Samuel L Jackson is perhaps one of the most celebrated actors ever in Hollywood. He has left an indelible mark and powerful influence on modern American cinema. Throughout his storied career, he has played iconic roles in big-banner movies and is super popular among fans. Jackson is a film industry titan whose contribution to cinema is incredible, and each of his films has grossed millions worldwide.
His unique persona and rich brilliance have helped him establish a top spot in the industry, making him the most in-demand leading star of his generation. Nevertheless, the Pulp Fiction movie star had a rough start to his career. He was addicted to drugs and alcohol while juggling to become an actor, and his addiction problems hindered his stardom in Hollywood.
The actor once shared that his 1991 film Jungle Fever helped him in many ways. He played the character of Gator, a crack drug addict in the movie, and delivered an award-winning performance, and since then, he has been an unstoppable force.
Samuel L. Jackson Reveals How Jungle Fever Influenced His Career
Samuel L Jackson is a dignified actor, and no one can match his on-screen persona. He has worked across all genres of films and successfully built a career with his incredible acting chops. According to reports, in the late 1960s, Jackson became a drug addict and began smoking weed. After tying know with his wife Latanya Richardson Jackson in 1980, a decade later, he decided to visit rehab due to his overdose drug problems.
After revival, the veteran star landed a role in director Spike Lee’s 1991 American romantic drama Jungle Fever, the film that opened many doors for him in showbiz. He fully embodied his character in the movie as he played Gator, a crack drug addict, so depicting this role was mentally challenging since he was fresh out of rehab.
The same year, his remarkable performance in the movie earned him the Best Supporting Actor award at Cannes Film Festival. Jackson once claimed that he convinced the film director to let him play this role as the actor knew that he could play this better since he had suffered similar problems in his own life.
Samuel L Jackson Talks About His Experience Working in The Film
In a tell-all interview with Esquire, Samuel L Jackson shared that his hit 1991 classic film Jungle Fever was the perfect marriage of experience and opportunity as the film and his mind-blowing performance won him the Best Supporting Actor award, and since then, he went on to play prominent roles in big banner production houses projects.
The True Romance movie star shared, “I was the crackhead in Jungle Fever. I was two weeks out of rehab. I’d been smoking cocaine for a year and a half, two years, and I understood the nature of the disease. I had done the research. So when I started talking to Spike about it, I said, You don’t see him high that much.”
He continued,” You always see him when he needs something. He’s on a mission to get some shit. That’s what I wanna do. And that was my breakthrough. That got me into Hollywood. It was the perfect marriage of experience and opportunity.”
Despite struggling with his addiction issues early in his career, Samuel L Jackson overcame all the problems that life threw his way and became one of the most prolific stars by starring in films like Changing Lanes, Do the Right Thing, Jurassic Park, The Negotiator, A Time to Kill and Die Hard With a Vengeance.
Source: Collider
