I Am Sam
“Love is all you need.”
Sam, a neurodivergent man, has a daughter with a homeless woman who abandons them when they leave the hospital, leaving Sam to raise Lucy on his own. But as Lucy grows up, Sam's limitations as a parent start to become a problem and the authorities take her away. Sam convinces high-priced lawyer Rita to take his case pro bono and in turn teaches her the value of love and family.
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Cast
40 people
Sean Penn
Sam Dawson
Known for
Mystic River
The Game
Michelle Pfeiffer
Rita Harrison Williams
Known for
Scarface
Dark Shadows
Dianne Wiest
Annie Cassell
Known for
Edward Scissorhands
The Mule
Dakota Fanning
Lucy Diamond Dawson
Known for
Coraline
War of the Worlds
Richard Schiff
Mr. Turner
Known for
The Good Doctor
Ballers
Loretta Devine
Margaret Calgrove
Known for
Grey's Anatomy
Sierra Burgess Is a Loser
Marin Hinkle
Patricia
Known for
Two and a Half Men
The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel
Laura Dern
Randy Carpenter
Known for
Jurassic Park
Big Little Lies
Brad Silverman
Brad
Also in
Quantum Leap
Curb Your Enthusiasm
Joseph Rosenberg
Joe
Also in
Curb Your Enthusiasm
Stanley DeSantis
Robert
Known for
Candyman
The Aviator
Doug Hutchison
Ifty
Known for
The Green Mile
Punisher: War Zone
Jessie Nelson Director · Kristine Johnson Screenplay John Powell Composer
Worldwide gross $93M · Budget $22M · United States release December 28, 2001
Box office
Budget
$22,000,000
Worldwide gross
$92,542,418
Gross vs. budget
4.2×
Production
New Line Cinema
Production · Studio
Bedford Falls Productions
Production
Red Fish, Blue Fish Films
Production
"Sam" Productions
Production
United States · Germany
Produced in
Languages
Original language
English
Spoken on screen
English
Release dates
United States · December 3, 2001
Premiere · Beverly Hills, California
United States · December 28, 2001
Limited theatrical · Los Angeles, California / New York City, New York
United States
January 4, 2002 · Limited theatrical
January 25, 2002 · Theatrical
Argentina
March 28, 2002 · Theatrical
Australia
June 13, 2002 · Theatrical · https://www.classification.gov.au/titles/i-am-sam-1
Austria
May 10, 2002 · Digital
Brazil
December 28, 2001 · Theatrical
Canada
January 24, 2002 · Theatrical
Czechia
May 30, 2002 · Theatrical
France
April 30, 2002 · Theatrical
Germany
May 8, 2002 · Theatrical
Greece
April 5, 2002 · Theatrical
Ireland
May 10, 2002 · Theatrical
Italy
March 15, 2002 · Theatrical
Japan
June 8, 2002 · Theatrical
Lithuania
May 24, 2002 · Theatrical
Netherlands
April 25, 2002 · Theatrical
January 25, 2006 · TV · RTL 5
December 12, 2006 · Physical · DVD
Portugal
March 29, 2002 · Theatrical
South Korea
October 18, 2002 · Theatrical
Switzerland
May 9, 2002 · Digital
Türkiye
July 12, 2002 · Theatrical
United Kingdom
May 9, 2002 · Theatrical
More from Jessie Nelson
Other films they directed, best known first.
Some details come from TheTVDB.