Samuel Johnson on AllMovie

Genial Australian actor Samuel Johnson (not to be confused with the American screen star of the same name) specialized in the way-offbeat, to such a degree that eccentric and intriguing Aussie film and theatrical roles often seemed to have his name attached by default. Though Johnson wasted no time entering the dramatic arts, his involvement with that sphere seemed to happen almost by accident. At the age of 15, he impulsively auditioned for a turn as a mad scientist in the play The Pink Panther Strikes Again and not only won the role, but drew the attention of famed casting director Ronda Schepisi (ex-wife of cause-celebre director Fred Schepisi) who arranged for his attainment of an Actor's Equity card. Innumerable stage productions and television shows followed, with Johnson peaking in popularity as the nymphomaniacal Evan on the popular Oz series The Secret Life of Us. Johnson scored one of his first major film roles as a book editor driven into a state of madness and physical suffering in director Kriv Stenders' macabre seriocomedy The Illustrated Family Doctor (2005), then worked alongside Geoffrey Rush and others by providing a voice in the unusual but visually brilliant claymation ensemble piece $9.99 (2008).