# Joanne Samuel

Joanne Samuel is an Australian film and television actress, who is best known for her role as the screen wife of Mel Gibson's title character in the 1979 film Mad Max.

## Early life and education

Joanne Samuel was born in Camperdown, Sydney, Australia. She studied dance with Honeybrooks and drama at the Independent Theatre.

## Career

Prior to her appearance in Mad Max, Samuel had made guest appearances in police procedurals Matlock Police and Homicide. She was then a regular cast member in television soap operas Class of '74, The Sullivans and The Young Doctors. She left The Young Doctors after the producers wrote her out of the show when she was offered the Mad Max role after a fellow Young Doctors actress who had been due to take the role fell ill.
Samuel later returned to television in the regular role of Kelly Morgan-Young in Skyways.
Samuel's other film appearances included roles in Alison's Birthday (1981), Early Frost (1982), Queen of the Road (1984), The Long Way Home (1985), Nightmaster (1987, opposite Nicole Kidman), Gallagher's Travels (1987), and Spook (1988). She later guest starred in Hey Dad..! as Jeanette Taylor and All Saints, and played Mrs. Bingle in The Wiggles Movie (1997).
Samuel is the vice chairman of BOOMPAA, Blue Mountains Performing Arts Association. She appeared as Doris Mercher in the 2017 family film My Pet Dinosaur, directed by Matt Drummond.

## Filmography
### Film

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 1979 | Mad Max | Jessie | Feature film |
| 1981 | Alison's Birthday | Alison Findlay | Feature film |
| 1982 | Early Frost | Chris | Feature film |
| 1983 | The City's Edge | Prostitute 1 | Feature film |
| 1984 | Queen of the Road | Rosy Costello | TV film |
| 1985 | The Long Way Home | Julie | TV film |
| 1986 | Gallagher's Travels | Sally | TV film |
| 1988 | Nightmaster (aka Watch The Shadows Dance) | Sonia Spane | TV film |
| 1988 | Spook | Carole Bradly | Feature film |
| 1993 | You and Me and Uncle Bob | Rosie | Feature film |
| 1997 | The Wiggles Movie | Mrs. Rosemary Bingle | Feature film |
| 2008 | Not Quite Hollywood: The Wild, Untold Story of Ozploitation! | Herself | Feature film documentary |
| 2017 | My Pet Dinosaur | Doris Mercher | Feature film |
| 2018 | Acute Misfortune | Magistrate | Feature film |
| 2019 | Smoke Between Trees | Therese | Feature film |
| 2019 | The Greatest of These | Nan | Film short |
| 2021 | Christmas Down Under | Barbara Parker | Feature film |
| 2023 | What About Sal | Alice | Feature film |

### Television

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 1973; 1974 | Matlock Police | Jenny / Cathy Phillips | TV series, 2 episodes |
| 1974 | Class of '74 | Sue Taylor | TV series, 2 episodes |
| 1974 | Homicide | Lynn Fisher | TV series, 1 episode : I Keep Going Back to Be Certain |
| 1974 | The Box | Mr. Baker's daughter | TV series, episode #1.6 |
| 1975 | Shannon's Mob | Felicity Maitland | TV series, episode: Trip to Nowhere |
| 1975–1976 | Certain Women | Caroline Stone | TV series, 29 episodes |
| 1976 | The Sullivans | Cynthia Cavanaugh | TV series, 1 episode |
| 1976–1978 | The Young Doctors | Jill Gordon | TV series, 255 episodes |
| 1978 | Case for the Defence | Amy | TV series, episode: Second Time Around |
| 1979 | Cop Shop | Maureen Hamilton / Kenneth Willis | TV series, 2 episodes |
| 1979–1980 | Skyways | Kelly Morgan Young | TV series, 136 episodes |
| 1981 | Ratbags | Various characters | TV series, 12 episodes |
| 1986 | Five Times Dizzy | Chris Brooking | TV series, 12 episodes |
| 1988–1990 | Hey Dad..! | Jeanette Taylor | TV series, 7 episodes |
| 1997 | Fallen Angels | Helen Bader | TV series, episode: Smoke Gets in Your Eyes |
| 2001 | All Saints | Ingrid Clements | TV series, spisode: Skeletons in the Closet |
| 2006 | Where Are They Now? | Guest | TV series, 1 episode |
| 2008 | Not Quite Hollywood: Deleted and Extended Scenes | Herself | Video |
| 2014 | Rake | Nurse | TV series, episode #3.7 |
| 2015 | Peter Allen: Not the Boy Next Door | Bev Moulson | TV miniseries, 2 episodes |
| 2015 | Mad Max: Cast and Crew Interviews | Herself | Video |
| 2015 | The Madness of Max | Herself | Film documentary |
| 2016 | Brock | Louise Kraft | TV miniseries, 2 episodes |
| 2018 | Stinson Creek | Legal Aid | TV series, episode: "The Witness" |
| 2019 | Kapow! | Herself | TV series, 1 episode |
| 2022 | Mad Max Fans: Beyond The Wasteland | Herself as Joanne Samuel | Film documentary |