooting, it all paid off. The film did amazingly well, making a clean sweep of the Australian Film Institute awards in 2004 to win in all 13 film categories - the first time this has ever occurred in the award's history. It beat the previous record of eight AFI awards shared by Lantana (2001) and Newsfront (1978). Sam won the AFI for best male actor.Described as "one of Australia's most likeable young leading men" (efilmcritic.com), Sam has a strong career ahead of him. Already with 4 films lined up for 2005/6, including the Australian 'M.' in which he plays an updated version of the famous Shakespeare character, Macbeth. This is one Aussie actor to keep a look out for.

Stalking the halls of Comic-Con, we were surprised to find that the first ever shot of Sigourney Weaver in James Cameron's Avatar would be on display in a cabinet on the box of her action figure. But sure enough, here is the first look at Dr. Grace Augustine.Red-head Dr. Augustine is part of a band of humans, along with Sam Worthington's Jake Sully, who find themselves at war with the indigenous population of a planet called Pandora.Click the image above for more Avatar merchandise pictures from Comic-Con The film also stars Zoe Saldana, Giovanni Ribisi and Michelle Rodriguez and promises to be the most monstrous movie of the year when it is released on December 18.Check out more shots of all the Avatar merchandise from the Con.

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Comic-Con attendees were treated to 25 minutes of Avatar footage Thursday when writer-director James Cameron unveiled the first ever public glimpse at footage from the elusive film. It was bold, meticulous, and utterly beautiful to look at.
At the end of the panel, Cameron made a special announcement about an unprecedented "social media experiment" that they're trying in order to give international audiences a slice of the Comic-Con experience. On August 21st this year, in what they are calling "Avatar Day," as many IMAX 3D theaters as possible all over the world will screen 15 minutes of Avatar for free to anybody who shows up. On the same day, they will announce information about Avatar games and toy lines.
The footage I saw was clearly worth the hype that has surrounded this movie since day one. The 3D is, in a word, impressive. It's never intrusive and it feels very much a natural part of the scene.
Arya Ponto

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Spoilers Below – Read At Your Own Want.
Update – Avatar site is now live: http://www.avatarmovie.com
Recap – Um, damn. Damn damn. That’s all that can really be said. What we saw explained why Jake Sully (Sam Worthington) becomes a Navi and basically showed off the world he’s created and some of the action sequences. There was no mech, but there was an Aliens throwback, a fight with a hammerhead looking beast, and Jake becoming “initiated” with the Navi tribe. The Navi’s themselves look ok, but everything else is nothing but flawless. Transformers or any other effects-fest is not winning the Oscar for visuals next year. Bottom line, this is the film you want to see the rest of the year. Period.
4:17 Pm Pst – They’re taking over IMAX 3D and 3D Theaters worldwide on August 21st to see 15 minutes of Avatar for free. Avatar Day indeed.
Philip Barrett

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