Sam Huntington: Career, Roles, and Life Today

Introduction

If the name Sam Huntington sounds familiar but you can’t quite place him, that’s a pretty common reaction. He’s one of those actors who’s been steadily working since childhood, showing up in a wide range of projects — a Syfy werewolf drama, a Superman movie, a Clint Eastwood film about a real-life plane crash — without ever becoming a household name attached to just one role. This article covers who he is, how his career developed, and what he’s been doing more recently.

Direct Answer

Sam Huntington is an American actor born April 1, 1982, in Peterborough, New Hampshire. He’s best known for playing Josh Levison, a werewolf, on the Syfy series Being Human (2011–2014), and Jimmy Olsen in the film Superman Returns (2006). He began acting as a child and has built a long career spanning film and television, with recent roles including A Man on the Inside (2025) and Bride Hard (2025).

Who Is Sam Huntington?

Sam Huntington was born on April 1, 1982, to David Sherwood Huntington Jr. and Christine Stabile, and was raised in Hancock, New Hampshire. He comes from a family with deep entertainment industry ties: his mother is an actress who appeared in the soap opera Knots Landing and later ran a children’s theater, and his great-uncle was Ralph Bellamy, the actor who won an Academy Award for lifetime achievement. When Bellamy died, he left his Oscar to Huntington.

Early Life and Start in Acting

Huntington began performing at age nine under his mother’s direction at her children’s theater, The Black Box. He went on to perform for several seasons at the Peterborough Players, a respected regional theater, taking on roles including Jem in a stage production of To Kill a Mockingbird. His mother later became his manager as his career moved from local theater toward professional acting work.

His first professional screen credit came in 1995, playing a character called “Joystick Johnny” in a Microsoft Windows 95 instructional video that also starred Jennifer Aniston and Matthew Perry — an unusual but real first credit for an actor who’d go on to a long film and TV career. He appeared in a supporting role in the 1996 TV movie Harvest of Fire before landing a more prominent part in Disney’s Jungle 2 Jungle (1997), starring opposite Tim Allen. His performance in that film earned him a Saturn Award nomination for Best Performance by a Younger Actor and led to a three-picture contract with Disney, though Jungle 2 Jungle ended up being the only film made under that deal.

Rise Through Film in the Late 1990s and 2000s

After his early Disney work, Huntington moved into a run of films aimed at teen and young-adult audiences. He appeared in Detroit Rock City (1999) and Not Another Teen Movie (2001), two films that helped establish him in Hollywood during his teenage and early adult years. He continued working through the 2000s in a mix of independent films, including Rolling Kansas (2003), Sleepover (2004), and Freshman Orientation (2004), along with guest appearances on procedural dramas like CSI: Miami, CSI: NY, and Veronica Mars.

“Superman Returns” and Wider Recognition

Huntington’s most widely seen film role came in 2006, when he was cast as Jimmy Olsen in Bryan Singer’s Superman Returns. Playing a well-known character from the Superman mythology in a major studio blockbuster gave him significantly more visibility than his earlier independent film work, and it remains one of the roles he’s most recognized for.

He followed that with a starring role in Fanboys (2009), a comedy about devoted Star Wars fans that’s developed a cult following of its own, and later reunited with Superman Returns co-star Brandon Routh in the horror-comedy Dylan Dog: Dead of Night (2011).

“Being Human” and Television Work

In 2011, Huntington landed his most significant television role, playing Josh Levison, a werewolf, in Syfy’s Being Human, an American adaptation of the British series of the same name. The show ran for four 13-episode seasons, concluding with its finale in April 2014, and gave Huntington a starring role that ran for an extended, consistent period — a different kind of career milestone than a single film appearance, since it let audiences follow the same character over several years.

After Being Human ended, Huntington took on a recurring role as quirky coroner Mitchie Mendelson on the Fox series Rosewood, appearing as a “special guest star” from 2015 through the show’s cancellation in 2017. He’s also had guest appearances on shows including The Expanse, iZombie, Good Girls, and The Resident.

Recent Work

Huntington appeared in Clint Eastwood’s Sully (2016), the biographical drama about Captain Chesley “Sully” Sullenberger, playing Jeff Kolodjay, one of the real passengers on the flight that famously landed in the Hudson River. More recently, he’s continued working steadily, with credits including The Last Stop in Yuma County (2023), and in 2025, roles in the films Bride Hard and Out of Order, along with a six-episode run on the Netflix comedy series A Man on the Inside.

Personal Life

Huntington married actress and producer Rachel Klein in 2006. The couple has two children together. He’s occasionally shared glimpses of his family life on social media over the years, reflecting a fairly private personal life relative to his level of industry visibility.

Common Mistakes and Misconceptions

Misconception: Sam Huntington is a new or up-and-coming actor. He’s actually been working professionally since childhood in the mid-1990s, making his career more than three decades long by 2026 — he’s simply worked across enough varied, mid-sized projects that he hasn’t become a single-role household name the way some of his peers have.

Misconception: He’s only known for one role. Depending on when someone became a fan of his work, they might know him primarily from Being Human, Superman Returns, Fanboys, or Sully — his filmography spans multiple genres and eras rather than centering on one signature project.

Misconception: His career slowed down after “Being Human” ended. Public records of his work show consistent film and TV credits well past the show’s 2014 finale, including notable projects like Sully (2016) and continued acting work through 2025.

Real-World Example: A Working Actor’s Career Arc

Huntington’s filmography is a useful illustration of what a sustainable, working actor’s career often looks like in practice — as opposed to the more dramatic “overnight star” narrative some actors experience. He moved from child performer, to teen-comedy supporting roles, to a blockbuster franchise appearance, to a multi-season genre television lead, to steady guest and supporting work across procedural dramas and streaming comedies. Each stage built on relationships and visibility from the last, rather than any single breakout moment defining his entire career.

Key Facts

• Full name: Sam Huntington
• Born: April 1, 1982, in Peterborough, New Hampshire
• Best known roles: Josh Levison in Being Human (2011–2014); Jimmy Olsen in Superman Returns (2006)
• Notable films: Jungle 2 Jungle (1997), Detroit Rock City (1999), Not Another Teen Movie (2001), Fanboys (2009), Sully (2016)
• Family: Great-nephew of Academy Award winner Ralph Bellamy; mother is actress Christine Stabile
• Spouse: Rachel Klein, married 2006
• Children: Two
• Recent credits: The Last Stop in Yuma County (2023), A Man on the Inside (2025), Bride Hard (2025)

Frequently Asked Questions

Q1: What is Sam Huntington best known for? 

Ans: He’s best known for playing werewolf Josh Levison on Syfy’s Being Human and Jimmy Olsen in Superman Returns (2006).

Q2: How did Sam Huntington start acting? 

Ans: He began performing at age nine at his mother’s children’s theater in New Hampshire, later working in regional theater before moving into professional film and television roles as a teenager.

Q3: Is Sam Huntington related to Ralph Bellamy? 

Ans: Yes. Ralph Bellamy, who won an Academy Award for lifetime achievement, was Huntington’s great-uncle, and Huntington was given the Oscar after Bellamy’s death.

Q4: Is Sam Huntington still acting? 

Ans: Yes. He has continued working steadily, with credits including A Man on the Inside and Bride Hard, both released in 2025.

Q5: What other notable roles has Sam Huntington had? 

Ans: Beyond his best-known parts, he’s appeared in Detroit Rock City, Not Another Teen Movie, Fanboys, Dylan Dog: Dead of Night, Sully, and Rosewood, among many other film and TV credits.

Q6: Is Sam Huntington married? 

Ans: Yes. He married actress and producer Rachel Klein in 2006, and the couple has two children together.

Key Takeaways

• Sam Huntington is an American actor born in 1982 who began performing professionally as a child in the mid-1990s.
• He’s best known for his roles in Being Human and Superman Returns, though his filmography spans comedy, drama, and genre television.
• He comes from an entertainment industry family, including ties to Academy Award winner Ralph Bellamy.
• He’s continued working consistently in film and television well past his most famous roles, with new credits as recent as 2025.
• He’s been married to actress and producer Rachel Klein since 2006 and has two children.

Conclusion

Sam Huntington’s career reflects the kind of steady, adaptable path that keeps an actor working across decades, even without a single defining blockbuster franchise attached to his name. From a childhood start in regional New Hampshire theater to a multi-season genre television lead and continued film and streaming work through 2025, his filmography tells the story of a working actor who’s kept finding new roles across more than 30 years in the industry.