Tullamore’s Sam set to star in new RTE drama
Tullamore-born actor Sam Keeley is starring in a new eight-part Irish crime drama with a stellar cast beginning on RTÉ One on September 12, and has been cast for a new series about 'Tiger King' Joe Exotic.
Thirty-year-old Sam, son of musician and singer/songwriter, Brendan Keeley and his wife, Regina (nee Grimes) from Durrow, began his acting career in his hometown.
In 2010, Sam attended an open casting in Tullamore and was chosen for the role of 'Killen' in the Irish film, 'The Other Side of Sleep', directed by Rebecca Daly. From there his career shot to dizzying heights with him playing alongside many of the greatest names in modern drama.
In the new RTE series, 'Kin' he plays a key role as Viking, a reckless and hot-headed lad who thinks he can get away with a lot because his dad, Frank, is the head of the Kinsella Family. But one heedless action by Viking causes horrendous repercussions for all his family and loved ones.
A member of the Kinsella clan is killed sparking a gangland war between the family and an international cartel. It’s a war that is impossible to win - a David and Goliath scenario.
Out-numbered, out-financed and out-gunned, the Kinsellas find themselves holed up in their Dublin stronghold while their businesses fail, and family members and associates are picked off. But they have something the cartel does not have, the unbreakable bonds of blood and family.
In the upcoming Peacock series 'Joe Exotic', he plays John Finlay, one of Exotic’s husbands.
Sam is hoping to write and direct a film about the community in which he grew up. He feels that Tullamore is teaming with amazing characters with rich stories to tell the world and he wants to show that side of small-town Ireland and tell their stories.
During his earlier years, Sam was interested in pursuing a music career, but it was while attending Colaiste Choilm Secondary School that he developed an interest in acting.
Sam Keeley is probably best known among Irish audiences for his portrayal of Philip in RTE’s television hit series, 'Raw'. He went on to appear in such films as 'The Other Side of Sleep', 'This Must be the Place', 'Burn't, 'Monsters:Dark Continent', The Siege of Jadotville', 'In the Heart of the Sea', 'The Cured' and many more.