Maybe when I started to get hooked on True Blood during first season, Sam Merlotte was not one of my fave characters. In every fiction we find similar topics: the good looking girl, the gallant hero, the sexy villain, and the predictable good guy that never gets the girl. Then, in Sam Merlotte’s case add an archetype of goodness and candour starting to act like suspect number one for the town serial killer. And you think, “Wow, here we go again. Who are they trying to kid? I can tell from many miles away that this is the sick serial killer of Bon Temps.”

And just when you start to realize that this time, the writers have really done a number on you, and nothing is like it seems, it is then when Sam Merlotte really starts to shine. Because most of us are Sam, fighting for a dream that never comes true and, yeah, hiding away from others, in more ways than one, our true nature.

Sam Merlotte’s trip through season 2 makes him an essential character in the show. After seeing him run for his life throughout the 12 episodes, to stand stoically in courageous situations that would sink most of us in misery, suffer Daphne’s  betrayal and watch him saving his town  like a true hero in the thrilling finale, you can’t help but feeling a bit Team Sam and start to wonder why he never gets the girl. Recently dear Nesters, we had the chance to chat with Sam Trammell. Come into the bar, have a drink and sit down with us.

TB-News: You were born in New Orleans and grew up in Charleston, West Virginia. What accent do you actually use on True Blood? We have heard your interviews and you seem to have lost any signs of the South.

ST: I have lost my accent, I moved around so much as a kid. Before the show started, I made a few trips south to Louisiana and recorded people’s voices, just talking. That’s what I use.

TB-News: At what point did you realize you wanted to be an actor?

ST: I realized my second semester, senior year of college. I had never acted before then at all. A friend suggested I audition for a play. I did, was cast, and then did two more plays before the end of the year. At that point I decided to move to New York for better or for worse. You look back and go “that was kind of nuts”.

TB-News: We’ve read that you spent some time in France, at the Paris University. In what way did this time influence your life? What is your takeaway from living there?

ST: Well, I still cross my sevens and speak passable French after a few glasses of wine. It was an amazing year. I went specifically to study semiology and french philosophy and actually had the opportunity to take courses with Jacques Derrida and Julia Kristeva who are pretty much semiotic rock stars. I was lucky to be there and it was ultimately a pretty romantic year . . . walking the streets of Paris, smoking Gauloise, having little cups of coffee, pretending to be French, taking myself way too seriously.

TB-News: Your acting career began in theatre, with roles in a trio of stage performances – as a compulsive gambler in DEALER’S CHOICE, a quirky Yorkshire painter in MY NIGHT WITH REG, and a Tony-nominated performance in the lead role of the Broadway revival of Eugene O’Neill’s comedy AH WILDERNESS in 1998. What are your memories from that period? Do you miss performing live in front of the audience?

ST: That was a GREAT year. I had spent more then a few years doing regional theatre in places like Delaware, Hartford, Williamstown. You sort of have to pay your dues outside New York before they let you join the in-town club. Dealer’s Choice was my first official off-Broadway play–at The Manhattan Theatre Club. Half the cast was English and we’d actually play poker in the dressing room during the play. My character in My Night With Reg was really fun. I sort of modeled him after a Scottish character in Mike Leigh’s movie Naked. I basically stole that guy’s accent. Of course Ah Wilderness was the culmination. Richard was one of the best parts I’ve ever gotten to do. And working at Lincoln Center was about the most exciting thing ever–right by the Metropolitan Opera. So much history. I do miss theatre. It’s a fun life–performing every night, going out afterwards with friends who came to see you. It’s a real community.

TB-News: We recently spotted you as being Dexter’s second victim. Dexter scares the beejesus out of us, was it fun being killed by Dexter or frightening on some level?

ST: It was definitely FUN to be killed by Dexter. Come on. Actually, I spent 4 hours wrapped in saran wrap. My arms started to go numb.

TB-News: We have seen how this season has portrayed a stronger Sam. You’ve got to carry all the weight of Maryann’s menace through the whole season. You were drawn to very difficult situations from the first episode and didn’t rest for the entire season. What have you done to the writers to be treated like that? Are they going to give you a break in Season 3 or do you think the writers have a perverse joy of putting your character in harm’s way?

ST: The writers definitely enjoy abusing Sam Merlotte. No doubt. And this year . . . well, so far maybe not as bad as last, but emotionally it’s a very tough one for Sam–dealing with family.

TB-News: Although the audience is quite used to the male cast being nude, you always do it in the weirdest situations: it’s very entertaining to see Sam running naked through the woods or wearing an apron while extinguishing fires. How bizarre and fun are those scenes to play?

ST: Agreed. I do end up in the strangest places naked. One feels so insignificant without clothes and walls and a roof surrounding you. The thing about that scene with the apron–I couldn’t wear any shoes because you could see my feet. Walking around the parking lot like that was so painful. It’s full of rocks. I was just trying not to wince. Season 1, when Andy and Terry saw me running outside by the lake, I had on these tan colored “soft shoe” jazz shoes because there were snakes and spiders and alligators and large ant hills that I had to hop over. Slightly humiliating, the sock and jazz shoe combo. Plus, in an effort to have a closed set–for my privacy–they sent the crew to craft service, which happened to be right in my line of flight. They were standing around eating tuna fish sandwiches as I came barreling toward them.  It was pretty embarrassing for all.

TB-News: Looks like Sam is getting tired of being toyed with by Sookie and has decided to put an end to his almost almost masochist veneration to her. Do you think Sookie is attracted to Sam or is he like the old brother she never had? Sam could be a plausible choice for Sookie if she ever wants to have an almost normal life with someone that can grow up with, get old, have children… Do you see Sam Merlotte being the final weapon for putting the famous love triangle upside down?

ST: You know . . . does Sookie like Sam? I think deep down Sam likes to believe she does. We came really close late in season 1 before Bill barged in on us. I think we’ll be apart for a while and maybe hook up again a few seasons down the line. It’s a very slow burning iron in the fire.

TB-News: Sam is really unlucky with relationships, A toy in Sookie’s hands, blocked from Tara’s feelings and betrayed by Daphne. Do you see him trusting in a woman again?

ST: Not for a while. The first two seasons of our show took place in less than one month. Think about it . . . pretty tough month for Sam. Especially the Daphne betrayal. She was like him. A shapeshifter. The first person he really opened up to, and someone with pretty sage advice about accepting yourself, etc. And then she just leads him to his (almost) demise.. It’s going to be tough for Sam to trust women again. Yes.

TB-News: Have we walked completely away from Tara-Sam storyline? Do you see a chance for them in the future?

ST: There’s always a chance. I don’t know what the writers are thinking, but we never really went fully down that road.

TB-News: Being that Sam is a shapeshifter, why do you think it is so hard for him to accept the other natured, like vampires?

ST: Well, Sam’s a fairly opened minded guy who hires just about anyone. I think he’s had specific encounters with Vampires before arriving in Bon Temps, and I think they weren’t so good. He already has this bias against them right there in episode 1 season 1. One of the fun things about season 3 is that we’re going to have a few flashbacks to Sam’s previous life which shed light on how he survived, how he got money, etc.

TB-News: It looks like ingesting a vampire’s blood results in wet dreams about the blood donor. Will Bill’s blood cause horny dreams for Sam? Do you see Sam accepting Bill now after they  teamed up against Mary-Ann?

ST: Regarding the first question, I probably shouldn’t say anything . . . accept that yes, you have come to a logical conclusion. To your second question, also yes, I think Sam has bonded with Bill to a certain extent. They hatched a plan and saw it through–though it was a little painful for Sam. I think it will bring them closer, perhaps make them less adversarial.

TB-News: When you were on DJ Lance (VH1’s “Free Radio”)did you know it was all a joke? I haven’t laughed so hard in a while.

ST: Yes, yes, yes! They came to me and asked if I’d be on it–sent me clips of the show. I thought he was really funny. I love improv. It took me about 20 seconds to say yes.

TB-News: You’ve been working pretty hard during the off season. What’s your perfect vacation?

ST: I love to surf and I love to ski. So, a large mountain right next to a beach would be perfect.

TB-News:  Whatever happened to the apron you wore in season 2? You know there’s a lot of women that would sell their soul for it.

ST: Ha . . . I have no idea. I should get that shouldn’t I?

TB-News:  We have read that you play bass and cello. Have you ever been in a band? What kind of music do you listen to?

ST: Oh yeah . . . I was in many bands when I was a kid. I think I was 13 years old when my friend Jon Lim and I started playing together. We enlisted a drummer friend of ours down the street and covered Jimmy Hendrix, Led Zepplin, U2, The Violent Femmes, The Clash. I was in a few more in high school. One was a Rush cover band if you can believe that. I was also playing the cello in a chamber group at the time. In College I was in two different bands and we were writing our own music by then. One was kind of Talking Heads inspired and the other was completely different–funk and African rhythm with like three drummers. And this was all before I ever acted at all. In New York I started playing more acoustic guitar and got into Mississippi John Hurt and that kind of piedmont style blues. I love him. Lately I’ve been playing classical piano–which all started when I heard Bach’s Goldberg Variations for the first time. I learned the aria and then decided I’d start taking lessons. As for what I listen to now–so many different genres. I just made a celebrity playlist for iTunes. Check it out. I think it’s under “The Cast of True Blood”.

TB-News: Season 2 ended with Sam craving for his real roots and his identity. We are going to see that plotline explored in Season 3. Are Sam’s roots the only trouble he will defeat or will the invasion of the werewolves have him equally occupied?

ST: I actually don’t know at this point . . . but I’m sure I won’t get off so easy as to just have family trouble–as sick as it is. You know how they like to torment me.

TB-News: Who or what would you like to shapeshift into if Sam Trammell had the same ability as Sam Merlotte?

ST: I’d shift into President Obama on one of his days off.

TB-News: We’ve heard some different accounts on how Sam could turn into the bull. We’d like to hear it from the horse’s, er dog’s mouth. If Sam needs a live animal as reference to shift, when did Sam ever see the bull before?

ST: That’s a great question, and one I’ve gotten before. During the scene with Bill on the porch, after Maryanne dies, I said to him something to the effect that he’d better get that Bull back to its owners, but it was cut out for one reason or another. So to answer your question, yes, Sam must be in the presence of an animal to imprint on it. Once he’s done this, he can leave the animal and then shapeshift into it a little later on. In the case of the season 2 finale, Bill acquired a bull which I then imprinted on.

TB-News:  OK, this has been bothering us: In season 1 episode 1, Sam ran out immediately after Sookie (when she ran to confront the Rattrays). Sookie saved Bill all by herself; what in the world was Sam doing?

ST: I shifted into a dog to watch over her. I chose not to intervene with the Rattrays (or just got there too late), but Sookie really didn’t need my help anyway did she? However, I did make my presence known right afterwards, licking Sookie’s face. Check out Bill’s reaction. He’s not so happy to see me.

TB-News: Are you a “cyber-guy?” Do you ever lurk around the boards to see what’s being said about the show and especially about your character?

ST: You know, I really don’t. I mean I check out things like Google News to see what critics are saying sometimes just to get a general sense of how things are going, but I try not to dig too deep. I feel like it might be a little distracting for me.

Sam will be participating in the 24 Hour Charity Surfathon on Saturday, June 19th to 12 noon Sunday, June 20th to benefit benefit the Surfrider Foundation, Heal the Bay and Inside the Outdoors. One surfer will receive the “SURF 24 Surfer of the Year” trophy. We’re rooting for Sam Trammell!

Posted in Exclusive Interviews, Sam Trammell