Madeleine Sami

Last updated

Madeleine Sami
Madeleine Sami 2018 (cropped).jpg
Sami in 2018
Born
Madeleine Nalini Sami

(1980-05-10) 10 May 1980 (age 44)
Auckland, New Zealand
OccupationActress
Spouse
(m. 20152023)
Children1

Madeleine Nalini Sami is a New Zealand actress, director, comedian and musician. [1] She started her acting career in theatre before moving to television, where she created, co-wrote, and starred in Super City. She co-wrote, co-directed, and starred in the 2018 film The Breaker Upperers , along with Jackie van Beek, which was a New Zealand box office success. Sami co-hosted The Great Kiwi Bake Off .

Contents

Early life

Sami is one of four children. Her parents are Christine Southee, who has Irish ancestry, and Naren Sami, a Fijian-Indian who settled in New Zealand. [2] Her parents separated when she was twelve. [2] She attended Onehunga High School. [3]

Career

Madeleine Sami performing at the King's Arms, Auckland, 2007 Madeleine Sami 2007.jpg
Madeleine Sami performing at the King's Arms, Auckland, 2007

Sami rose to prominence starring in Toa Fraser's play Bare, winning best actress at the 1999 Chapman Tripp Theatre Awards. [2] She then was part of Fraser's next play, No. 2., which won Perrier Comedy Award at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival. [2]

In 2011, Sami created, co-wrote alongside Tom Sainsbury, and starred in her own comedy series, Super City , which was directed by Taika Waititi. [4] Sami played five different characters in the show and won Best Performance by an Actress at the 2011 AFTA awards. [5] [6] She later co-hosted The Great Kiwi Bake Off and starred in the television series Golden Boy and The Bad Seed . [7] [8] She made her TV directorial debut when she directed an episode of the second season of Funny Girls , eventually directing eleven episodes of the series. [9]

Sami is a part of The Sami Sisters, a musical group consisting of herself and her two sisters. They released an album Happy Heartbreak in 2011. [10]

She co-wrote, co-directed, and starred in the 2018 film The Breaker Upperers , along with Jackie van Beek. [11] The film received positive reviews and was a box office hit in New Zealand, becoming the best selling New Zealand film of 2018 and is one of the top 20 grossing New Zealand films ever. [12] [13] [14] The pair will reunite to direct the Netflix film Hope, starring Aubrey Plaza. [15] Sami also appeared in the 2019 film, Come to Daddy, directed by Ant Timpson. [16]

On 17 May 2021, Sami appeared on The Masked Singer NZ as the "Monarch (Butterfly)", getting eliminated in the fourth episode. The same year she was on the panel show Patriot Brains .

Sami starred in the 2023 Australian television series Deadloch . On July 9, 2024, Deadloch would be renewed for a second season and Sami would reprise the role of Eddie Redcliffe. [17]

Personal life

In January 2015, Sami married Pip Brown, known as the singer-songwriter Ladyhawke. [18] Brown gave birth to their daughter on 20 October 2017. [19] Sami and Brown announced the end of the relationship in 2023. [20]

Filmography

Film

YearTitleRoleNotes
2000Ice As: Ice HouseVarious
2000Fish Skin SuitLibbyTV movie
2000Teach You a LessonNarratorShort film
2003 Perfect Strangers Andrea
2006 Sione's Wedding Tania
2007 Eagle vs Shark Burger Girl Customer
2009 Under the Mountain Constable Green
2012 Sione's 2: Unfinished Business Tania
2014 What We Do in the Shadows Morana
2015 Slow West Marimacho
2018 The Breaker Upperers MelAlso writer; director
2019 Come to Daddy Gladys
2020 Baby Done Hospital Midwife

Television

YearTitleRoleNotes
1998Pio!Various
1999 Shortland Street Dr. Shivani 'Vani' Naran
2000Fish Skin SuitLibby
2001 Xena: Warrior Princess TyroEpisode: "To Helicon and Back"
2004TalentChemist
2004 The Insiders Guide to Happiness Tess
2007 Rude Awakenings Francesca Hoyle
2007 Outrageous Fortune Linda
2006–2007 Bro'Town Additional Voices/Bianca5 episodes
2009 Diplomatic Immunity Agent Amy Bickler
2008–2009 The Jaquie Brown Diaries Serita Singh13 episodes
2009–2013Buzzy Bee and FriendsBuzzy Bee14 episodes
2009–2024 7 Days Herself21 episodes
2010 Radiradirah Various
2011 3 News Self
2011–2013 Super City Pasha/Georgie/AzeemCreator/Writer/Executive Director
2013 Top of the Lake Zena
2013 Aroha Bridge Mum/Aunty Winny/Angeline Hook
2016All Talk with Anika MoaSelf
2016–2018 Funny Girls Director
2014 Flat3 Madeline
2018–2021 The Great Kiwi Bake Off Host
2019 Get Krack!n Amy Bryan1 episode
2019 The Bad Seed Marie Da Silva5 episodes
2019 Golden Boy Claire8 episodes
2019 What's Your Problem? Self1 episode
2019– Have You Been Paying Attention? Guest
2020, 2024 Taskmaster NZ Self10 episodes (season contestant)
2 episodes (guest)
2021 The Masked Singer NZ Monarch/Self2 episodes
2023-present Deadloch Eddie Redcliffe8 episodes
2023-presentDouble ParkedNat9 episodes
2023 Our Flag Means Death Archie8 episodes

Theatre

YearTitleRoleTheatre
1998Three People in a CinemaVarious Silo Theatre
1999LegacyEnsembleAotearoa Young People's Theatre
2000No. 2VariousEdinburgh Festival
2001NZ Tour
2001BareVariousWellington Fringe Festival
2002 The Vagina Monologues VariousAuckland Theatre Company
2005- 2006Bad Jelly the WitchBad JellySilo Theatre
2007 Some Girl(s) TylerSilo Theatre
2008RabbitEmilySilo Theatre
2008Whero's New NetVarious Massive Company
2008 The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee Logainne SchwartzandgrubenierreAuckland Theatre Company [21]
2009No. 2VariousSilo Theatre
2010Dance Troupe SupremeKellyannaMaidment Theatre
2014 Jesus Christ Superstar King HerodAuckland Theatre Company

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References

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  2. 1 2 3 4 "Madeleine Sami, chameleon at the crossroads". NZ Herald. 24 September 2001. Retrieved 21 October 2023.
  3. Husband, Dale (8 September 2018). "Madeleine Sami: No holding her back". E-Tangata. Retrieved 22 April 2020.
  4. "ThreeNow | Search". Archived from the original on 31 October 2012. Retrieved 2 December 2012.
  5. Archived 2011-11-13 at the Wayback Machine
  6. "Sami's 'Super City' satirises the stereotypes of Auckland". Otago Daily Times Online News. 15 February 2011. Retrieved 22 April 2020.
  7. "Madeleine Sami and Hayley Sproull back for more Great Kiwi Bake Off". Stuff. 23 October 2019. Retrieved 21 April 2020.
  8. Fenwick, George (3 April 2019). "The Bad Seed: Madeleine Sami on how the crime show was a 'relief' from The Breaker Upperers". NZ Herald. ISSN   1170-0777 . Retrieved 21 April 2020.
  9. "Boots and all: Madeleine Sami steps behind the camera on Funny Girls". www.metromag.co.nz. Retrieved 22 April 2020.
  10. "Musical Siblings - The Sami Sisters". RNZ. 2 January 2016. Retrieved 22 April 2020.
  11. The Breaker Upperers , retrieved 28 November 2018
  12. "Disney dominated the New Zealand box office in 2018". Stuff. 23 January 2019. Retrieved 28 July 2019.
  13. "The Breaker Upperers (2018)". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved 1 August 2018.
  14. "The Breaker Upperers grosses more than $1 million at Kiwi box office in first two weeks". New Zealand Herald.
  15. D'Alessandro, Anthony; Fleming Jr., Mike (15 August 2019). "Aubrey Plaza Feature Comedy 'Hope' Set At Netflix With Jackie van Beek & Madeleine Sami Directing". Deadline. Retrieved 21 April 2020.
  16. "Madeleine Sami on the attractions of acting in Come to Daddy". www.flicks.co.nz. Retrieved 22 April 2020.
  17. Whittock, Jesse; Clarke, Stewart (8 July 2024). "Madeleine Sami & Kate Box Return For 'Deadloch' Season 2 On Prime Video". Deadline. Retrieved 9 July 2024.
  18. Tapaleao, Vaimoana (9 January 2015). "Ladyhawke and Madeleine Sami to wed". The New Zealand Herald . Retrieved 9 January 2015.
  19. "A Babyhawke lands: Comedian Madeleine Sami and rocker Ladyhawke welcome a baby". Stuff. 27 October 2017. Retrieved 11 October 2018.
  20. Mahon-Heap, Jonny (8 June 2023). "Madeleine Sami says she has 'consciously uncoupleth' from wife Ladyhawke". Stuff.
  21. "The New Zealand Post Season of The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee". atc.co.nz. Retrieved 17 December 2020.