If you ask a random person on the street about Xavier Samuel, they’ll probably mention the hair. Or the vampires. It’s hard to escape the shadow of Riley Biers from The Twilight Saga: Eclipse, the role that basically acted as a rocket ship for his career back in 2010. But honestly, if you only know him as the guy who got torn apart by a wolf and a sparkly vampire, you’re missing the most interesting half of his resume.
Xavier Samuel tv shows have quietly become some of the most compelling pieces of Australian and international television over the last decade. He’s not just a "movie guy" who does the occasional guest spot. He’s a shapeshifter. From prestige dramas to gritty thrillers, the small screen is where Samuel actually gets to flex the muscles that a blockbuster often constrains.
The Breakthrough You Probably Missed
Most people assume his career started with Eclipse. It didn't.
His real start was on a dusty farm in the Australian Outback. Way back in 2003, a young Samuel popped up in McLeod’s Daughters. It was a tiny role—a character named Jason—but it was the first time the camera caught that specific intensity he brings to every part. It’s funny looking back at those early frames; he looks like a kid, but the screen presence is already there.
For a long time after that, he was the "next big thing" in Australian film, starring in cult classics like The Loved Ones. But then the TV bug bit again, and this time, it was much more ambitious.
Why "Seven Types of Ambiguity" Changed Everything
In 2017, the landscape of Australian television shifted. We started seeing these incredibly dense, novelistic miniseries that felt more like six-hour movies. Seven Types of Ambiguity was at the forefront of this, and Samuel was right in the thick of it.
He played Simon Heywood. The show is basically a psychological puzzle box about a kidnapping, told from seven different perspectives.
What Samuel did here was subtle. He played a man obsessed with an ex-girlfriend, but he didn't play him as a cliché stalker. He made Simon human, desperate, and—as the title suggests—deeply ambiguous. It was a masterclass in "less is more." If you want to see why he keeps getting cast in prestige TV, start here.
The Pivot to Global Streaming
The thing about Xavier Samuel is that he’s very good at playing characters who are slightly "off." Not necessarily evil, but people who have a secret or a crack in their foundation.
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Amazon’s Tell Me Your Secrets (2021) leaned into this perfectly. He played Kit Parker, a convicted serial killer. It sounds like a typical thriller trope, right? But Samuel played against the grain. He brought a terrifyingly soft-spoken vulnerability to the role that made you feel deeply uncomfortable for even slightly empathizing with him.
It’s a specific kind of bravery to play someone that unlikable and still make the audience unable to look away.
The Disney+ Shift and "The Clearing"
Fast forward to 2023. Disney+ decided to tackle one of the darkest chapters in Australian history: the real-life cult "The Family." The resulting show, The Clearing, is a fever dream of bleached hair and psychological manipulation.
Samuel played Colin Garrison.
In a cast that included heavyweights like Guy Pearce and Miranda Otto, Samuel held his own by being the grounded emotional center of his specific storyline. The show deals with the aftermath of trauma, and Samuel’s performance felt raw in a way we hadn't seen from him before. He wasn't the pretty boy or the villain. He was just a man caught in a nightmare.
What’s Happening in 2026?
It’s a massive year for him. If you’ve been keeping up with the trades, you know that The Killings: Parrish Station is the one everyone is talking about.
This Stan Original is a cosmic mystery-horror hybrid. Samuel is starring alongside Mia Wasikowska—a reunion that fans have been waiting for since their early film days. The show is doing something wild with two timelines. Samuel is part of the 1987 thread, dealing with a gruesome massacre at a remote research station.
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It’s gritty. It’s cold. It looks like the kind of show that wins a dozen AACTA awards.
But that's not all. We've also got:
- Apple Cider Vinegar: A scripted series about the rise and fall of a wellness empire (inspired by true events). Samuel plays Erik, and early looks suggest it’s a sharp departure from his usual dark drama.
- The Last Anniversary: Based on the Liane Moriarty book. He plays Zeke. This is the "Big Little Lies" vibe—polished, suburban, but with a rotting core.
- The Stolen Girl: A 2025/2026 crossover project where he plays Marcus Turner.
The "Elvis" Effect on His TV Career
It’s worth mentioning Baz Luhrmann’s Elvis. Even though it’s a movie, Samuel’s performance as Scotty Moore (Elvis's guitarist) changed how TV casting directors see him.
He proved he could do "period accurate" without it feeling like a costume party. Since that film, his TV roles have become more diverse. He’s no longer the "indie darling" or the "horror guy." He’s the guy you hire when you need a character who feels like they actually lived in 1954, or 1987, or a dystopian future.
How to Watch Xavier Samuel’s Best TV Work
If you’re looking to binge his filmography, you have to bounce around a bit.
| Show Title | Platform (Region Dependent) | Character |
|---|---|---|
| The Clearing | Disney+ / Hulu | Colin Garrison |
| Tell Me Your Secrets | Amazon Prime | Kit Parker |
| Seven Types of Ambiguity | ABC iview / Sundance Now | Simon Heywood |
| The Lost Flowers of Alice Hart | Amazon Prime | Moss |
| Riot | ABC iview | Jim Walker |
Note: Availability changes based on where you live, but these are the usual suspects.
Honestly, if you only have time for one, watch Riot. It’s a TV movie/miniseries about the 1978 origins of the Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras. Samuel plays Jim Walker, and it is perhaps his most soulful, stripped-back performance. It’s a reminder that beneath the Hollywood polish, he’s a deeply political and empathetic actor.
Actionable Next Steps
If you want to stay ahead of the curve on Xavier Samuel's 2026 slate:
- Watch the "The Killings: Parrish Station" trailer on Stan: It’s the best indicator of where his career is heading—darker, more complex, and more "un-Hollywood."
- Track "Apple Cider Vinegar" on Netflix/Hulu: This is likely to be his most "viral" show because of the true-crime/wellness scam hook.
- Go back to "Seven Types of Ambiguity": If you want to understand his range, this is the foundational text. It’s often overlooked but remains his most nuanced work to date.
Xavier Samuel isn't just a survivor of the YA blockbuster era; he's one of the few who successfully translated that fame into a legitimate, long-term TV career by choosing projects that actually matter.