Sam Witwicky

Samuel James "Sam" Witwicky is one of the three main protagonists of the Transformers live-action film series (alongside Optimus Prime and Cade Yeager). 
Sam is a young man of the human race whose father purchases an apparently normal Camaro that turns out to be a Cybertronian scout, Bumblebee. This would lead Sam to becoming an ally to the Autobots in their civil war with the Decepticons.
 
He is the live-action adaptation of Generation One's Spike Witwicky from the G1 series and Buster Witwicky from the comic book series.
 
Sam was portrayed by Shia LaBeouf, who portrayed Stanley Yelnats IV in the 2002 film Holes, Chas Chandler in the 2005 film Constantine, and Mutt Williams in Indiana Jones and the Crystal Skull.
==Role ==
He is the main protagonist of the 2007 film Transformers and the sequel, Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen and one of the two main protagonists of Transformers: Dark of the Moon (alongside Optimus Prime). 
He is also a minor character in the movie short, Transformers: Beginnings and one of the main protagonists of the Transformers movie tie-in comic books and novelizations.
===Character development===
Samuel Witwicky was created by Michael Bay and Steven Spielberg for the 2007 film, Transformers. An abandoned concept in the 2007 film was during the Battle of Mission City, Sam received a brief vision of Sentinel telling him how to defeat Megatron.
In the final cut, Sam is given the idea to defeat Megatron by Optimus ordering the boy to merge the AllSpark with his spark.
Sam's vision with a Prime was later recycled in Revenge of the Fallen due to the Writer's Guild Strike of 2007-08. 
==History==
===Background===
Samuel James Witwicky was born September 13th, 1991 to Ronald "Ron" Witwicky and Judy Lee Witwicky. He and his father were descendants of famed explorer, Archibald Witwicky, one of the first to explore the Arctic circle. He was especially close to his father but always embarrassed by his mother. When Sam was 12 years old when his father gave him some of his great-grandfather's heirlooms. This included a pair of glasses that secretly held the location of the AllSpark. Sam held no regards of his family legacy, only remembering his grandfather's fate of being sent to an asylum the rest of his life, taking about an "ice man" during one of his trips to the Arctic Circle. 
Sam attended school with Mikaela Banes since the first grade and had a crush on her, which appeared to be mutual; in contrast, Mikaela claimed she barely noticed him, sometimes giving him long looks.
===Transformers===
===Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen===
===Transformers: Dark of the Moon===
==Other Appearances==
Sam appears in the prequel comic series and it's animated adaptation, Transformers: Beginnings
==Video games==
Sam appears as a non-playable character in the live-action film adaptations 
==Personality==
Sam is sarcastic, brave, charming, funny, and very lucky. He is initially an awkward young man trying to impress a girl he likes and fill the need to fit in. He rarely cares about his family legacy, believing his great-grandfather was "crazy" without knowing the entire story. However, after hearing Optimus' tale about his ancestors, Sam gained a level of respect for Archibald. Through extreme pressure or formal events, Sam begins to feel stressed or become very talkative to the point that he starts babbling and mixing up words. When talking to Mikaela, his long-time crush, Sam began mixing his words while also trying to romanticize her before asking her personal questions. Sam also has a fiery temper, a trait he inherited from his mother, angrily telling Mojo not to urinate on Ironhide's foot. 
Sam is one of the few humans who regard the Autobots and Decepticons as sentient beings, often emphasizing Megatron's name when Simmons called him by his experiment designation in the first film. As the film progresses, Sam becomes more confident after fighting and defeating Megatron. Feeling indebted to him since Sam saved Optimus, the leader of the Autobots saw him as an equal and someone who proved humanity was worth saving. After these events, Sam just wanted to have a normal college life. When Optimus came to him for help, Sam refused to return to the war, opting to be a "normal kid with normal problems." Despite his self-doubt, Prime still had complete faith in Sam since the boy saved his life and gave him words of wisdom. After Optimus died trying to protect him, Sam felt extreme guilt and remorse for his actions. Meanwhile, he struggles to tell Mikaela how he feels about her, as Sam worries about making things right.
Sam is victim prone to Decepticon attacks, from Barricade to Megatron to Alice. At Sam's college, Grindor kidnapped him and his friends, Mikaela and Leo. However, he remains one of the Decepticons' most dangerous human adversaries, having killed both of their leaders: Megatron and Starscream.
By the third film, Sam wanted to be more involved with helping the Autobots born out of guilt for not doing so earlier. He is brave enough to show his loyalty to them, even telling Director Mearing he takes orders from the Autobots, not her. William Lennox also seems to hold Sam in high regard; such as listening to his instructions to bring Optimus to Egypt, allowing Sam and Carly onto the NEST base and defending him against Charlotte Mearing 
At first, wanting to be the hero, Sam is quite content with being just the messenger. He is courageous and selfless, having faced Starscream and living to tell the tale, willing to save Bumblebee from execution. However, Sam is very impulsive and reckless, even putting his life at stake to find Carly despite Chicago being a war zone. Robert Epps had to stop his friend from doing something based on an impulsive personality. He is also a violently protective boyfriend, flailing a gun in Dylan Gould's faceafter he threatened Carly and ended up pushing him into one of the Pillars. He does this in retaliation for how he abducted Carly and how Dylan's actions led to the deaths and suffering of many people.
==Comic books==
===Prequel Series===
According to the prequel comics, Sam had his grandfather's glasses since he was twelve years old. However, he shows no interest in them, which was why he tried selling them on eBay in the film.
==Alternate Continuities ==
=== Alternate Timeline ===
In the dark future, Sam was killed by Megatron during the confrontation in Mission City. Both Mikaela and Bumblebee were devastated at their loss and choose to fight in his name. 
===Novelizations ===
Sam's role in the novelization for the films remains the same, with a few notable differences:
* Unlike the film, in the novel, Sam nearly gives in to telling Simmons the truth after the latter threatens his family and Mikaela's dad.
* After Sam saves Optimus Prime from Megatron, the surviving Autobots show their appreciation by bowing their heads to Sam as a sign of respect. In the film, Optimus merely thanks Sam for his life.
* In the film, Sam and Mikaela's kissing scene is on the hood of Bumblebee's car with the other Autobots surrounding them. However, in the novel, Mikaela refuses to take Trent back and begins sprouting car facts before going to the end of the school parking lot and kissed Sam in front of the whole school.
==Skills and abilities== 
* Messenger Intuition
* Athleticism
* Combatant
* Strong-Will: Once a thought enters his mind, Sam never gives up. He used his survivalist skills throughthe franchise, from the battle of Mission City to the battle of Chicago. After six years of Decepticon attacks, he has stayed allied with the Autobots. 
* High-level Intelligence
* Skilled Detective
* Alien Weapon Proficiency
*Geopolitics: Sam majored it in geo-politics in college, having listed this as one of his skills at his job interviews. Sam applied his knowledge of geopolitics when he realized the Decepticons were going to use the pillars and bring Cybertron to the Earth. He managed to locate them in Chicago.
* Vast Resources: Due to his friendship with Lennox and Optimus Prime, Sam has connections in the military and the government, who paid for Sam's college funds after helping save the world.
==Relationships==
===Family===
*Judy Witwicky - Mother
*Ron Witwicky - Father
*Lee Taylor - Maternal Grandmother
*Archibald Witwicky † - great-great grandfather
*Clarence Witwicky - Great-Grandfather
*Herbert Witwicky - Paternal Grandfather
*Clarice Witwicky - Paternal Grandmother
*Ben Witwicky - Paternal Uncle
*Stan "Sparkplug" Witwicky - Uncle
*Spike Witwicky - Cousin
*Buster Witwicky - Cousin
===Allies===
*Mojo - Pet Dog
*Franklin - Pet Dog
*Miles Lancaster - Former Best Friend and Former Classmate
*Mikaela Banes - Former Love Interest, Ex-Girlfriend, and Ally
*Carly Brooks-Spencer - Girlfriend, Confidante and Ultimate Love Interest
*Autobots - Friends
**Bumblebee - Best Friend, Former Guardian and Surrogate Brother
**Optimus Prime - Close Friend, Savior and Resurrectee
**Ratchet † - Close Friend
**Jazz † - Ally
**Ironhide † - Temporary Enemy, Close Friend and Ally
**Sideswipe - Ally
**Arcee † - Ally
**Chromia † - Ally
**Elita-One † - Ally
**Wheelie - Ally and Former Decepticon Pet
**Brains - Ally and Former Decepticon Pet
**Skids - Close Friend and Ally
**Mudflap - Close Friend and Ally
**Jolt - Ally
**Jetfire - Savior and Ally
**Wreckers 
***Leadfoot - Ally
***Roadbuster - Ally
***Topspin - Ally
**Mirage
**Wheeljack † - Weapon Provider
*Leo Spitz - Ally, Friend and Former Classmate
*NEST - Allies, Friends and Teammates
**William Lennox - Close Friend and Ally
**Robert Epps - Close Friend and Ally
**Stone - Ally
**Graham - Ally
*John Keller - Ally
*Maggie Madsen - Ally
*Glen Whitmann - Ally
*Seymour Simmons - Former Enemy, Ally and Close Friend
*Sector Seven 
**Tom Banachek - Ally
*National Intelligence
**Charlotte Mearing - Ally and Temporary Enemy
*Accuretta Systems 
**Bruce Brazos † - Employer
*Dutch - Ally
*Sarah Lennox - Contact and Ally
*Monique Epps - Contact and Ally
===Enemies===
*Trent DeMarco - Former Bully and Rival
*Decepticons
**Megatron † - Attempted Victim, Attempted Killer, Rival, Former Jailer, Kidnapper and Decepticon Arch-Enemy
**Starscream † - Attempted Killer, Attempted Kidnapper, and Victim
**Barricade † - Interrogator, Attempted Torturer, and Attempted Killer
**Brawl
**Blackout
**Bonecrusher
**Grindor
**Laserbeak - Attempted Killer and Indirect Victim 
**Constructicons 
***Crankcase
***Hatchet
***Crowbar
**Pretenders 
***Alice † - Stalker, Attempted Killer & Former Love Interest
***Lab Assistant Pretender - Stalker
**Soundwave
**The Fallen † - Indirect Victim
**Shockwave †
**Driller
**Sentinel Prime † - Former Ally
*Director Galloway
*Dylann Gould † - Arch-enemy and Victim 
==Killed Decepticons==
*Megatron (stabbed with the AllSpark; first time)
*Starscream (stabed in the eye with the boom-stick)
*Laserbeak (caused)
*Megatronus Prime/The Fallen (Caused)
==Gallery== 
==Trivia==
* Because of Sam's close friendship with Bumblebee and the Autobots, Sam is considered a live-action adaptation of Spike Witwicky, the Autobots' closest human friend in the original cartoon series. Additionally, both Spike and Sam have a relationship with a girl named Carly and have a close and brotherly relationship with their partner, Bumblebee.
** Due to not having mechanical skills like his cartoon counterpart, Sam and his father lacked their nicknames, Spike and Sparkplug.
** They also have different first names. According to the 2005 IDW continuity, Spike's real name is Steven.
** While they are both only children in their respective series, in the comics, Spike has a younger brother, Buster, who Sam is partially based on as well.
* Sam was intended to graduate from Princeton University. However in the second film, his university goes unnamed.
* The way Sam defeats Megatron and Hot Rod destroyed Unicron is very similar: both protagonists of the film use an object of raw power (the AllSpark and the Matrix, respectively) and merge it with the antagonist's spark, defeating them (Megatron and Unicron)
* During the events of the film, Sam was sixteen years old.
* Shia LaBeouf almost didn't get his role as Sam Witwicky because he was around twenty years old at the time of the film. However, after a convincing audition and makeup, he convinced the creators they could pass him off as a teenager.
** Ironically, Hailee Steinfeld was also 20 years old when she filmed her scenes for Bumblebee. Her character Charlie was 18.
* In the film, Sam tries to rescue Bumblebee from Sector Seven under the bridge and yells for them to stop hurting him. His reactions were genuine due to Michael Bay telling the actor that his mother was in a car accident during the film's production.
** Sam's terror when he is in the building with Megatron is also genuine; his actor was clinging to the statue on the edge of a building with no safety net and harness only.
* Optimus saving Sam is meant to pay homage to the original Superman film, where Clark similarly saves Lois. **Prime has saved Sam's life at least six times: attempting to rescue him Mikaela from Sector Seven, then Megatron at least three times (once in Transformers and twice in Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen), and twice in the third film (both from a Decepticon streaming Sam and his allies and from Driller.
* Preparing for his role as Sam Witwicky, Shia LaBeouf worked out five days a week for three months and gained twenty-five pounds of muscle. However, his character relies on agility rather than strength.
* Sam tells Mikaela that there's more to her than meets the eye, a reference to the theme song featured in The Transformers premiere "More Than Meets the Eye."
* He killed Megatron in the first film and Starscream in the third film. This makes Revenge of the Fallen the only time Sam didn't kill a Decepticon.
** However, he did indirectly cause the Fallen's downfall by resurrecting Optimus Prime, as only Primes can kill the Fallen.
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