A bizarre encounter at a Hollywood film premiere has now left film buffs baffled for a quarter of a century – and internet sleuths are still no closer to solving the mystery.
The tale starts when a young Scottish woman was walking through the LA streets in 2000, when she suddenly came across the Grauman’s Chinese Theatre – a venue made famous by the nearly 200 celebrity handprints and autographs immortalised in the concrete.
As she passed she saw a group of ladies clustered around a striking-looking man, all screaming ‘We love you Sam!’ as they pestered him with autograph books.
An opportunist – she got her own signature on a scrap of paper and even had a picture snapped as he beamed into the camera.
The American even chatted to her, asking if she had seen his new flick – to which she politely replied ‘not yet’.Â
But when she took the photo home, she realised that she still had no idea who the man was.Â
There are no records of an actor under the name ‘Sam Freedim’, which is what the autograph appears to read, and even the most ardent cinephiles have been unable to identify the mystery man.
The mystery was reignited last week when one of the girl’s relatives contacted the Kermode and Mayo film review podcast to see if anyone there could help.Â
The woman’s brother shared the snaps in 2022, posting: ‘I’m a bit of a film buff and have no idea who the guy in the photos is. Every few years the subject pops up and it has me stumped.Â
Do YOU know who the mystery man is? Email [email protected]Â
 The tale starts when a young Scottish woman was walking through the LA streets in 2000, when she suddenly came across the Grauman’s Chinese Theatre – a venue made famous by the nearly 200 celebrity handprints and autographs immortalised in the concrete
As she passed she saw a group of ladies clustered around a striking-looking man, all screaming ‘We love you Sam!’ as they pestered him with autograph books
An opportunist – the young woman got her own signature on a scrap of paper and even had a picture snapped as he beamed into the camera
‘My sister had assumed he was something to do with Mission Impossible 2 film as there was lots of posters for that around but I think that’s perhaps just a coincidence.’
The bewildering tale has been puzzled over by movie fans ever since it was first posted, with no one able to satisfy the group with a definitive answer.
Pictures from the event show film posters for Mission Impossible 2 – which was released in July 2000 and starred Tom Cruise alongside Thandiwe Newton and Brendan Gleeson.
Among the cast and crew there are only two male Sams, a model department runner and a production medic. No one has the word ‘Free’, which also appears to be in the autograph.
The young woman’s brother speculated that the word ‘Freedom’ may have been added to the autograph because she was Scottish – as a reference to the cry of Braveheart star Mel Gibson.
In other photos, you can also see posters for The Perfect Storm – a disaster drama also released in 2000 which included George Clooney, Mark Wahlberg and Indiana Jones actress Karen Allen among its stars.
But among the male cast there was only a metal fabricator called Sam and a cg sequence superviser called Samir.
In the snaps the man can be seen surrounded by a huge crowd of fans, all reaching for the chance to meet him.
Wearing orange sunglasses, the chiseled hunk has slicked back, thick black hair and wears a dark blue v neck jumper.
There are no records of an actor under the name ‘Sam Freedim’, which is what the autograph appears to read, and even the most ardent cinephiles have been unable to identify the mystery man. Pictured: Her friend’s photos and autograph from the day
Pictures from the event show film posters for Mission Impossible 2 – which was released in July 2000 and starred Tom Cruise alongside Thandiwe Newton and Brendan Gleeson
He has a pronounced dimple on his chin, a Henry Cavill-esq jawline and a wide, open smile.
Wild guesses on the group have included Sam Raimi, the director of the Evil Dead franchise, Jeff Goldblum and even Sam Travolta – the brother of Grease star John.
Posters also claimed it could have been Greys Anatomy actor Josh Hopkins, who was in The Perfect Storm, while some speculated that it could have been JJ Abrams.
Others speculated that he may have been a cast member for a pop culture show such as the Bachelor, while still more joked that he may simply have been a handsome man in the right place at the right time – soaking up the attention.
The original poster, taking to the forum earlier this month, laughed: ‘It’s so annoying knowing my sister could have just asked someone who he was at the time!Â
‘She did say that he asked her at the time if she had seen his film. She politely said ‘not yet’.Â
‘So it would suggest he is in movies but who knows!
‘I’ve spent so long last time going though every Sam possible.
‘I know I’m going to be lying on my death bed one day and this will be the thing that pops into my head.’
