| Sam Burrell | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Sam Burrell | |
| Series: | The Last of Us |
| Gender: | Male |
| Notability: | Supporting character |
| Type: | Child Clicker |
| Location: | Kansas City, Missouri |
| Relatives: | Henry Burrell |
| Status: | Deceased |
| Born: | 2015 |
| Died: | 2023 |
| First: | "Please Hold to My Hand" |
| Final: | "Endure and Survive" |
| Actor: | Keivonn Montreal Woodard |
Sam Burrell is a fictional child and a minor character featured on the HBO Max survival horror series The Last of Us, which is based on the video game of the same name published by Naughty Dog. Played by actor Keivonn Montreal Woodard, he first appeared at the very end of episode 1x04 of the series, "Please Hold to My Hand". He took on a larger role in episode 1x05, "Endure and Survive".
Biography
Sam with his "super-hero" mask.
Sam Burrell was born around the year 2015, during the years of the Cordyceps virus. He was the younger brother of Henry Burrell and lived in a FEDRA-controlled quarantine zone in Kansas City, Missouri. Sam was deaf, but also suffered from Leukemia. To get Sam the medical treatment he required, Henry collaborated with FEDRA as an informer, and told them the location of a resistance leader named Michael Coghlan. For his service, FEDRA provided Henry with a drug to keep his brother alive. FEDRA led a raid against the Kansas City resistance movement and Michael Coghlan was killed. Michael's sister, Kathleen Coghlan, took up his cause, and used the resistance members' resources to get revenge on Henry.
On the run from the resistance, Henry and Sam hid out in an old, abandoned motel. They found two squatters named Joel Miller and Ellie Williams. Although introductions were tense at first, the four decided to work together to get out of the city.
Ellie spent the evening playing with Sam and the two read comic books together. Sam quietly revealed that he had become infected with the Cordyceps virus but had not told his brother. Ellie was immune to the virus and told Sam that her blood was "medicine". Desperate to help him, she cut herself open and smeared her blood across his open wound, hoping that it might counter the effects of the virus. The following morning, Ellie discovered to her horror that she was wrong. The virus overtook Sam and he was now a "clicker". Sam lunged at Ellie who ran into the other room. Brother Henry did not hesitate to put Sam down with a gunshot to the head. Unable to cope with what he had just done, Henry took his own life moments later. [1]
Notes & Trivia
- The character of Sam Burrell was created by writer and executive producer Craig Mazin and director Jeremy Webb based on concepts originally developed by Neil Druckmann.
- Actor Keivonn Woodard was credited as Keivonn Montreal Woodard on The Last of Us.
- Sam Burrell really enjoyed comic books. While in hiding, Henry would put makeup across his face to resemble the domino mask of a super-hero.
- Sam Burrell's favorite comic book was called Savage Starlight. This was also Ellie Williams' favorite comic book while growing up in the Boston quarantine zone. [2]
- Actor Keivonn Montreal Woodard is deaf in real life, much like the character he portrays.
- Sam Burrell's disability is the same as that of Connie from the AMC series The Walking Dead. Both characters are African American and both have siblings whom they are close to and look after them. While Sam is the younger sibling in The Last of Us, Connie is the older sister to Kelly on The Walking Dead. Both programs take place in a post-apocalyptic environment overrun by zombie-like creatures.