Chaske Spencer (pronounced ''Chess-Kay''; born March 9, 1975) is an American actor. He is perhaps best known for his roles as Sam Uley in '' The Twilight Saga'' film series (2009–2012), Teddo in the acclaimed film ''

Wild Indian ''Wild Indian'' is a 2021 American thriller film written and directed by Lyle Mitchell Corbine Jr. The film stars Michael Greyeyes and Chaske Spencer with Jesse Eisenberg and Kate Bosworth. The film was supported by the Sundance Institute thro ...

'', and for his recurring role as Deputy Billy Raven in the

Cinemax Cinemax is an American pay television, cable, and satellite television network owned by the Home Box Office, Inc. subsidiary of Warner Bros. Discovery. Developed as a companion "maxi-pay" service complementing the offerings shown on parent net ...

original series ''Banshee''.

Life and career

Spencer was born in

Tahlequah, Oklahoma Tahlequah ( ; ''Cherokee'': ᏓᎵᏆ, ''daligwa'' ) is a city in Cherokee County, Oklahoma located at the foothills of the Ozark Mountains. It is part of the Green Country region of Oklahoma and was established as a capital of the 19th-century ...

and grew up in

Montana Montana () is a state in the Mountain West division of the Western United States. It is bordered by Idaho to the west, North Dakota and South Dakota to the east, Wyoming to the south, and the Canadian provinces of Alberta, British Columbi ...

, as well as Kooskia,

Lapwai Lapwai is a city in the Northwestern United States, northwest United States, in Nez Perce County, Idaho, Nez Perce County, Idaho. Its population was 1,137 at the 2010 United States Census, 2010 census, and it is the seat of government of the Nez Pe ...

, and

Lewiston, Idaho Lewiston is a city and the county seat of Nez Perce County, Idaho, United States, in the state's north central region. It is the second-largest city in the northern Idaho region, behind Coeur d'Alene, and ninth-largest in the state. Lewiston is ...

. He has two younger sisters. His heritage includes

Lakota Lakota may refer to: *Lakota people, a confederation of seven related Native American tribes *Lakota language, the language of the Lakota peoples Place names In the United States: *Lakota, Iowa *Lakota, North Dakota, seat of Nelson County *Lakota ...

Nez Perce The Nez Percé (; autonym in Nez Perce language: , meaning "we, the people") are an Indigenous people of the Plateau who are presumed to have lived on the Columbia River Plateau in the Pacific Northwest region for at least 11,500 years.Ames, K ...

Cherokee The Cherokee (; chr, ᎠᏂᏴᏫᏯᎢ, translit=Aniyvwiyaʔi or Anigiduwagi, or chr, ᏣᎳᎩ, links=no, translit=Tsalagi) are one of the indigenous peoples of the Southeastern Woodlands of the United States. Prior to the 18th century, t ...

Muscogee The Muscogee, also known as the Mvskoke, Muscogee Creek, and the Muscogee Creek Confederacy ( in the Muscogee language), are a group of related indigenous (Native American) peoples of the Southeastern WoodlandsFrench French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents ** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...

, and

Dutch Dutch commonly refers to: * Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands * Dutch people () * Dutch language () Dutch may also refer to: Places * Dutch, West Virginia, a community in the United States * Pennsylvania Dutch Country People E ...

. He is Lakota Sioux, enrolled with the Fort Peck Assiniboine and Sioux Tribes of Montana through his mother. He graduated from

Clearwater Valley High School Clearwater Valley High School is a high school located in Kooskia, Idaho Kooskia ( ) is a city in Idaho County, Idaho, United States. It is at the confluence of the South and Middle forks of the Clearwater River, combining to become the main ...

in 1994, where he went by the name James Spencer. As a young teen, he started acting in productions at the Lewiston Civic Theater. Spencer attended college at

Lewis–Clark State College Lewis–Clark State College is a public college in the northwest United States, located in north central Idaho at Lewiston. Founded in 1893, it has an approximate annual enrollment of 3,600. The college offers more than 130 degrees and i ...

for a year, and considered a career in photography. He eventually dropped out of Lewis–Clark State College to pursue his acting career. Spencer did odd jobs while taking acting lessons from coaches David Gideon and Ed Kovens. He got a role in the 2002 film '' Skins'', which then led to ''

Dreamkeeper ''Dreamkeeper'' is a 2003 film written by John Fusco and directed by Steve Barron. The main plot of the film is the conflict between a Lakota elder and storyteller named Pete Chasing Horse (August Schellenberg) and his Lakota grandson, Shane Chas ...

'', and '' Into the West''. During his teens, Spencer had struggles with substance abuse and

alcoholism Alcoholism is, broadly, any drinking of alcohol (drug), alcohol that results in significant Mental health, mental or physical health problems. Because there is disagreement on the definition of the word ''alcoholism'', it is not a recognize ...

. He continued to drink heavily during his college years. He later developed an addiction to

cocaine Cocaine (from , from , ultimately from Quechuan languages, Quechua: ''kúka'') is a central nervous system (CNS) stimulant mainly recreational drug use, used recreationally for its euphoria, euphoric effects. It is primarily obtained from t ...

and

heroin Heroin, also known as diacetylmorphine and diamorphine among other names, is a potent opioid mainly used as a recreational drug for its euphoric effects. Medical grade diamorphine is used as a pure hydrochloride salt. Various white and brow ...

, and checked into rehab. While in rehab, Spencer stopped taking drugs. He nearly gave up on acting before his agent called him to audition for ''

New Moon In astronomy, the new moon is the first lunar phase, when the Moon and Sun have the same ecliptic longitude. At this phase, the lunar disk is not visible to the naked eye, except when it is silhouetted against the Sun during a solar eclipse. ...

'', the sequel to ''

Twilight Twilight is light produced by sunlight scattering in the upper atmosphere, when the Sun is below the horizon, which illuminates the lower atmosphere and the Earth's surface. The word twilight can also refer to the periods of time when this il ...

.'' In 2009, Spencer played

werewolf In folklore, a werewolf (), or occasionally lycanthrope (; ; uk, Вовкулака, Vovkulaka), is an individual that can shapeshift into a wolf (or, especially in modern film, a therianthropic hybrid wolf-like creature), either purposely or ...

Sam Uley in ''

'', based on

Stephenie Meyer Stephenie Meyer (; née Morgan; born December 24, 1973) is an American novelist and film producer. She is best known for writing the vampire literature, vampire romance series ''Twilight (novel series), Twilight'', which has sold over 100 mill ...

's novel of the same name. He reprised his role in ''

Eclipse An eclipse is an astronomical event that occurs when an astronomical object or spacecraft is temporarily obscured, by passing into the shadow of another body or by having another body pass between it and the viewer. This alignment of three ce ...

Breaking Dawn – Part 1 Breaking or breakin' may refer to: Arts * Breakdancing (also breaking), an athletic style of street dance * ''Breakin, a 1984 American breakdancing-themed musical film * "Breakin, a twelfth-season episode of the American animated television se ...

,'' and '' Breaking Dawn – Part 2''. In 2015, Spencer was cast in the recurring role of Billy Raven in the ''Banshee'' TV series, after making his debut one year prior in the web series ''Banshee Origins''. Spencer was selected in 2021 to star alongside

Emily Blunt Emily Olivia Leah Blunt (born 23 February 1983) is a British actress. She is the recipient of several accolades, including a Golden Globe Award and a Screen Actors Guild Award, in addition to nominations for three British Academy Film Awards. ...

in ''

The English The English people are an ethnic group and nation native to England, who speak the English language in England, English language, a West Germanic languages, West Germanic language, and share a common history and culture. The English identi ...

'' TV series, produced for

Amazon Prime Video Amazon Prime Video, also known simply as Prime Video, is an American Video on demand#Subscription models, subscription video on-demand Over-the-top media service, over-the-top Streaming media, streaming and Renting, rental service of Amazon (c ...

and

BBC One BBC One is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network owned and operated by the BBC. It is the corporation's flagship network and is known for broadcasting mainstream programming, which includes BBC News television bulletins, p ...

Filmography

Awards and nominations

References

External links

*
Chaske Spencer - MIPtalk.com Interview
{{DEFAULTSORT:Spencer, Chaske 1975 births Living people Lakota people People from Tahlequah, Oklahoma American male film actors American male television actors American male voice actors Native American male actors Native American actors People from Lewiston, Idaho American people of Cherokee descent American people of Dutch descent American people of French descent