Sam Spruell

Born in Southwark, London, Spruell studied at Hull University before turning to acting. His mother is actress Linda Broughton. He is married to costume designer Natalie Ward and they share a son named Sidney.

Theatre

He made his stage debut with the Royal National Theatre. He has appeared in The Caretaker (at Trafalgar Studios); Pornography (Tricycle); The Alchemist and The Life of Galileo (the National); King Lear (Sheffield Crucible); Othello (Royal Exchange); A Midsummer Night's Dream, They Shoot Horses, Don't They?, and Pippin, (Bloomsbury Theatre); and elsewhere.

Film

Spruell's first screen appearance came in Kathryn Bigelow's submarine drama K-19: The Widowmaker in 2002. His film credits include To Kill a King (2003); London to Brighton (2006); Elizabeth: The Golden Age (2007); The Hurt Locker (2008); Defiance (2008); and others. He played hit man Jack "The Hat" McVitie in the 2015 film Legend, about the story of the Kray twins. In 2012, Spruell had a starring role in the film Snow White & the Huntsman, as brother to the Evil Queen that was played by Charlize Theron. In October 2025, Spruell was announced to star alongside Honor Swinton Byrne and Jessica Madsen in the feature film Tidepools.

Television

His television roles include the recurring cameo of Jason Belling in Spooks (2007 in Episode 6.9 and 2004 in Project Friendly Fire), and the recurring role of Wilkes in P.O.W. (2003). In March 2013, he appeared in one of the lead roles in the BBC One thriller drama series Mayday. He was cast in the television adaptation of The Last Ship later in the year. In 2015, Spruell played Oleg Malankov, the secondary villain in Taken 3 and then played Owen Lynch in the drama series Luther in episode 1.2. In the thirteenth series of Doctor Who, Spruell played Swarm, one of the main villains of the series.

In 2023, he starred as Ole Munch in the fifth season of the Fargo series, an "immortal hired gun" figure who "exists outside of time and society's rules," a "collection of contrasts". In June 2024, it was announced that Spruell would portray Maekar Targaryen in the series A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms.

Film

Television